Guardians of the Galaxy Review

This past weekend, Marvel Studios' latest Guardians of the Galaxy shattered August box office records and exceeded modest box-office expectations. This is surprising given that this is the studio's first non-sequel property since 2011's Captain America: The First Avenger. It is also based off an obscure comic from the company and no one figured how well it would do since it's not a big comic and has no big name stars. Well, after seeing the film I can see why Marvel was not skeptical at all. This is their strongest film in their filmography and this is hopefully the start of a great franchise.

The acting here is truly stellar. Chris Pratt is fantastic as the film's lead, Starlord. He puts his all into his role and you can truly feel for him every step of his journey. Watching Pratt's performance reminds me of Robert Downey Jr.'s Iron Man performance, there really is no one else who can play this role as wonderfully as him. The rest of the cast does wonderfully also, with specific praise to Vin Diesel and Bradley Cooper who steal the show with their voice acting performances.

The film's script is its strongest point though. This script written by director James Gunn and Nicole Perlman combines wacky humor, well done character development, and spectacular sci-fi action sequences. Looking back on the film, this is the first Marvel film in a while that actually delivers a strong message that viewers can reflect on. This is a film about loss and how people can gain their lives back after their loss. This is refreshing given that some of Marvel's recent films (i.e. The Avengers) rely on action scenes and leave the message out.

The visual effects are as stunning as the script. Combining both CGI and practical effects, these help tell the story rather than distract from the plot. All in all, Guardians of the Galaxy is a strong film in the Marvel canon. This is my new personal favorite Marvel film and I hope to see these characters be around for a while. Fresh, funny, and exciting, Guardians of the Galaxy is a must-see and worthy of many rewatches.

Rating: 10/10