"Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2"- A laugh-out-loud and wildly entertaining follow-up that is almost derailed by a messy first act, but quickly corrects itself and delivers!

Rating: 9/10 (11 May 2017)

The first "Guardians of the Galaxy" was a magical film, and one of those rare examples of "fun" in its purest form. Seeing it in a packed theater with the right audience was mind-blowing, and it was a joy seeing everyone come together to just have a blast with its delightful characters. But even beyond that, it was also an expertly written, often stirring and enthralling and even sometimes surprisingly emotional work thanks to the talents of director James Gunn and his wonderful cast. Heck, the first movie literally had a scene where a gun-toting, smack-talking raccoon cried because his living-tree best friend appeared to die... and I heard more than a few sniffles coming from the audience. It was clearly doing something right and pressing all of the correct buttons.
And I'm more than happy to report that despite a shaky first act that nearly lost me, Gunn's follow-up "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" delivers much of the same high-quality entertainment of its predecessor. It's got all of our favorite characters, an intriguing new story filled to burst with shocks and laughs, and the same big heart that made part one such a rampant success. It might be a tab bit rough around the edges... but it pulls through and gives you more of exactly what you want to see.
The Guardians may be in over their head when member Rocket (voice of Bradley Cooper) decides to steal some tech from a race of prestigious beings known as "The Sovereign," who respond by attacking the them and leaving them stranded on an uncharted alien world. Luckily enough, they soon are greeted by the mysterious god-like Celestial being "Ego" (Kurt Russell), who offers to help them because, well... he also just so happens to be the long- lost father of their leader Peter Quill, aka "StarLord." (Chris Pratt) While Peter catches up with his father, the other members of the team are off on their own adventures, as Gamora (Zoe Saldana) tries to settle the score with her sister Nebula (Karen Gillan), Drax (Dave Bautista) takes a liking to Ego's assistant Mantis (Pom Klementieff) and Rocket and Groot (voice of Vin Diesel) are forced to team up with former-Ravager captain Yondu (Michael Rooker), after the three are captured during a mutiny while the Ravagers try to retrieve the Guardians for a hefty bounty.
The film did initial have me at a bit of a worry. After a spellbinding and hilarious opening action set-piece set to the iconic ELO masterpiece "Mr. Blue Sky", the film does dip into convoluted territory for much of its first act. There's just a bit too much going on a bit too quickly, as new characters are established, old characters are re- established, and an intricate web of sub-plots and B-story lines are set up. It almost lost me for a few minutes there. And I worried the whole film would feel overstuffed and aimless. But fear not, because Mr. Gunn knows exactly what he's doing, and every single thing that it established early on pays off in the later sequences. It might not seem like it at first... but there's a grand plan at play. So I can easily forgive the fact that the first twenty or so minutes doesn't flow particularly well. The pacing and focus quickly corrects itself, and we can see why it needed to speed through so much, so quickly.
Much like the original, a great part of the success of the film lays on its incredible cast. Every single returning player is a phenomena, especially Pratt and Rooker, who are given a lot of emotional pay- off in the film as they deal with their respective issues and arcs. The new cast members are a welcome addition. I especially must give major praise to the genius that is Kurt Russell. I've always been a fan of his, especially in his "crazier" work. ("Big Trouble in Little China" in my opinion being his greatest film.) And he's just outstanding here as the rugged and hilarious and sometimes questionable god-like being Ego. It's the perfect casting.
Writer/director James Gunn is clearly having the time of his life, and his giddy attitude adds a lot to the proceedings. The first "Guardians" most certainly had his fingerprints all over it, but you got a feeling that he was perhaps holding back a bit. But for the sequel? He goes full-on insane in all the best ways! There's so many jokes. So many cameos. So many references. It's just crazy to think about how many zany details Gunn threw in, and I'm sure there's dozens of more in the background that I missed. Every single frame is saturated with pure Gunn mayhem, and I loved it. From the seemingly random insertion of familiar 8-bit video game sound effects into a number of action scenes, to entire sequences written around kitschy old pop-songs, to a climactic moment that I won't spoil, but I'm pretty sure was a giant "Screw you!" gag aimed at a recent high- profile critical disaster... It's so delightfully loving and geeky. And I can't wait to see what Gunn has up his sleeve for "Vol. 3!"
While I do have to dock a few minor points for my issues with the first act of the film, I can't see any fan of the original walking out disappointed. It's not only a great new addition to the ever- expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe... it's just a great, fun film, period. I attended a sold-out screening, and the laughter and cheers and whoops from the audience brought me right back to that same magical feeling I had watching the original. You done good, Mr. Gunn. You done good.
I give "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" a fantastic and near- flawless 9 out of 10.