10 – Guardians of the Galaxy
I remember when Guardians of the Galaxy first came out. Nobody except those who knew the comic books had ever really heard of the characters. I was a casual fan of the source material, and so I’d heard the names Star Lord, Drax, and Rocket Raccoon before, but I had no idea who they were or what their stories were. Marvel had to have been taking a huge risk using the characters. But at this point, Marvel was pretty well on top of their game. They seemed to have the golden touch. They pulled it off, and before you knew it, Gamora, Groot, and even smaller characters like Yondu and Nebula became just as well-known as the big three, Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor.
First, there is the phenomenal cast. The leader of the team is Peter Quill / Star Lord, played by Chris Pratt. Pratt was that pudgy guy from Parks and Rec, but he surprised everyone when he came to the screen all ripped and sexy. There was Gamora, played by Zoe Saldana, who people knew from her parts in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, and also the new Star Trek franchise. Nobody had ever really heard the name Dave Bautista before outside of professional wrestling, but he nailed the part of Drax the Destroyer. Then, finally, there was the CGI pair of fan favorites, Rocket and Groot, voiced by gigantic Hollywood superstars, Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel. Throw a couple of other major actors into the mix like Glenn Close, John C. Riley, Benicio del Toro, and Michael Rooker, an you have yourself a stellar cast. Even the film’s bad guys like Ronan the Accuser, Korath, and Nebula, played by Lee Pace, Djimon Honsou, and Karen Gillan were given sufficient attention.
Next, there was the smart script. It made getting to know these unknown character a priority, but it was done smoothly, as part of the story, not as a clunky exposition dump or multiple drawn-out origin stories. It all felt very organic and natural. Guardians of the Galaxy was a good movie first, and a superhero movie second. The story was tight and cohesive, the pacing was quick but not rushed, and the aesthetic was unique. Even the film’s general color pallet was unusual with a lot of purples, pinks, and greens, and yet it totally worked.
And though this was not the first MCU film that mentioned infinity stones, this movie went a long way to describing what they were and why they were important to the MCU’s overall story arch. Even though it seemed completely detached from the rest of the MCU franchise, it was so important to the tapestry of the existing movies. There is a reason why the first three phases of the franchise are called the Infinity Saga. I mean, sure, there was the Aether from Thor: The Dark World, but that was a nebulous liquid that didn’t resemble any kind of stone. Here, we got an actual stone, and we identified what it was. This movie, as it related to the bigger story, brought things closer to the main bad guy, who only had a few minutes of screen time, Thanos, played by Josh Brolin, and his goal to collect all the infinity stones.
This movie got so many things right. It had action, it had humor, and it had adventure, not to mention a little bit of romance. It had family, it had heart, and even several deeply dramatic moments that were surprising. When the movie started, we had no idea who these characters were, and by the end, we really cared about what happened to them. And we wanted more. So hats off to Marvel for pulling a rabbit out of a hat and catching lightning in a bottle yet again.
As I’m thinking about which characters were my favorites, I’m finding it is hard to choose. They were all so unique and they all had their cool moments. Rocket and Groot were really great, but so were Gamora and Drax. But I thin, overall, I’d have to go with Star Lord. He is a cheeky rogue who learns the value of being part of a team, a leader, and a good guy. Oh yeah, I can’t forget the incredible soundtrack. So cool!!!.
Top 10 Favorite Parts
- The fight between Star Lord and Gamora where they meet Rocket and Groot
- The group’s induction into prison. Pratt looked pretty sexy without his shirt on. Just sayin’.
- Groot starting off the escape plan early, throwing everything into chaos.
- Every time Drax took something someone said too literally.
- The explanation of the infinity stones by the Collector.
- The standing up scene where the Guardians officially become a team and agree to attack Ronan to get the stone back.
- The Nova Corps forming the giant net to prevent Ronan’s ship from landing on Xandar.
- The scene where Groot saves everyone by creating a protective cocoon with his branches. “We are Groot.”
- Star Lord distracts Ronan with a dance-off, and the climax where the Guardians come together to hold an infinity stone.
- The aftermath where their criminal records are expunged. “I have a family. They’re alive because of you.”