Believe it or not, the first time I saw Guardians I came away feeling less than impressed. I couldn't really put my finger on why, it had all the hallmarks of a great Marvel movie, humor, inventive action scenes, a hero (or several) that you could get behind, a potential romance and aliens/creatures that make your jaw drop in awe. But it somehow wasn't the movie I was expecting it to be, and as such, I just didn't gel with it.
But it didn't leave me. I found that the soundtrack had buried it's way into my subconscious, making me dig out the tracks from various compilation albums. And then there was the adorable odd couple in the movie, Rocket and Groot, who I loved much more than I expected to.
So I saw the movie again. And on the second time around I loved it. And I could more easily put my finger on what hadn't worked for me. Now that I've seen it for a third time I'm pleased to say that I still love it, and everything that worked previously still impresses.
Regrettably, it's the performances of the villains that ultimately puts the chink in the Guardians armor. Lee Pace who I loved in Pushing Daisies comes off very hammy in his role of Ronan. I don't know if it's because I'm so used to seeing him play nice guys but I just don't find him believable as someone so ruthless who's supposed to have heartlessly killed thousands of people. Djimon Hounsou who is also usually impressive barely has anything to do. And Karen Gillen's performance of Nebula is little more than a head tilt and a swing of the hips. I'm not a Doctor Who fan so this is the first thing I've seen her in but I was expecting a lot more.
Thankfully, the heroes are where Guardians really shines, and between Chris Pratt's Peter.. sorry, Star Lord, who is bang on with his comic timing and dance moves, the literal Drax (wrestler Dave Bautista) and Rocket and Groot who completely monopolise every scene they're in, it's a joy to watch these characters gain their traction with each other.
Of course you need a woman to balance out all of the testosterone here, and Zoe Saldana brings a beautiful elegance to her character of Gamora. She just needs more of a story arc next time. Kevin Feige I'm looking at you. Stop limiting your amazing actresses to just being there A) as eye candy or B) to stop it from being a sausage fest. The women in your movies are an asset, their characters are interesting and strong, show that to your audience please.
As this is my first DVD/Blu-Ray review I suppose I should also talk about the extras. I didn't get chance to watch them all but there is director commentary, a gag reel, deleted scenes and a minuscule featurette on Avengers: Age of Ultron. It's so short it's not really even worth mentioning. Compared with extras on other Marvel movies I'm not that impressed with these if I'm honest. Where was the Marvel one shot? Where was the cast commentary? Where were the featurettes, behind the scenes etc? This movie had some fantastic sets, costumes, make up, where were the featurettes man?
That aside, as I said at the start, the film looks amazing in 3D with various objects popping out of the screen from time to time, and the HD quality of the Blu-Ray is really beautiful. Don't ask me to get more technical than that as you're asking the wrong person.
If you missed Guardians first time around, make sure it's on your Christmas wish list (along with the soundtrack). 9 out of 10.
Viewing Date - 31st July 2014
UK Release Date - 31st July 2014
UK DVD/Blu-Ray Release Date - 24th November 2014
Cast Overview:
Chris Pratt ~ Peter Quill aka Star Lord
Zoe Saldana ~ Gamora
Dave Bautista ~ Drax
Lee Pace ~ Ronan
Michael Rooker ~ Yondu Udonta
Karen Gillen ~ Nebula
Djimon Hounsou ~ Korath
John C Reilly ~ Corpsman Dev
Glenn Close ~ Nova Prime
Benico Del Toro ~ The Collector
(don't scroll past this point if you don't want to see who voices Rocket and Groot)
Vin Diesel ~ Groot
Bradley Cooper ~ Rocket
Director ~ James Gunn
Writer ~ James Gunn (written by) and Nicole Perlman (written by), Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning (comic book)
Snoozie here (couldn't figure out an account to comment as!) i agree with you about lee pace. i wonder if some of it was down to his costume - that head piece and the heavy make up seem to restrict his movement and facial expression - add that into the fact that he has few lines and they are quite short and it doesn't leave him much to act with!!
ReplyDelete