Unlike all of the other Marvel films released thus far, Guardians of the Galaxy takes place in the far out part of the galaxy that the people of Earth are blissfully unaware of. Except, of course, for the occasional invasions that take place in New York City and frequent alien abductions.
Guardians is a fresh addition to the Marvel universe, taking a decidedly lighter tone with the pacing and humor of this film. However, don’t be fooled; it is definitely chock full of spectacular fight scenes and entrancing special effects. Also, the groovy soundtrack allows audiences to jam along with Peter Quill during his adventure.
Quill, played marvelously by Chris Pratt (Parks and Recreation, Moneyball), is the pseudo-legendary outlaw Star-Lord, who, as a child, was abducted from Earth by bounty hunters. Now grown, Quill has adopted the outlaw life as his own, though he still holds onto influences and few items from the 1970s and ‘80s era of Earth that he had with him at the time of his abduction, namely a Sony Walkman tape recorder that houses and plays the “Awesome Mix Vol. 1”. In fact, the pop culture references made by Quill throughout the film is one of the most enjoyable parts of the film.
In this film, Star-Lord comes to possess (in typical, outlaw/thieving ways) a mysterious orb that makes him the prime target of some very dangerous people who covet the orb. Immediately after putting this orb into his knapsack, things go awry for Quill. He is hunted down by two separate parties—the bounty hunting duo Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle) and Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel, Fast & Furious 6, The Pacifier), and Gamora (Zoe Saldana, Avatar, Star Trek: Into Darkness), adopted daughter of Thanos—but when all four individuals are arrested by the Nova Corps and taken to a desolate spaceship prison, they decide to band together and escape.
Aided by Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista, WWE Smackdown!, Riddick), they succeed with their escape plan. Before they are able to disband following their newfound freedom, the quintet collectively become a target of Ronan’s (Lee Pace, Pushing Daisies, The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug) wrath due to the fact that they have the mysterious orb, the object of the main villain’s obsession. What ensues are many dazzling starship chases and stylized fight scenes, all culminating into a climax that has you laughing, crying, and cheering at the same time.
While this movie is definitely geared toward comic book and Marvel/superhero movie fans, Guardians has a lot to offer viewers who are unfamiliar with the majority of the Marvel universe. In fact, Guardians should prove to be a good introduction/starting point for anyone wishing to become acquainted with the sub-culture Marvel and its fans have created. Great pop culture references (Footloose was a personal favorite), music (“Hooked on a Feeling” is permanently seared into my brain), and talented actors (film geeks should go wild with glee, just as I did) are all major pluses to this film.
Speaking of actors, it is simply amazing how many actors typically associated with completely different genres make appearances in Guardians. Glenn Close (Fatal Attraction, 101 Dalmatians), John C. Reilly (Chicago, Wreck-It-Ralph), Karen Gillan (Doctor Who, We’ll Take Manhattan), Benicio Del Toro (Traffic, The Usual Suspects), along with many other familiar faces of film and television.
Despite looking like a mish-mosh of plot points and actors on paper, this movie works; it succeeds in producing an enjoyable two hour diversion for most people, and a full-on geek-fest for casual and hardcore fans.