Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 - movie review

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2

Plot: Set to the backdrop of Awesome Mixtape #2, 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2' continues the team's adventures as they unravel the mystery of Peter Quill's true parentage.
Cast: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista
Director: James Gunn
Certificate: 12A (moderate fantasy action violence, sex references, bad language)
Runtime: 2hrs 16 mins
Release Date: Friday 28th April 2017

OOGA CHAKA OOGA OOGA OOGA CHAKA OOGA OOGA! I remember, way back when, at San Diego Comic Con during the Marvel panel, Kevin Feige stepped on stage to reveal their newest film would be Guardians Of The Galaxy released in 2014. He explained the characters of Star Lord, Gamora, Drax the Destroyer, Rocket Raccoon and Groot. Whilst not being in that audience, I'm quietly confident that ninety percent of the response was "HUH??". No one knew who these people were let alone how they would fit into an already rapidly expanding universe. But we needn't worry because Guardians turned out to be one of Marvel's top films. With that all out of the way, let's just say the hype for Vol. 2 was quite large. Truth be told, it was gigantic. Now this is where I need to be careful; Vol. 2 is lots and lots of fun but it may also be the weakest entry into the MCU so far. Don't panic though. That doesn't mean it's the end of the world.

I might as well get the bad news over and done with first because, whilst parts of this review may not seem like it, this is an overall positive review. I liked the film. I laughed a lot, it was good to see these amazing characters return and the action is just as bonkers as before. Unfortunately, Vol. 2 has no plot, well, at least no plot that is worthwhile. In short, the first hour of Vol. 2 plays out like a high budget made for TV special and then the final hour and a bit is where the movie starts to appear. The problem is, when the film does start up, the proceedings are incredibly rushed to try and cram what should have been two hours worth of material into its remaining runtime. Vol. 2 begins with a simple premise; Guardians help a group of people, there's an issue with their deal and the Guardians end up stranded on a planet and have to split up because of various conveniences. Sadly, it's those conveniences that didn't work for this sequel. Too many stories are running in tandem with each other and because of that, the film has no endgame, build up or sense of direction. By splitting the team up, for a significant portion of this film, we lack the enigmatic team dynamic that made the first film so spectacular. Star Lord and Ego (Kurt Russell) are on their own little escapade. Drax and newcomer, Mantis (Pom Klementieff) are connecting in their own unique manner. Gamora and Nebula are putting sibling rivalry to the test. As for Rocket and Baby Groot, they catch up with Yondu and the other Ravengers to deal with even more issues. Now, these work admirably on their own but together, the word disjointed springs to mind. 

Yondu and Rocket have by far the best relationship and the idea of a spin-off road trip with the two of them is a fantastic hypothetical idea. Bradley Cooper does another great job as the voice of Rocket but a hefty amount of praise should be awarded to Sean Gunn who provides the motion capture. My only issue with Rocket this time round is his drastic personality change. In the first, he was self-centered and egotistical but he has a good heart and began to care for the others. In this, Rocket is a grade A arsehole which made him ludicrously unlikeable in some scenes. However, it's Michael Rooker who steals the whole damn show. Rooker is easily the best part of the film thanks to his hilarious one liners, heartfelt story arc and total badassery. Come the end of the film, Yondu was one of the only characters on my mind. On the other hand, quite a large section of this film centers on the Ravagers and specific disagreements within their merry band. Yondu and Kraglin (Sean Gunn) are great with their little Captain and Second in Command pairing but the other background and supporting Ravagers either overreact to annoyance or continually make the same joke over and over again to the point where I'm on my knees begging for it to end. I'm looking at you Taserface. Now to answer what I'm sure is a burning question for many; how is Baby Groot? He's an adorable little maniac and he certainly has some fantastic scenes that had me howling with laughter. The only criticism I have about him was that I thought he was a little underutilized. I'm not saying he needn't become like a Minions type character but, at times, I felt a distinct lack of Baby Groot. That definitely doesn't spoil his opening scene though. All I'm going to say is...Mr. Blue Sky. That's my only hint. When that starts, prepare for laughs. 

FACT: James Gunn revealed that he and Kevin Feige wanted David Bowie to appear in a cameo before his death on January 10, 2016.

