By Guardians of the Galaxy has caused quite a stir in the Flixist Community. It’s blown up on Twitter, Facebook, and I’ve even heard some of my non-fan friends discussing it for some reason. It’s got the kind of pull I haven’t seen since Marvel debuted the first Iron Man movie.
Even if I don’t completely like it myself, it’s still an invigoration of the tired Marvel Studios plan, so folks have been heaping praise. But I wanted to know what folks liked (or did not like) about it specifically. Thanks to Flixist Community Discusses, we’ll discover why Guardians of the Galaxy may or may not be successful in what it set out to do
Gathered from the comments and Twitter, here’s what the Flixist Community thinks of Guardians of the Galaxy. Spoilers ahead!
Here are a few comments from community members who really liked the film!
NeoShinGundam:
I AM GROOT!!!
Anime Dad:
James Gunned for the top and nailed it.
@TalkingMagnets:
Regardless of little flaws, it succeeds leaps and bounds in the shear effort to give the audience the best time possible…the most unabashed piece of indulgence I’ve been treated to in a long time.
Nate:
I’m glad they kept Groot to his standard comic book dialogue. And I’m impressed that Vin Diesel took the role only saying three(4) words. Did he do the mocap for Groot or just the voice?
Taytor Tot:
Guardians was the most fun I’ve had in the theaters in a long time. The movie didn’t take itself super serious, but at the same time, it had some genuinely heartfelt moments as well.
In some ways, I think it may be one of the best Marvel movies to date. At no time did it feel bogged down by exposition like most origin stories, or first films in a franchise/series. It also felt super honest to me. I agree with Nick that at times the language was crude (but tame compared to some of Gunn’s other projects like Lollipop Chainsaw), but it didn’t feel fake, smarmy, or over-dramatic. At times, it reminded me of the way my friends and I talk to each other.
On that note, I was pleased with the friendship that developed between the characters. Sure, there was the obligatory conflict before learning to trust each other, but I believed they could be friends/teammates more than the Avengers crew.
Overall, I was extremely pleased with everything from the beginning to the end, unique soundtrack included. I didn’t leave the theater disappointed and haven’t stopped recommending it to my friends and family.
Here are two community members who didn’t like the film due to a lack of oomph. I’m paraphrasing, but one of them is me so whatever.
Geoff Henao (Cool Guy/Taco Supreme):
It was meh. For a film I had so much hype and excitement for (both for the film, but what it would ultimately represent for the future of the Marvel Films universe), I felt let down. Sure, the tone was solid and very fitting of Guardians of the Galaxy, and yeah, it showed that Marvel could take risks and be just as successful and prosperous as their other, low-risk films have been. However, it felt formulaic and a bit dead. I appreciate the fact that it wasn’t an origin story, but it wasn’t a very captivating one, either. I’m excited for GOTG 2 because of the seeds they planted in this one that can be explored later on (Who Peter Quill’s father is, the expansion of the cosmic universe and the importance of the Kree/Skull, Comso, etc.). Great cast, great tone, but ultimately empty film.
Nick Valdez (Flixist News Editor and Guardians Reviewer)
Looking back I can’t clearly recall very much of what I saw. Sure it’s fun (and I stand by what I wrote in the review), but it might’ve been more hollow than I realized. It’s different from what Marvel has done so far, but just barely. It’s got standard adventure tropes that work because they’ve never been used in a Marvel film, but the references to the outside world wear thin (along with the juvenile, superfluous use of hoarse language). I guess you can liken it to Star Wars in that way. A fantastical world full of regular joes. If you’re willing to be a part of the ride, then you’re going to have fun. But if you find it off-putting even slightly (or somehow miss most of nostalgic gags aimed at a certain generation), prepare to be totally alienated.
And these community members like the film but have the most spoiler filled contributions. Enjoy at your own risk!
Travis Boswell:
Although I really enjoyed The Winter Soldier, I think Guardians is the most complete Marvel film yet. The humor hit the mark like 90% of the time, especially Drax’s lines. I had a great theater experience because the crowd was laughing their asses off through most of it. I haven’t heard an audience laugh that often in a movie in quite a while.
