Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

If you were worried that this sequel wasn’t going to be able to match the humour, heart, wit and general awesomeness of the 2014 surprise hit, worry no more. This is that rare thing – a sequel that is as good as the original, but without simply rehashing the earlier formula.

Premise:  A few months after the events of the first film, the ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ are making a living as heroes for hire, but tensions still flare within the newly formed group, old (criminal) habits die hard, and soon they have Ravagers and new enemies on their tail.  Meanwhile, Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) learns the truth about his parentage when his long-lost father (Kurt Russell) finally tracks him down.

Verdict:

When the first Guardians of the Galaxy film came out in 2014, no one knew what to expect.  It was Marvel’s riskiest film to date (their biggest departure from the traditional “superhero” genre), starring an up-and-coming actor alongside a CGI talking racoon and humanoid tree.  But the gamble paid off, and the result was one of the most enjoyable and most original films of recent years.

But whereas the element of surprise was arguably the first film’s greatest asset, the weight of expectation could easily have crushed that spark of creativity out of the sequel.  Would the humour be as funny when audiences knew more about what to expect?  Where could the story go without re-treading a variation of the plot from the first film?  How could you possibly top the soundtrack from the first film (which was the fifth best-selling album of 2014)?

“…a singular vision from a filmmaker who has found his perfect material…”

Thankfully, writer and director James Gunn had an answer for all these questions and more, and while I’ll go on to sing the praises of the cast in a moment (spoiler: they’re universally excellent), make no mistake – Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is the product of a singular vision from a filmmaker who has found the perfect material to match his style and humour.  James Gunn deserves serious recognition for having taken one of Marvel’s least well known titles (even as a lifelong comic book fan, I’d never really heard of Guardians of the Galaxy before the first film), and turned it into one of the most creative and entertaining film series around.

Any fears that I had about the sequel not living up to the original film evaporated as soon as the title sequence started – which is one of the best title sequences I've seen in years, and certainly the funniest since last year’s Deadpool title sequence.  This sequence sets the tone for a frenetic and hilarious first act, which sees the team bickering and bantering between themselves while fighting for their lives in a variety of situations.

Proceedings slow down a bit in the middle section, and while the film does lose a little bit of momentum as a result, it’s hard to think of any scenes from the middle of the movie that could have been cut without it negatively impacting on the film as a whole.  A lot of the quieter, more character-based moments take place in this middle section – before the various plot threads all come together in the final act in suitably spectacular style.  Even then, it’s great to see that the film doesn’t simply descend into a maelstrom of CGI action, as it never loses its humour or its heart, which are arguably the two real secrets to the success of the series.

“…the film’s comedy MVP this time around is probably Drax…”

Make no mistake, the film is incredibly funny, and if anything, James Gunn and the actors have developed a better feel for the characters second time around, so their humour really shines through.  Whether it’s Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) moaning about Gamora stealing “his thing”, Gamora (Zoe Saldana) struggling to admit that she has any emotions at all, Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper) failing to master winking or Baby Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel) saying or doing anything, every member of the team gets plenty of comedic moments in which to shine.  The film’s comedy MVP this time around is probably Drax (Dave Bautista), whose inability to filter his thoughts and whose sheer, unadulterated joy and innocence are mined for plenty of laughs – especially when he shares scenes with the equally socially inept Mantis (Pom Klementieff), one of the new characters introduced in this film.

In terms of returning characters, we have Nebula (Karen Gillan) and Yondu (Michael Rooker), both of whom are fleshed out even further, and who (perhaps surprisingly) get given some of the film’s more emotionally dramatic moments.  And it’s in this respect that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 hasn’t lost any of the heart or humanity that added real emotion to the first film – for all the jokes, most of the characters are using humour as an emotional shield to hide behind, which is a theme that is explored particularly in relation to Rocket and Yondu.

The other big new addition to the cast is Kurt Russell, playing Peter’s long-lost father.  A pre-title sequence from 1980 lets the audience know that Kurt Russell is indeed Peter’s father, so we’re spared the whole “is he or isn’t he” trope, and we can instead focus on learning more about Peter’s father and what sort of alien he is (given that Nova Prime confirmed at the end of the first film that Peter’s father was an ancient, unrecognised species).  Kurt Russell's a perfect fit to play Chris Pratt's father, and on a technical note, it has to be said that the de-aging make-up and CGI that’s used in the pre-title sequence to make Kurt Russell look like he did back in the 80s is simply stunning.

“…focuses on exploring the characters, rather than simply sending them on another adventure…”

In terms of plot, one of the best things about this film is that it could not be more different from the first film.  Thanos and the Infinity Stones are mentioned in passing as background information, but they’re not shoehorned into the film in an attempt to set up Avengers: Infinity War, and the decision to set this film in 2014 (just a few months after the first film) means that these events actually take place before Thanos’ appearance in 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron.  Instead, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 focuses first and foremost on exploring the characters introduced in the first film, rather than simply sending them on another quest or adventure along the same lines as last time.  And whereas the first film was about bringing everyone together to form the team, this film splits some of them apart, to allow us to see some different character dynamics from the first film.

I have to mention the soundtrack briefly, as once again, it feels like an integral part of the movie’s DNA.  Like the film itself, the soundtrack to the sequel captures the spirit of the original while also striking out in unexpected directions, and I loved the combination of fantastic classics and hidden gems that I’d never heard before.  The lyrics of one song in particular are even woven into the plot of the film itself.  Needless to say, I downloaded the soundtrack immediately after seeing the film, and have been listening to it ever since.

This film also sets a new record for mid-credit and post-credit scenes in a Marvel film … I counted five in total this time, so make sure you stay ‘til the end.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is a confident and assured sequel, that does a great job of further developing the characters from the first film and their burgeoning relationships.  The recent news that James Gunn will be back to write and direct Vol. 3 could not have been more welcome.  Obviously.