Another great success from the first Guardians was the now Platinum selling Awesome Mix Vol. 1. I have the CD myself and I can listen to it in the car and constantly sing along. In some ways, the idea of a retro soundtrack with throwback songs has become a new fad and Guardians led the way for it. Awesome Mix Vol. 2 is entertaining and I will most likely purchase it (when it's slightly cheaper) but it isn't as phenomenal as the first which is quite a good representation of the films quality too. That being said, any film with Fleetwood Mac's 'The Chain' has me instantly hooked. Also, keep an ear out for an original song featuring an incredibly unexpected cameo (a common occurrence in this film). There are a metric shit-ton of cameos, Easter Eggs and references that tease us sweaty fanboys. I will say though, the now infamous after credit scenes (all 5 of them) are slightly underwhelming. There's only one that teases something greater to come but the rest are new or continuations​ of jokes. This is another flaw I encountered with Vol. 2. As I've repeatedly said, this is a funny film. A very funny film. Perhaps almost too funny. Judging from the trailers and noticing how little they were giving away plot-wise, my only fear was that it would prioritise the comedy over story. To my disappointment, that's exactly how I felt. With jokes from every single character flying thick and fast nonstop, James Gunn's script struggles to include an actual plot. As the credits has concluded rolling and the lights of the screen faded up, whilst those around me seemed impressed and entertained, my first exclamation was "Was that it? I mean, it was fun and a good laugh but what  was the actual point?" A big shock to the system for me is that Vol. 2 plays out much more like a standalone film with the tiniest connection to the overall MCU which seemed like an odd choice considering it's a film that probably ties into the forthcoming Infinity War the most. Thanos is nowhere to be seen. There are no references to other Marvel films. I completely understand why Gunn decided to do this and respect this ballsy choice however, even films like Ant-Man, an entry with low-scale stakes, has links to other films. I just can't help but feel that there was so much potential for this sequel and they decided to play the safe route and make what is basically, filler. If the MCU were a television series, Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 would be that episode where nothing of real consequence happens. Think of it like this - when you see the film, study the position the characters are in when the film starts and then when it finishes, compare to how they are now. Unless I wasn't paying attention, very little development has been made.

On the upside in regards to the characters, they are still well realised. Chris Pratt completely owns it as Star Lord and continues to prove himself​ as one of Hollywood's top leading men. Star Lord goes through quite a hectic trip in this film and whilst I wasn't a fan of how the Ego storyline played out (mostly because it didn't for a long time), Pratt doesn't just do his normal happy-go-lucky, average Joe schtick. Speaking of Ego, Kurt Russell is a fantastic addition to this universe but I only wish his character had more of a purpose. Considering the trailers have already revealed this and it's fairly common news, explaining that Kurt Russell plays Ego the Living Planet (yes, we've strayed to THAT side of Marvel) and he's also Star Lord's father, is NOT a spoiler. I do, however, see no reason that it had to be Ego. I believe that another character in place of Ego may have been more beneficial for the film rather than having to explain how a planet was able to inseminate a human being. Gamora and Nebula have perhaps the second most intriguing pairing, mostly because it does provide some insight into their upbringing. Zoe Saldana is terrific as always and Karen Gillan is certainly better than she was in the first Guardians. Mantis is a brilliant new entry into this team and it's through her where I thought we were going to get some great character development. And we do... well, sort of. I'm not sure if it was just the fact that I have read a few issues of the comics but I feel like, through Mantis' power of feeling people's' emotions through touch, we are told things we already knew, just in a more spotlighted and poignant manner. Klementieff does a great job with her naivety and shares quite a powerful scene with Drax but as for these so called 'revelations' I didn't feel that much for them. 

If you were to cast your minds back to 2014, no one could have predicted that Dave Bautista would have been the main source of comedic relief but he was and we were tremendously entertained because of it. Obviously, Gunn and his team heard our cheers of glee and decide to ramp up Drax's humour to the extreme for the sequel. Unfortunately, this comes at the expense of any action for Drax. His name is Drax the DESTROYER and he gets one fight scene at the beginning and that's it for him. He does not fight at all for the rest of the film. Instead, he's just there in the background making Drax-style quips. They made me laugh but I preferred it when he could both kick and laugh my ass off. We also have another trophy to put on the shelf of disappointing Marvel villains. As seems like a commonplace saying now, Marvel continue to shit the bed with their villains. One has not been advertised but all I'll say is that because of this villain, the final act descends into a CGI orgy which becomes a tad difficult to concentrate on. The other villain might just rank alongside 'The Mandarin' (title used loosely) from Iron Man 3 as the worst they've ever produced. The Sovereign are an alien race who are covered in gold. Originally, I thought they'd be a plot device to help circumstances get in motion but they keep reappearing like the annoying fly that just won't leave you alone.

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 is wonderful fun and I'd be lying if I didn't say that I had a good time with it. The humour is on point (even if there is a little too much of it), revisiting these characters is a constant joy and it certainly has some crowd pleasing moments that will be remembered for a long time to come. Nevertheless, I did find this sequel to lack a reason for existing. The plot doesn't actually begin until halfway through the second act but by that point, I had already guessed what would happen. The best comparison I can give this film is that it's like a series of sketches. All of which are very funny but tied together, it's choppy, messy and ultimately lacking a point. We Are Groot?? Erm, almost.

My Verdict: 6.5/10

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