Movie Review: Guardians of the Galaxy, Rise Above the Rest

By Hailey Duran

Guardians of the Galaxy, directed by James Gunn, at its core is the most heartwarming and friendship orientated Marvel movie to date. The film stars Chris Pratt as Peter Quill, A.K.A Star-Lord, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Bradley Cooper as the voice of Rocket Raccoon, full of cybernetic enhancements, Dave Bautista as the revenge-oriented alien Drax, and Vin Diesel voices Groot. This film has a classic storyline; a band of misfits put aside their differences and come together to save the universe.

The real charm of this film comes from its cast. Pratt brings a boyish charm as Quill, a human trying to find his way around an alien galaxy and Saldana breathes life and empathy into the lost alien assassin Gamora. Cooper especially rises to the challenge of turning a bad-talking raccoon into a likable mainstream character. The best character of film, however, is the humanoid tree Groot. During the 121 minute running time, Groot doesn’t say much, in fact, he can really only say the words “I“, “am”, “Groot” and only in that order but this tree of little words still manages to steal your heart with his unbiased acceptance and playful attitude.

As enjoyable as this movie is, Guardians still has its weak points. Gamora’s adoptive sister, Nebula, played by Karen Gillian, is part-alien, part-cybernetic enhancements. Nebula half being made up of metal, however, is no excuse for Gillian’s stiff performance of the character. Ronin, who is portrayed by Lee Pace, also falls disappointedly flat, giving a lackluster performance as the film’s main villain, a zealous genocidal alien.

Honestly it’s no wonder this movie is a Summer Blockbuster because Guardians of the Galaxy is definitely a must-see for friends and family alike.

Hailey Duran is a recent college grad from Rider University with a degree in Digital Media and Cinema Studies. As a freelance writer, she has come back to her hometown of Canton and is ready to take on the things she loves most; good movies, bad TV, and homegrown food.