Not Perfect But Not Bad Either

Rating: 7/10 (14 March 2019)

Since this movie starred Chris Pratt, it's no surprise why I wanted to see it so much.
Now, this movie is far from perfect and with no offense to James Gunn at all, hearing that he won a Best Director award is really over-reaching. I'm not saying he's bad and definitely has potential, but I'd be lying if I said he was, say, Spielberg for example. Again, now THAT is over-reaching. I've seen reviews for both this and GOTG: Vol 2 saying that he was trying too hard to impress people and that the effects are kind of distracting from the story itself; I think I can agree with this. While the effects are actually pretty good--especially with Rocket, Groot and any fight that comes along--if you think about it, the movie is kind of "loud", so to speak, and it'd be better if the story was more important/symbolic than just "ooh, look at this." Now, if that was his intention, I can't say, but it feels like that as you're watching the movie. Plus, some of the acting/dialogue/jokes aren't done very well and are kind of lame in a way. Take Nebula for example; not only does she talk slow sometimes, but also, she's always talking in a breathy kind of way. And this isn't just within the first scene or so; it's through the entire movie, same with Gamora and Ronan without any depth at all. At least sometimes. Chris Pratt is amazing as always but I just think he could be better if he just simply had a better director. Again, no offense to Gunn, but that's just how I feel; same with Colin Trevorrow in Jurassic World. Speaking of Ronan, I do wish he had more depth added to his character, instead of coming across as a whining baby that doesn't get his way. Plus, at the end when the Guardians are holding hands with the Infinity Stone in Quill's hand, I can understand why HE can control it, but what about everyone else that DOESN'T have celestial blood in them? I understand the whole teamwork thing, but if you think about it, it doesn't make much sense at all. Also, "turd blossom"? What does that mean? And "this one here's our booty" is so unintentionally funny that it's pretty obvious that the screenplay isn't exactly the best in the galaxy; pun intended.
However, I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy this film, and not just because of Chris Pratt. The characters are easy to care about, the story is fine, the soundtrack is good, and while the jokes are kinda lame sometimes, you still find yourself strangely laughing anyway, making it the opposite of The Emoji Movie for example. It's also very entertaining, very funny, and definitely has a lot of heart added where, again, it's easy to care about the characters as a whole. Plus, Thanos makes an appearance and Gamora and Nebula are actually pretty hot, same as Pratt. And you get to hear Chris sing, which is always a bonus, as well as his monologue towards the end of the movie.
So overall, this movie is far from perfect and could be better to some regard, but if it's a movie that doesn't take itself too seriously, then you can still get enjoyment out of it without thinking too much about what's going on, or what's going wrong. I wanted to leave this review in order to stand up for this movie as I don't understand why some people hate it. Sure, it's not the best movie in the world, but you can still have fun with it. And maybe with a little more practice/time, James Gunn could be better than ever. I have faith that he can as there is some potential here, and that's coming from a very picky/critical girl.
So, if you like sci-fi or action/adventure films with humor, heart and pretty good visual/special effects, then I recommend this movie that might not disappoint you. You don't even have to read the comics to enjoy it! Just take it as it is and hold on for dear life.