#Movie #RECAP Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Hey folks! Time for another one of these!
So I went to see GotG Vol. 2 last night...

...And here’s my quick review!

Let’s say it right away, I really, really enjoyed the film!
It was everything I hoped for.. and then some!

In typical James Gunn fashion, it was a really fun fast-paced adventure, with great dialogues, a ton of heart and even some fun violence!
I got surprised how fun, colorful and frantic it was! James Gunn even outdid himself in my eyes, there were a ton of particularly inventive and impressive shots!
Also side note on the 3D: I always hate watching 3D films and try to go watch the 2D version usually, but none was available here... and this is honestly the first time I can say that the 3D both didn’t bother me as usual and even impressed me. (Looking at the opener with the car shot and a similar one later in space).

I was glad to find the Guardians back. The whole story might be slightly smaller in scale, but everything truly revolved around the characters this time around. Even more so than last time.
Even though this was clearly a Star-Lord story, everybody else got their own narrative and developments. Lots of great scenes.
Baby Groot was pretty fun and didn’t annoy me as much as I feared he would. Drax and Rocket totally stole the show. Gamora and Nebula were both awesome and kickass. YONDU... well, not saying anything to spoil the film, but let’s just say I’m both sad and happy as a “Guardians 3000″ fan. There’s some - let’s say - retcons that work well here and provide more background for the first film.

In a way it felt slightly less like a big space opera like the first film did and kind of more like a comic book story this time. Even the way the film opens in media res was pretty reminiscent of comic book issues.

I loved getting to see the whole crew back. The Ravagers were awesome. The “villains” were hilarious. The “real antagonist” of the film was a fun twist (I pretty much expected).
We got more Nebula, which I wanted from the first film.
The new characters were great. Mantis was a nice addition.
I only really missed Cosmo - why can’t they give us Cosmo?!? As for Howard... you’ll see...
And Stan Lee had easily my favorite cameo so far - IT MADE SO MUCH SENSE IN RETROSPECTIVE!!
And Kurt Russell was perfect casting as Star-Lord’s dad. Sort of a mix of two Marvel characters - Ego for the main elements, character, powers, etc. and J’son for the appearance, attitude and “plot twist”. He even got kinda creepy in a THE THING-kind of way during the final confrontation.. great CGi effects, by the by!

James Gunn had fun playing around with this huge cast, breaking the cast off, but not using the traditional cliché “the team breaks apart”, thankfully.
The whole cast was fantastic! I’m just sad they cut Nathan Fillion’s Wonder Man cameo.. sigh.. you could totally see where it would have taken place..!
It felt like another fun adventure with the Guardians of the Galaxy! Maybe not as unique and groundbreaking as the first one was, but a totally worthy successor!

And I’ll say right away, my favorite part of the entire film was the soundtrack! On point, catchy, memorable. Both the soundtrack and the musical score were perfect! And smartly used throughout the film - I can’t stop listening to James Gunn’s great musical choices!
2 last comments to end this recap:
- A ZUNE!!!?!?! To avoid making a Vol. 3 for the Guardian’s appearance in Infinity War, no doubt!
- The Hoff!!???! David GOSHDARN’ Hasselhoff!!!
- All those post-credit scenes were fantastic!! Stan Lee even got a closing scene for his earlier cameo!
[Originally posted on my blog (x)]