Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – Film Review

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is once again written and directed by James Gunn, who wrote and directed the 2014 film, Guardians of the Galaxy, and this film stars Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, and more, returning once again as the Guardians of the Galaxy, and this film further explores Peter Quill aka Star Lord’s parentage.

Now I know I did not review the 2014 film Guardians of the Galaxy, and the reason why is because I did not make movie reviews back in 2014, but I do just wanna say that I do love that first movie quite a bit. Up until that point, every superhero movie was about really famous superheroes like Iron Man, The Hulk, Thor, those types of heroes that pretty much everybody knows who they are. But in 2014 when Marvel Studios released Guardians of the Galaxy, it took everybody by surprise because not everybody knew who the Guardians of the Galaxy were, and now since the release of that movie, a bunch more people know who they are.

Zoe Saldana (left) as Gamora, Chris Pratt (center) as Peter Quill / Star-Lord, and Dave Bautista (right) as Drax the Destroyer in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)

Now talking about Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, the heroes that we know and love are back, and believe it or not, I believe that this movie is actually funnier than that first film. The first movie was hilarious, but this movie tops it in every way, in fact there are
sometimes in which I would call this movie a straight up comedy with action as a side element. Also, all of the jokes were funny. Even some of the best comedy movies have a few jokes that don’t work or aren’t too funny, whereas Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 has an abundance of jokes and they all hit, and literally make you belly-laugh. I saw this movie with my mom, and there were quite a few times where we couldn’t help but literally laugh out loud because something that a character said was just absolutely hilarious.

Also, the action in this movie is an absolute blast to watch. This is probably due to the incredible CGI, outstanding choreography, and absolutely mind-melting visual effects! Seriously every time we see our heroes on screen fighting, I was always on the edge of my seat, having an absolute blast, and something that I loved about this movie is that there are so many times in which we see the Guardians fighting off villains, and them looking really awesome, and they tell jokes at the same time. It’s so funny, and it just reminded me how good superhero comedy movies can really be.

Dave Bautista (left) as Drax the Destroyer and Pom Klementieff (right) as Mantis in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)

Now a lot of people complain that Marvel movies don’t have good villains. I’ve even seen lots of the biggest Marvel movie fans say that. I can gladly say that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 has the best villains in any Marvel movie I have ever seen. In fact the first time we really see the big baddie of the movie, I was shocked, and I really loved how it all turned out, it did not feel forced at all, and it just worked.

However, I do think this movie does have a bit of pacing issues, that are quite noticeable at times, but even though those pacing problems were there, it didn’t stop me from having so much fun.

Pom Klementieff plays Mantis in this film, and I think she is an absolutely amazing addition to this film, because not only is she just an overall funny character, but she is actually quite badass during a few scenes. She actually added a lot to the emotional side of this movie, and that was something that took me by surprise.

Now, no spoilers because I hate spoiling movies, but the ending to this movie was really breathtaking. The entire third act was some of the best action I have ever seen in a superhero movie ever, and I mean that. The actual final ending was truly surprising to me, and it was very emotional, and I think it is one of the most brave things Marvel has ever done in any of their films so far.

There were a lot of people saying that this movie was not as good as the first movie, but to be honest with you, I think Vol. 2 is loads better than that first film, because this movie further builds upon our characters, we learn more about them. Also, the action is more amazing, the jokes are funnier, and of course, the soundtrack. The soundtrack I also thought was a better soundtrack than the first movie’s soundtrack, and had incredibly iconic smash hit songs.

In-Summary: James Gunn delivers a sequel that is a major step-up from the first film, improving on not only the incredible eye-candy action sequences, but our heroes that we first got to see in 2014.

Overall Grade: A

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sequences of sci-fi action and violence, language, and brief suggestive content

Cast: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Michael Rooker, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper

Directed by: James Gunn

Distributed by: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Running Time: 136 minutes