Okay so this week I decided to not recommend a film but instead to just talk about the highly anticipated Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Now I know this film isn’t released in the U.S yet but luckily I live in San Diego and well it was released last friday in Mexico. I, along with probably a large majority of people, was very eager to witness the sequel to what many believe to be one of the best films in the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe for those that aren’t into Marvel). From what I had seen in the trailers leading up to its release I expected this film to be a joy ride from start to finish and to my surprise, I left the theater feeling a bit disappointed that it didn’t live up to the hype. Now don’t get me wrong, I did laugh and was entertained throughout. I really tried to enjoy it simply for what it was. I knew going in to not have high expectations and to simply view it as a fan but even so, it left me wanting more. It does deliver on the action sequences and in the visuals but story wise, it lacked.
Overall, the film isn’t bad, if you’re a fan of the first or just a fan of previous Marvel films, then I’m sure you’ll love this one as well. It’s fast paced and it features the same characters with the same witty dialogue of the first….
AND THIS IS EXACTLY WHY I DISLIKED PARTS OF THE FILM
I felt James Gunn tried too hard to imitate the same winning formula the first film had and this is why the film didn’t deliver at times. The CGI, although good, was used way too much. I know it’s a superhero film but at times it felt too exaggerated. I honestly felt as if I was watching the last Fast & Furious film where the gang never gets hurt despite being attacked by a million guns and cars. We know the characters will ultimately survive in the end but at least make it interesting. This leads to another weak point of the film, Ego. Ego was such a bad villain. We have a character that is supposed to be this all-powerful being who created his own planet and what does he do? Oh yeah he reveals to Peter information that will make him get angry right before he sets his plan in motion. SO CLICHÉ.
Not everything about the film is bad though. I can honestly say the opening sequence was wonderfully made and it sets up the comical tone of the film perfectly. Baby Groot as expected steals the show in every one of his scenes. There is a particular scene that I simply adored. To avoid any spoilers I will just say it involves Rocket and Baby Groot and it is towards the end. The cut and shift from action packed to awkward silence is perfect and is done extremely well. Peter (Chris Pratt) and Gamora (Zoe Saldana) were underused but luckily the supporting cast was excellent and more specifically Yondu (Michael Rooker) delivered one of the film’s best performances.
To sum it up, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 was decent. It doesn’t live up to the first but then again, the first was very hard to top. I still recommend to go watch it. The design and color are so vivid and the action sequences, although too many in my opinion, are executed perfectly. If you can get past my negative points of the film, then you’re in for a joyride.
I hope you are enjoying my posts! Thank you for reading, it means the world to me.
– Pedro Torres
Pedro's Films 