"Better a fallen rocket than never a burst of light."
~ Tom Stoppard, The Invention of Love

Wednesday, May 17, 2017

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017, PG-13)

I was only one weekend off from seeing this when it opened, but that was still too long.  I haven’t quite made up my mind yet as to whether this movie is a tiny bit better or falls just a hair short of the first installment.  What I do know is that it’s a great film that makes for a terrific time at the movies (premise spoilers.)

After their big “saving the galaxy” adventure from the first film, the now self-styled Guardians having been working together, using their reputation to get odd protection/muscle jobs here and there.  When Rocket gets on the wrong side of a client (because of course he does,) the crew lands in hot water, and soon, more than just the issues of their immediate past are after them.  Chased by Sovereigns (the wronged clients) and Ravagers alike, the Guardians’ lives are additionally complicated by the arrival of Gamora’s murderous adopted sister Nebula and, to Peter’s utter shock, his non-human birth father Ego.

When it comes to the plot, I don’t think this film hangs together quite as well as the first one.  It excels at the group dynamic and the emotional beats, and it brings some awesome jokes and a few really kickass action scenes, but the nuts and bolts of the story itself are a little shakier.  While most of the threads ultimately come together, it feels kind of disjointed in the middle and drags a bit.  The whole thing with Ego is a great concept that’s mostly executed really well (Kurt Russell does a fantastic job,) but there are places where he gets too comic-book corny for me.  Also, side note – I loved Drax in the first movie, but he doesn’t work as well for me here.  I’m afraid he’s suffering from Strax Syndrome (courtesy of Doctor Who):  a highly-entertaining, very particular source of humor in his first appearance, a generic violent buffoon when he next appears.  Of the writing for the central cast, his was the only one that disappointed me.

While the big picture isn’t quite all it should be, there are oodles and oodles to love throughout the film in individual scenes.  All the main characters (even Drax, briefly) get some good emotional material to work through in addition to some excellent one-liners and badass moments.  I really enjoy the added screentime for Yondu and Nebula – the film opened up Yondu much more for me as a character, and I was drawn in deeply by Nebula’s story (Michael Rooker and Karen Gillan are both great in this movie.)  But oh my gosh, seriously:  Baby Groot.  Until further notice, he is my new favorite thing.  So unbelievably adorable, so funny, still formidable, and I love how his presence can soften the other Guardians and cement the family vibe between them more firmly, with all of them acting as informal parents at different points.  The trailer had assured me that Baby Groot would be just as lovable as full-sized Groot in the first movie, but I had no idea just how amazing he was going to be.  Oh my gosh.

In addition to our heroes, all of whom do great work, the film also features Elizabeth Debicki (who I remember from Baz Luhrman’s Great Gatsby) in a very regal performance as the High Priestess of the Sovereigns, and Pom Klementieff’s Mantis makes a fine addition to the team.  And just for fun, the film is dotted with cool cameos, the best ones naturally being Ben Browder (Crichton!) and Michelle Yeoh (she has to be coming up in the next one, right?  She’s way too awesome to throw away on ten seconds of screentime.)

Warnings

Language, comic-book violence, sexual references, drinking, and thematic elements.

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