Marvel's Big Gamble

Rating: 9/10 (5 August 2014)

It is important to note that this could have been the be all and end all for the Marvel Cinematic Universe; if Guardians of the Galaxy flopped, then Marvel's prospects for the future would not look too bright to say the least. What was considered a huge gamble on Marvel's part actually pays off. 'Guardians of the Galaxy' is a bold and brave new step in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and an unexpected delight of 2014. This is extremely surprising given that this is the first Marvel film to take part almost entirely in another galaxy, feature a talking animal and protagonists that do not possess super powers; they are all mercenaries, bounty hunters and rogues.
The characters are new to us (unless you are familiar with the source material); all of the protagonists are fun characters to watch on screen and it is refreshing to see a new batch of superheroes fight forces of evil rather than the usual members of The Avengers. There is Peter Quill, a mercenary played by Chris Pratt, he is able to infuse energy to the film that makes him stand out whenever he is on screen. Gamora (Zoe Saldana) who oozes charm and sexiness, Drax (Dave Bautista) a character that takes every comment a bit too literally, Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel) a walking, talking tree is limited to a three word vocabulary and Rocket Racoon (voiced by Bradley Cooper). Rocket could have easily been the character that drags the film down, but this is not at all the truth here. Cooper gives him wit and some of the biggest laughs in the film are attributable to him.
It is a shame then when the villain turns up and has to spoil some of the fun. Ronan (Lee Pace) poses little of a threat for the team of misfits and his depth as a character is limited to "I am the bad guy, I do evil things". Maybe it is because I am spoilt by Loki that I crave a villain that is as witty, smart and deadly as him. To be fair to Pace he does have a physical presence, the director; James Gunn just does not know what to do with him. He is on the side-lines; his screen time is diminished in favour of beefing up the roles for the protagonists.
The central plot revolves around the Guardians of the Galaxy and Ronan wanting to claim an object known as the orb for themselves. This would normally be business as usual for people familiar with previous entries in the series like 'The Avengers' and 'Thor: The Dark World'. But, what Guardians does different from those films is it turns them upside down. It acknowledges when it is silly and stupid, ensuring that we are always laughing with it, not at it. It never takes itself too seriously and when you think it will, the scene ends on a completely different note. It is the funniest comic book film thus far and I would go as far to say that it has more laughs than 75% of films claiming to be "comedies". The film is made even more enjoyable from the vibrant direction by James Gunn and the sensational cinematography, which will have your jaw dropping repeatedly.
Special mention has to go to the music that is used throughout the film. The director manages to get away with using songs from the 70s, this is because Quill has his own mix tape from when he was a child, playing his music throughout the film. 'Hooked on a Feeling' by Blue Swede works with the frenetic, oddball nature of the film and is sure to have you smiling as to the ingenuity and daring of including it.
The set pieces are incredible and it puts the ones shown in 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' to shame. A particular fun and clever sequence is a jail break that is attempted by our five heroes. The visuals are stellar and it is a nice showcase for the characters abilities and how they work together as a team. Through sheer luck, they manage to survive and it highlights that these characters never have a plan; they just improvise and rarely seem to know what at all they are doing.
'Guardians of the Galaxy' proves that comic book films sometimes can be just witty, hilarious and light hearted fun. It is fair to say this is the best film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since 'The Avengers'. James Gunn does what I would have thought impossible; he creates not only a great comic book film, but an incredible sci-fi film as well. I just can't wait to see where the characters venture to next.