Hilarious, exciting and surprisingly emotionally resonant, Guardians of the Galaxy is absolutely delightful.

After stealing a mysterious orb catches the attention of fanatical despot Ronan the Accuser (Lee Pace), earth born intergalactic outlaw Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) must band together with a rag tag group of criminals consisting of assassin Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), anthropomorphic raccoon Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper) and sentient tree creature Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel) to get the orb into the right hands before being killed by the wrong ones. The team has a lot of opposition from everyone from Gamora’s adopted sister Nebula (Karen Gillan) to Ronan’s right hand Korath the Pursuer (Djimon Hounsou) to Quill’s adopted family/kidnappers the Ravagers.

Going into Guardians, I was very excited. I love the comics upon which it is based and the characters have quickly become favorites of mine. I was so excited that I started to worry that my expectations were so high that the movie could never live up to them. Having now seen it twice in as many days I am happy to report that my expectations were exceeded.

On paper Guardians feels like a huge risk for Marvel given how off beat the characters are and how badly DC did with Green Lantern. A lot of things could have gone wrong here and that makes the fact that it works so well that much more impressive. Director James Gunn has just the right touch to keep the tone consistent while having the confidence to let the story turn dark and sad when it needs to do so. This makes for a movie that is not just fun and funny but also deeply personal at times and have real heart at its core. If Gunn had been content to just deliver a swashbuckling adventure tale with action and comedy I would have been pretty happy with that but it was the extra infusion of real emotional stakes and deeper character connections that really made the movie special. Going in, I didn’t expect to cry before the opening credits rolled but I did and then, miraculously, I was laughing right after them. I did not expect that at all and it was a very welcome element that elevated the movie even higher.

As Marvel’s first introduction to their cosmic line, there was a lot of ground to cover here and while there were a lot of moving parts and a lot of characters here Gunn never lost control of it and it never felt like too much was thrown at the audience. When there is exposition it doesn’t feel boring or workman like and that is a credit not just to the cast but to the excellent screenplay by Nicole Perlman and Gunn. The writing here is crisp and clever that explains while it amuses and brings the audience up to speed without it feeling like a laborious slog. Another thing that I think really helps here is that, while not everyone knows everything all the time, no one is really all that surprised by what is going on because it is the world they live in. Talking raccoon? Sure it is weird but okay. Talking tree? Also weird but again okay. This helps the audience get on board because it is just how things work in the world that’s been built.

Obviously a huge part of what makes this movie work is the comedy. It is easily the funniest movie of the year that is not exclusively billed as a comedy. Unlike other rival cosmic comic films of the past, the comedy doesn’t feel shoe horned in where it doesn’t belong. It comes from quirky characters with unique points of view and it always feels natural and earned. There was never a sour note in the film and given some of the things that go down, that is very impressive.

It is not just all jokes though as the action in the film is top notch and absolutely delivers the goods. The action here, from chases, melee combat, dog fights and a bunch of stuff in between, is always very interesting and creative. With how prolific comic book movies are it is all the more impressive that the action here feels fresh and interesting. Part of it comes from the unique skill sets that each of the characters bring to the table. The capabilities of the cast help this quite a bit and it makes the whole thing feel more fresh and exciting. You have never seen some of this stuff before ever and that is pretty impressive.

Clearly when two of your main characters are a talking raccoon and a talking tree and they are surrounded by a host of space locations and creatures, effects are very important. This is yet another area at which Guardians excels. Groot and Rocket in particular are perfectly realized and the effects never breaks down or looks less than authentic. Likewise the locations and overall aesthetic of the film are spot on taking a page from the ‘used future’ aesthetic seen in Star Wars and Alien. This looks like a place where people live and exist and the places and vehicles show signs of that wear. 

All of the effects, great writing and creative action set ups in the world couldn’t save a movie like this if the cast wasn’t up to the task of making it all believable and once again, this is an area the film dominates. The cast is incredible as a collective and individually excellent. Chris Pratt, an actor known for his comedy chops but not so much with action, is the perfect anchor for the film and his delivery and timing are razor sharp. Pratt handles the action like he was born to it and he manages to handle the emotional scenes with just as much ease. If anyone was skeptical about Pratt going into this movie, they are going to come out with full respect and I think there is zero chance he isn’t a big star after this film.

Zoe Saldana was perfectly cast as Gamora and has all the presence, lethality and vulnerability the part calls for. Gamora is an absolute badass but she is also a fully realized character and Saldana brings her to life impeccably. Bradley Cooper nails Rocket’s voice and erased any misgivings I might have had or any disappointment a different voice actor hadn’t been chosen. This is the best version of Rocket we have ever seen and Cooper was clearly the best choice. This is why you hire an actor of his caliber. After Iron Giant there was no question that Vin Diesel can nail voice acting and he does a ton with Groot despite the fact that all he ever says is ‘I am Groot.’ It is a tall order and Diesel rises to the challenge. Lee Pace has the thankless job of being the heavy here and he does it very well by making Ronan feel like a real threat, without pity and without weakness. Karen Gillan, Benecio Del Toro, Djimon Hounsou, Michael Rooker, Glenn Close, Peter Serafinowicz and John C Reilly all have smaller roles but they are all equally excellent as one would expect from that list of names. 

Of particular note for me, however, was Dave Bautista as Drax. Of all the cast he was the biggest question mark for me as I don’t really follow wrestling and Drax is more than just a stoic muscle bound warrior. I was so impressed by what Bautista brought to the character and he was just right for Drax. This Drax is a little bit different than the one from the comics but in the context of the movie the character is better for it and he is better for having Bautista in the role.

Conclusion [10 out of 10]

Guardians of the Galaxy is not a typical cookie-cutter super hero movie and is instead a film that feels much more like the original Star Wars trilogy than anything we have seen in recent memory. It cannot be overstated just how fun this movie is and as soon as it was over I wanted to watch it again right away. The characters are awesome and so well realized and I would watch them just have conversations and be happy with that. But Guardians of the Galaxy offers so much more than just fun and awesome characters. It is the real deal and the full package and I have a hard time imagining anyone without a stick up their butt not liking it. Go see it now.