In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, the gang is back in its entirety: Star Lord (Chris Pratt), Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), Rocket (Bradley Cooper), and no longer a giant tree creature, Groot (Vin Diesel) is now a baby branch.
Their adventures lead them into the pursuit of an Infinity Stone, a powerful gem once wielded by gods. They hope to find it before anyone else and there are a lot of interested parties — one of them happens to be Star Lord’s long lost father, Ego (Kurt Russell).
We say, “Guardians 2 is every bit as fun as the first and possibly more interesting.”
TAYLOR: With the recent flooding, everyone is a little preoccupied and when the water finishes receding the sun will come out, and occupy everyone’s thoughts with sunshine. Yes, we live in the most beautiful area in the world. Yes, everything is really green. Yes, you have a sunburn, but you must still make time for good movies in the theatre with people you care about. This is that kind of movie.
HOWE: Even if my house was slowly filling with water, I would have made time for this film — it’s that good. I would go as far as saying better and more interesting than the first installment, and that is saying something. This time the story, still packed to the rafters with action, delves a little deeper into the relationships between the crew. It’s been a long time since I have seen a movie that gives you action, comedy, love, and sadness all rolled into one, and it is able to pull it off effortlessly.
FENIN: Hi guys.
TAYLOR: Where did you come from?
FENIN: Well, I wasn’t going to miss this was I? I liked Groot because all he said was “I am Groot,” and that was funny. Star Lord was really cool and there is a twist that I can’t talk about as it will spoil it for the audience. If they want to know what it is they will just have to go see it. Now, who has the popcorn?
TAYLOR: Well, there are still things that arewrong. It’s only a Marvel movie, but it’s just a good one. It’s still silly, cheeky, and pointless. Yet I cared about a relationship in the film — that of Star Lord and his sort of adopted father Yondu (Michael Rooker). I was moved by the gestures the film makes. However, it’s also an action movie so there’s a bunch of explosions and space battles. Unfortunately, as exciting as a space battle sounds, I found myself bored. That boredom was brief and well hidden in the depths of the story. Ultimately, I enjoyed myself immensely, even Kurt Russell couldn’t spoil it for me.
HOWE: Kurt Russell should be up for an Oscar for this role.
Taylor gives Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 4 films per year out of 5.
Howe gives it 4.5 batteries out of 5.
Fenin gives it 4 starblasters out of 5.
— Brian Taylor and Peter Howe are film reviewers based in Vernon. Their column, Reel Reviews, appears every Friday.