[yasr_overall_rating]
Set to the backdrop of Awesome Mixtape #2, ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’ continues the team’s adventures as they unravel the mystery of Peter Quill’s true parentage.
As my friend and I sat at the press screening to #GotGVol2, staring at the giant projected image of James Gunn’s ragtag team of anti-Avengers searing through space, Blue Swede’s “Hooked on a Feeling” latched on to my brain. Catchy and lightly rebellious, the song perfectly illustrates the first volume’s wit and anarchic vibe (it certainly got $800 million-worth of global audiences hooked on its feelings). Studio honcho Kevin Feige took a gamble on a relatively inexperienced, indie horror director, who got his start with cheap-o Troma films (“Tromeo & Juliet”) and moved on to a career in screenwriting (“Dawn of the Dead”), with the occasional directorial venture (“Slither”). Feige’s gamble paid off, big time. Gunn’s talents – his trademark wit and visual energy – were magnified by the first volume’s giant budget, instead of getting lost amidst the FX (see: Colin Trevorrow’s disastrous “Jurassic World”). Gunn maintained the perfect equilibrium of weird but not too weird, bombastic but not too overwhelming, funny but not too cocky, its humor steeped in characters rather than pop-culture references or, for that matter, references to other Marvel films.
So, as I hummed the tune, my apprehension grew. I began reading too much into the cheesy poster in front of me: was it going to be yet another soulless Marvel SFX extravaganza, a retread of the first film, its originality recycled and blown-out to the nth degree? To my relief, my rising fears were swiftly eradicated with the opening sequence, which again showcases the director’s incredible skill at knowing exactly what the audience wants and how to deliver it: the GotG crew, all together, exchanging quips and light banter in face of imminent peril. And then THAT Groot credit sequence starts, putting any doubts I may have had to rest. Taking over scripting duties, Gunn has taken over entirely; we are in his world now. Vol. 2 doesn’t achieve the near-impossible feat of topping the original, but it comes damn close, and it left me breathlessly anticipating Vol. 3, already in pre-production by the director and his team.
The cast being in on the joke is part of the reason why it all works so well. There’s barely any slapstick or forced improvisation, but the delivery is constantly on-point. Chris Pratt’s Star-Lord remains the actor’s best character since his gut-bustlingly clueless Andy Dwyer graced the small screens in “Parks and Recreation.” The palpable camaraderie on set – I imagine Gunn kept it low-key despite the stratospheric budget – allows Pratt to be natural, which grounds the film’s insane happenings in a much-needed relatability. Unusual for a Marvel flick, he has real (and really self-aware) chemistry with Zoe Saldana’s emerald-hued Gamora, who, unlike most women in this testosterone universe, is a fully fleshed-out, kick-ass character, with a violent sister rivalry (a returning Karen Gillan as the Frankenstein-like Nebula). Dave Bautista’s Drax surprised me to no end the first time around, an intimidating beast with a warm heart and absolutely no speech filter, and here continues to shine in some of the film’s highlights – most involving his scenes with the “ugly on the outside, beautiful on the inside” alien Mantis (the otherworldly Pom Klementieff).
Gunn’s frequent collaborator Michael Rooker returns as Star-Lord’s adoptive father Yondu, in an expanded role – and you can never give TOO much screen time to Michael Rooker. As for the film’s central digital characters – Bradley Cooper’s Rocket Raccoon and Vin Diesel’s Baby Groot – the former’s storyline delves deeper into the furry character’s insecurities, while the latter actor continues to cash in the millions, Vin’s voice now contorted by computers to sound child-like and barely recognizable. That said, there’s no denying that Baby Groot is friggin’ adorable. Other memorable characters include Kurt Russell’s Ego – his plot-line with Star Lord is an apocalyptic reunion that literally echoes through space; Elizabeth Debicki’s High Priestess Ayesha, a golden, statuesque, prideful goddess; Chris Sullivan as the hilarious TaserFace… and a cameo that I will let you discover. Sometimes I like a good cliffhanger.
Giddy on the ridiculousness of its own scope and concept, the film jets along from well-structured scene to scene: Drax hanging on to the back of a spaceship as it hurtles through a forest; Gamora slicing a beast in half with her sword; Baby Groot trying to help his friends escape from prison… The list goes on and on: I never thought a David Hasselhoff reference would make me bend over in laughter again, but there you go; a scene involving an immediate need of scotch tape is one of the year’s highlights so far; Yondu descending through the air, grasping his “magical whistle stick” and shouting, “Yo, I’m Mary Poppins!” may just be another.
The soundtrack, from Fleetwood Mac’s “The Chain” to Cheap Trick’s “Surrender,” matches the first film’s retro catchiness, and Gunn does a fine job contrasting the futuristic space visuals against old-school tunes, but there’s a tad of “too muchness” to it. Scale it back a bit next time, Jimmy. Despite a subtly satirical undertone running through it, “GotGVol2” also can’t help but give in to the well-established Marvel tropes from time to time – FX overload, stretched-out ending (do these films really need to be over two hours?), some expositional dialogue – yet for the most part, it avoids most of the studios’ output’s tedious, predictable pratfalls. Gunn steps into the same river twice and comes out a champion swimmer.
PS: Stay after the credits for FIVE post-credit scenes!
In theaters Friday, May 5th
