Marvel Studios is back with it's second outing this year, furthering along the connective they've prided themselves on after the huge success of Avengers. Up to this point we've seen a decent array of varied characters in Iron Man, Hulk, Thor and Captain America. Black Widow and Hawkeye have been thrown in supporting roles to show the non-powered side of the worlds heroes. Along comes Guardians of the Galaxy which is easily the biggest risk for the studio yet, and that's a point that's been hammered over our heads since the project was announced.
So how does it stand up to the other films in the Marvel cinematic universe? I think this one could end up to be a tough sell for certain viewers, but if you have a funny bone anywhere on your body there has to be something in this film for you to enjoy. James Gunn is clearly having a lot of fun with this story and these characters and it shines through in the interactions. The visuals are top notch with a lot of great action and humor melding into one.
Drax, Rocket, Groot and Star-Lord all get great laugh out loud moments and each one brings a different style of humor so it doesn't feel repetitive. Cooper, Diesel, and Pratt in their roles were all fantastic and easily the highlights of the film. Batista as Drax was the biggest surprise of the movie for me. They decided to write him in a way I didn't expect and it really pays off with the tone of the other characters. Zoe Saldana as Gamora was the only one of the group that had moments not quite as memorable as the others and that could be because she was straight forward most of the time.
I don't have a lot of negative things to say towards the finished product. My screening was in 3D and while that's not a format I would choose on my own or even recommend, it worked quite well in this movie giving a lot of scenes the proper depth they needed. Any complaints may go towards a few characters not getting enough screen time. The Collector is highly underused, but Benicio del Toro sells himself in the limited time he was given. Ronan the Accuser is given a bit more to do though still not enough to fully fill out that main villain role and again Lee Pace was great with what he had to do.
Even with those small gripes the pacing of the whole movie was handeled very well as there were never any true slow moments and the scenes zipped by at a good speed. The important thing is that is never felt too long to the point that you want to check your watch and wonder when it will finally be over. There was one main slower moment when the group finally comes together near the end, but it was needed at that point.
As I said before, it's hard to compare this one fully with the other films in the Marvel Studios catalogue. It really opens up the story potentials to where the events of the next Avengers film can begin migrate towards. There weren't any huge direct references to the past movies (one main scene to remain unspoiled), but there were plenty of name drops to a large scope of the world comic fans already know. Guardians of the Galaxy is the most fun comic book film yet, even surpassing the great time I had with Avengers.
I'm riding a pretty high wave of excitement right after seeing the movie so my opinion could change on subsequent viewings, but this has been one of the best times at the theatre I've had since I was kid. It's a movie that is great for a family to go check out together much like Avengers was before it. Yet another success on screen for Marvel Studios that will hopefully translate at the box office.
Thu, July 24, 2014 
