Director: James Gunn
Nominated for: Best Visual Effects
I’m a massive Marvel fan anyway and although before they released The Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) I hadn’t really encountered this group of characters they very quickly became favourites of mine. The interplay between such a dysfunctional group was what made the first film such an enjoyable viewing experience and thankfully they took that interplay and improved on it for this one.
The ever-present Marvel humour is there in full force – often centering around the extraordinarily cute Baby Groot and the various attempts to parent him throughout the film. And Dave Bautista as Drax is upping his game with some brilliant one-liners. Not only that but I love the way he looks at the world – it’s a beautiful thing that shows the audience that there isn’t one “right” way to approach everything. The addition of Mantis, played by the exotic Pom Klementieff, is one that really works. As an empath she gets straight to the feelings of the group and has this wonderful innocence about her. I love the relationship she and Drax form, the simplicity of it is a joy to watch. There’s none of the usual bullshit baggage that we as humans bog ourselves down with. They simply say, and show, exactly what they feel.
In fact the character development of the whole cast is great to watch – it’s keeps the dynamics interesting and feeling organic. The overriding theme to this volume is very much that of family, in all its various guises. Through Gamora and Nebula a light is shone of the dynamics of a sisterly relationship. As a sister I can really relate to that one – you may not always get along but there will always be love there and when the chips are down you’ll always look out for each other. I think they portrayed it really well – even if their relationship is an extremely violent one thanks to the dysfunctional parenting of Thanos! Zoe Saldana and Karen Gillan are excellent in their roles … and I do not praise Karen Gillan lightly as she’s one of those actors that I struggle to connect with.
Then there is Baby Groot – who is quite possibly the cutest thing to grace the screen ever! The Guardians are much more of a family unit now rather than the disparate characters thrown together by circumstance that they were in the first film. Rocket is not only dealing with an identity crisis and working out how he fits into this family but also trying to parent Groot at the same time. Mind you every member of the Guardians parents Groot – even Drax albeit somewhat reluctantly (which is ironic considering he is the only one who has actually ever been a parent before.) There is a sequence at the end that is just heart warming where Groot brings the whole team together.
Parentage and its importance is what drives the narrative of this one with Quill finally meeting his father in Kurt Russell’s Ego. Chris Pratt goes from strength to strength, maintaining his excellent comedic stylings while very much pulling the emotional heartstrings throughout the film. Ego looks wonderful at first glance – everything that Quill has spent his life looking for since his mother died. But he turns out to be very much a poisoned chalice – and somewhat crazy on an epic scale. It highlights the idea of nature versus nurture. Ego may be Quill’s biological dad but he was definitely raised by Yondu and owes the man he has become to him.
The new adversaries for this film – the Sovereign’s – are a bit strange especially in the way they approach combat. There is an element of it being a video game as the fighter pilots are situated in these weird little pods far removed from the action. As such there isn’t the same sense of actual, physical danger, as they’re not actually involved in the field of combat. I guess that adds to their sense of omnipotence though.
I found Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 to be much more emotional than the first film, but then this seems to be a trend in the MCU. The visual effects are once again top-notch and do the important job of enhancing the narrative of the film. The two are so intertwined which is the sign of excellent visual effects. The Ravager funeral is stunning – a cosmic firework display of epic proportions! And the battle between Quill and Ego really shows off the skills of the artists involved including the building of an anatomically correct being in stages while on the fly in the middle of a fight scene. I also particularly enjoy the scene where Yondu recovers his psychic fin and just wreaks havoc on his mutinous crew. It’s a wonderful marriage of visual effects, music and choreography.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 has upped the game for the whole of the MCU but then it is part of the next Phase leading up to the next epic event within the MCU that will be The Avengers: Infinity Wars … and I for one cannot wait for that event!!
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