On my third viewing of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, I payed close attention to the face of Kurt Russell, who plays Ego. If you’ve watched Michael Douglas in Ant-Man or Robert Downey Jr in Captain America: Civil War, they de-age those actor to depict a pass era to represent what they used to look like in the 1980s. Same thing with Kurt, but unlike those two actors, something was different. Rather go with CGI, they used practical effects & makeup to add more realness to him. Having read it, it blows my mind how the people at Marvel Studios pulled that off. Hell, even getting him as a key role in this movie & he killed every scene, humorous and/or emotional. I’ve never seen a guy at his age just have the time of his life, like he did in this movie.
Vol 2 feels like an individual story compared to the first movie, where there’s more of the central characters, discovering their roles. Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) want to rekindle his relationship with his father, Gamora (Zoe Saldana) being less of a hardass, Drax (Dave Bautista) learning not to be so literal, Baby Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel) learning how to be a better dancer & Rocket Raccoon (voiced by Bradley Cooper). Each person’s story feels like their own “origin” story, where in the first film, it was the team’s “origin”. And while the villain is very threatening to save not just a planet, but civilization, itself, everyone, especially some unlikely characters have to come together and stop it.
Besides the main cast, I have to say that I walked away very impressed by the roles of Michael Rooker’s Yondu & Karen Gillian’s Nebula. Yondu’s a lot more important here than he was in the original, in that, there’s more empathy with him & you tend to feel bad for the things that he did or went through during the course of his journey. Nebula has more depth here too, especially with her scenes with Gamora, which goes further into their sibling rivalry. I reference these two characters, specifically, due to their redemption and each character has their individual moments of that. Same for Pom Klementieff’s Mantis, who’s adorable & interesting in every single way
However, the movie’s story isn’t as tight as it predecessor. With all of the stories going on, you might get a little lost trying to solve most of them, but, since this movie is more character-driven than the first in many aspects, it’s understandable, but I did had moments trying to figure out the movie’s core motive for the main villain. Also, while classic tunes like “Never loved me again” or “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl) are still great listens, the musical nostalgia can get a bit grating, at times.
Despite those small nitpicks, in my opinion, this is a tier 1 Marvel Cinematic Universe film through & through. It’s funny, emotional, action-packed & heart-warming, all in a Two hour & fifteenth package. While the first is a bit better, because the story was more straight-forward, this one is still able to hold its own anyway. Oh & stay for the five credits, it’s well-worth it. What a blast.
4.5 out of 5
Good: It’s bigger, funnier & heartwarming, Kurt Russell is fantastic, Visually alluring
Bad: Plot can feel stretched out, at times
Cameos: I bet so many people got payed!
The Film Wanderer 