Review of Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) by Christopher E — 09 Jan 2016

"Guardians of the Galaxy" is not only one of the best Marvel movies to this date, but is one of my favorite movies of all time. "Guardians of the Galaxy" not only encompasses an all-star cast, but consists of dazzling visuals, plenty of laughs, and is the poster boy for superhero films everywhere.

Honestly, many people expected this movie to be a big flop, and not only was it the biggest risk Marvel has taken thus far, but is possibly the best reward we've gotten from Marvel. "Guardians of the Galaxy" is by far one of the best Marvel movies, and although it follows similar patterns that other movies in the franchise have done, it still manages to tell a fresh new story in a unique way.

First and foremost, you can't help but love the talent in this movie. Chris Pratt has really started to carve out a bright future for himself, and he's quickly made it known that he's one of the best that Hollywood has to offer. He brought plenty of likability to his character, and was always able to reply with a smart-ass, yet comical answer. He was one of the best parts of the film, and he was perfect for the character of Peter Quill. Zoe Saldana was great as the female lead, and not only did her character provide a unique story ark, but she was perfect in her role. Bradley Cooper was the real MVP here, as Rocket Raccoon was by far the best character of the entire film. He was the funniest and the wittiest, and you can't help but root (pun intended) for him the whole way through. Vin Diesel as Groot was as good as he was ever going to get, and the power combo of Rocket and Groot are one of the best pairs in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Even though Drax as a character wasn't very flushed out, he still provided many bad-ass moments, and was the pure muscle in this movie. Everyone here really did a great job, and many of these characters will quickly become fan favorites for many people.

The visuals in this movie are actually really impressive. Marvel utilized their budget to the max, and the CGI in this movie was smooth and lifelike. When 2/5 of our main cast are CGI creatures, the CGI has to be great, otherwise the movie would've been a big disappointment. All of the characters and the environment always looked stunning, and this is also one of Marvel's best movies visually. There are actually multiple beautiful, and ravishing shots that you wouldn't see anywhere else, and this movie gets an A+ for that.

What makes this movie stand out is not the action, but the comedy. James Gunn manages to supply us with a great screenplay, and there were plenty of moments where I was dying of laughter. This movie stands out in its own way because both Quill and Rocket always have something smart and brilliant to say, and you should watch this movie for the comedy alone.

The score in this movie was also fun and exhilarating. They managed to bring back many old and classic songs to this new generation, and the soundtrack is something that I wouldn't mind listening to on a daily basis.

The only real problem I had with this movie was that it took many similar aspects from other Marvel movies. There was more than one occasion where I said to myself "I'm pretty sure I saw this same scene in another movie...Avengers? No no, Iron Man?" There was a lack of originality at times, and although this movie is one of the most unique of the Marvel series, it definitely has more than one familiar moments.

This movie also follows the Marvel tradition of embracing a weak and forgettable villain. Although it was obvious that Ronan was a force to be reckoned with, the finale was slightly underwhelming, and he is definitely not a memorable part of this movie.

In the end, although this movie has a couple of minor flaws, I still loved this movie. There's no other word to describe it, except that this movie was nearly perfect. There are plenty of heartfelt moments, along with a bundle of laughs for the whole family. This is one of Marvel's best, and is definitely a treasure.