Worth seeing...but #37?

Rating: 8/10 (11 August 2014)

Currently, about a week after its debut, "Guardians of the Galaxy" is ranked #37 on IMDb. I assume that by the time you read my review it will have dropped in the rankings--mostly because the most rabid fans were probably the first to see and review it and the rest of us folks will be getting to it a bit later. This is often the case with big blockbuster films--though with an overall score of about 8.7, it's bound to stay well within IMDb's top 250. As for me, I really enjoyed the movie but cannot agree that the film is THAT good. Excellent yes....#37...nah.
The best thing going for "Guardians" is that with the huge glut of super-hero films during the last decade or so, this one manages to stand apart--something that cannot be said of most of the films. There is just a certain sameness that make me less than thrilled with all the comic book hero films. But a few, like this film and "Scott Pilgrim" manage to seem different enough to merit your rushing to see them. So, of course, rush to see this one
So how is it different? Well, there are MANY ways. Chris Pratt (Peter Quill) is NOT your typical super-hero. He is NOT a disaffected millionaire or guy bitten by a spider or a super-being from outer space- -he's actually pretty ordinary in most ways. But, like his character on "Parks and Recreation", Pratt is a bit of a goof-ball--a dopey but likable guy who manages to do well despite himself. This is kind of cute--but fortunately the film is NOT just about a dopey goof-ball but he's assisted by a strange group of new-found friends with strange abilities. Another way this is VERY different is that almost the entire film takes place in outer space. While "Thor" and "Superman" have their brief moments in space, "Guardians" is almost completely there--and as such has a HUGE reliance on special effects and CGI. It is a SUPER- expensive film because of this and its all-star cast--coming in at about $170,000,000--which is greater than the gross national product of many nations!!! So, although the film has earned over $100,000,000. it has a long way to go to earn back its costs--though I am pretty sure this will soon be the case. As for these special effects, they are beautiful and the film has such an other-worldly look as it jumps from one weird planet to another. So, the film is absolutely jam-packed with eye candy. Finally, the dialog (mostly from Pratt but also due a lot to his new friend, a VERY sentient raccoon) is amazingly strange. Often crude, it sounds much like the dialog was spiced up a bit here and there by 13 year-olds. While I usually don't like this, it DOES make the film very different.
So what's not to like? Well, not much. However, because the story has so much action and CGI, you do sacrifice a bit when it comes to plot, back story of many of the characters and you might just feel a bit overwhelmed. Still, it's the sort of overwhelmed I don't mind feeling from time to time.
By the way, if you do see the film, you'll certainly enjoy the obligatory Stan Lee cameo--it's one of the better ones I can recall.