First, I had never heard of the graphic novels before this film came out, and I still haven't read any. So this review will be based purely on my experience of watching the story/characters for the first time with no set up whatsoever. Going in, all I knew was what I got from the first trailer: Some group of expert criminals, or perhaps just criminals, were needed for something or other. That's it. Honestly, the trailer did nothing for me so I wasn't even going to watch the thing if it weren't for everyone singing its praises from the rooftops.
Which leads me to my second note. I feel that the film may have been inadvertently oversold to me, since all the rooftop praising made my expectations high (and I'm pretty tough on movies to begin with). However, I'll still be reviewing the film as objectively as I can, with notice of where certain expectations were disappointed or reached.
As always, my reviews are spoiler free... and long.
The film is a sci-fi fantasy epic, not unlike the Star Wars series, only with less humans. Well, less traditional humans. During fantasy films centered in space I have always found the ratio between humans and aliens to be important. To be more specific, I have always found it more important for there to be more alien races than humans. I find this helps submerge the viewer (or reader) into the universe much easier and more quickly because it prevents us from getting comfortable seeing humans on screen to then suddenly have a jarring introduction of a being or creature that has tentacles coming out of its eyes (for example). In that, the film half achieved the goal. I was quickly submerged and given more alien races than humans... However, so many of those alien races -- the vast majority in fact -- were humanoid. Meaning they look just like humans except for one or two differences. This isn't the only film to do this -- and seeing as it is based off graphic novels it is not merely the film's choices either -- but I could never help but feel cheated when given a sci-fi/fantasy universe where the creators have free reign over their imagination and the best they give us is: "Here is a pink human... Now a blue one, but he has a horn-like bump on his head. Yeah. That's good."
Rainbow spectrum of humanoids aside, the visuals in this film were stunning. Both the physical and computer generated (but especially the computer generated) scenery and effects were top notch which made this film a captivating watch. There isn't much I can say here without going into spoilers so I'll just leave it with this: They used the physical when they could, and it made a difference, and when they had to resort to computer generation it looked real and natural even. So, galactic kudos to the men and women on that graphics team. Four for you, Graphics Team. You go, Graphics Team.
The characters, however, I felt could have used more work and attention. This is one of those areas I mentioned before that didn't meet my raised expectations. Going in, I figured the characters where going to be knocked out of the park, because the key to a successful story (and therefore film) is for the characters to be solid, complex, and engaging. Basically, they have to make us care. To be fair, my brother (with whom I saw the film) did warn me that Gamora (played by Zoe Saldana) was very flat and lacked proper character development. All of which I found to be painfully true. Moreover I don't believe this was Saldana's best performance. Perhaps I'm just growing jaded (i.e. bored) by seeing the actress in these roles, but I didn't believe her half the time. But she wasn't the only one I had qualms with. I felt Drax (played by Dave Bautista) had similar problems, though he at least had a more developed character arc (but not by much).
And I know I'm going to get a lot of hate for this, but I wasn't won over by Groot (the tree) either. Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel) was fun to watch and provided a lot of laughs, but I didn't have the bond with him that I should have. And, looking back, I can't even recall what his back story was, if he even had one. I feel that he did but the fact that its not memorable is a problem in itself. Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper) and Peter Quill (played by Chris Pratt) were the two most developed and well done characters, in my opinion. They each had a memorable backstory that propelled them forward and provided continued motivation for their actions. Also (and I don't know how much of this is Cooper's work or Sean Gunn's, who is credited as being the "On Set Rocket") the mannerisms and expressions that Rocket had made for a very entertaining and engaging character, which, needless to say, is an important quality to have in a character that is not actually there.
Pratt, as the songs went, stole the show. In that, the film did not disappoint. Though he's been acting since at least the 2000s, I had not seen him in much before this film, and the roles I have seen him in were from over half a decade ago. So it felt as if I was watching a new actor making his debut. And damn if he did not blow up the scene. He was very natural in his portrayal of the character and I felt the most connection to him than anyone else on cast. Coupled with Rocket, he was the source of the humor, jokes, and drama that actually landed.
Speaking of which, a lot of the dialogue hit my ear wrong. They were either forced jokes (as in trying too hard to be funny), painfully obvious observations (looking at you, Gamora), underdeveloped/chopped romance, or failed attempts at badass one-liners. Thankfully, it was not the majority of the film that suffered these flaws, which allowed for the film itself to still be a fun watch. But I do feel that a lot of moments could have been better and bigger if a line(s) were different or cut out all together. On the other hand, there were a lot of small moments that were made better and bigger due to priceless dialogue (that'll be the work of Rocket and Peter, mostly). I just wish the film were made completely of the latter rather than suffering so much from the former.
The villain of the film, Ronan (played by Lee Pace), was your typical genocidal foe. His backstory was explained and referenced throughout, though I felt like it was almost unimportant. This could have been purely my take, but it felt as if they said: "Okay, so this is why this dude is so angry. [insert exposition] Now back to the main characters!" Also the film had the classic insufferable elements so many others do with their villains. You know the ones: Monologuing; villain clearly has ability and opportunity to kill the heroes but doesn't; bad dialogue; childlike tantrum attitudes, and so on. Though that last one was actually called out by another character in the film, so it's not so much a developmental flaw as it is a personality flaw the character possesses. Which is unfortunate, since that's what kept me from taking the villain seriously. Due to my nonexistent knowledge of the comics, I don't know how much of that is a reflection of Pace's work and how much is just Ronan.
Overall the film was an enjoyable experience, and I would see it again, but I hope they get rid of their crutches before any sequels. Because of the weak character development and all the lines that made me drop my head in disappointment or annoyance, I give the film 3.5 stars out of 5. Sorry, guys. I just can't give you that full 4 stars. Can't do it.
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