And they even nailed the dramatic elements. Starlord’s scene with his mother’s present near the end was incredible. I teared up and I really can’t think of another Marvel superhero movie that made me so emotional.
Alec Kubas-Meyer (Flixist Reviews/Features Editor/Cool Guy):
I thought it was awesome, and probably Marvel’s best movie thus far. I’ve never read a Marvel comic in my life, but by cultural osmosis I’d heard about a lot of the big characters, but every single aspect of Guardians was new to me. (All I knew was that there was a raccoon and Chris Pratt was jacked now.) My expectations were set by the ridiculous hype, and they were totally met (and probably exceeded).
My biggest problem with it was a total lack of clarity about character powers. The green one jumped crazy high at one point, but never did that before or after. She didn’t seem so overly strong, so that made absolutely no sense. And if it wasn’t for Raccoon saying, “No! You’ll die!” I would have had no idea that him making that shrine thing would have killed him, because his powers seemed pretty extensive. (Not that it mattered in the end.) But I mean, that movie is basically Chris Pratt being amazing and definitely the best soundtrack to a superhero film. There’s some cool action and stuff, too.I’m still waiting on the comic book movie that makes me want to read comic books, though. This wasn’t it.
Matthew Razak (Flixist Editor-in-Chief/Cooly McCoolerson):
This was easily my favorite Marvel film in a while. That might be because I’m a big space opera/science-fiction fan, but it’s probably because James Gunn is fucking awesome and knows how to have fun. It’s great that it wasn’t just fun, but also touching.
Spoliers: When Rocket lost Groot and Drax sat down and started rubbing his head I almost lost it.
Nate:
“They got my dick message!”
With Disney/Marvel, we’ve come to expect a level of quality from their films, and Guardians meets it. A lot of people say that this film has been the biggest risk Marvel has taken, and while I agree to a degree, they went very safe in plot and story telling. And announcing there would be a Guardians 2 before 1 even made theatres, made the already predictable plot even more so. *spoiler* Announcing that made Groot’s apparent death have less meaning, as there would be no way the second movie would be made without him/it.
With already knowing people have a love for these characters and that it will rake in cash, I hope they actually make the next film as risky as this one should have been.
Thanos’ presence felt like Nick Fury’s in Iron Man 2. Forced for the sake of introducing a character further. Which worked for Fury as his role is expanded movie to movie, but if Thanos’ presence is just being around around until he becomes the big bad in whichever avengers movie it is from now, why make him linger? Also, if they have him be the main antagonist in Guardians 2, then gain a power up with the Gauntlet and be the big bad in an Avengers movie; I’d be sad, as it is just retelling a rise to evil power similar to what they did with Loki. I’d rather see Kang or Civil War if that is the case.
Scissors:
Spot on with the Thanos bit, he was pretty much just shoehorned into the film for the sake of build up. Especially since they’re building him up now and he’s suppose to be the baddy in Avengers 3. Not Avengers 2, but 3. All this build up to Thanos is making them squander the potential of other villains and is one of the reasons many of the villains in the Marvel Studios films are very forgettable. Each film alluding to Thanos is just taking the power away from any other villains. As Drax put it in the film Ronan was just a pawn of Thanos. Every time they remind you of Thanos in these films it’s just saying X villain is nothing compared to Thanos.
By your comments, it seems you all like Guardians due to its pleasant mix of humor, nostalgia, and how the cast bounces off of each other. It seems like one of the main problems is the extended Marvel universe around them. Thanos is a huge part of this film. Although the brunt of Galaxy would have you believe that it’s not the case, Thanos is mentioned several times, forced into scenes that grind the movie to a halt, and makes all other villains seem tame in comparison.
It’s sort of like that running before crawling analogy. As much as folks accepted the generics this time, will they be okay with a sequel that does it again? What about when more of the comic book stuff makes it in? We’re fine with talking trees and raccoons, but what about giant talking god statues? Or Josh Brolin in purpleface?
What did you think of Guardians of the Galaxy? Comments or suggestions? Keep an eye out for future discussion opportunities!