Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 | Dir: James Gunn | PG | ★★★★
In 2014 Guardians of the Galaxy became the unlikeliest of Blockbusters. Starring the used to be chubby guy from Parks and Rec (Chris Pratt), the blue chick from Avatar but this time she’s green (Zoe Saldana), a genius level talking raccoon (Bradley Cooper) and a monosyllabic tree named Groot (Vin Diesel).
On paper this was possibly the worst idea in cinema history but somehow Marvel studios turned this scrappy idea into a $773 million grossing behemoth. In limited release so far Vol.2 has already hit the $100 million mark and looks set to join the billion dollar club before the end of it’s cinema run.
Returning to the big screen for Vol.2 are all the principle players with the addition of a few extra surprises including Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell and David Hasselhoff in a very funny cameo.
The story kicks off where Vol.1 left the Guardians launching their fractured unconventional family into unknown parts of the universe. Following the theme of what it means to be a family, Chris Pratt’s character Starlord discovers his long lost father in the form of Kurt Russell as Ego, an egomaniacal interplanetary god like figure.
Boasting a sharp script littered with snappy one liners and a neon retro soundtrack that backs up the nostalgic 1980’s video game vibe of this unconventional space opera which is teamed with some spectacular CGI visuals that recall films like Bladerunner and The Fifth Element.
All said and done Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 is two hours of flashy, funny, escapist silliness that is probably the most fun you will have in a cinema this year.
Clinton Little
