Sunday, May 7, 2017

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

If I had to pick a movie to compare to Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, I'd set its predecessor aside and turn instead to 2008's Speed Racer, itself a brightly lit, nostalgic experience. And, as long-time readers of this blog already know, that's high praise in these parts.

Want more? When the credits finally finished, I turned to my wife and said, "I think that's the greatest comedy I've ever seen." It wasn't entirely an off-the-cuff remark: I'd been reflecting on that through most of the movie.

That was a day ago, and over the past twenty-four hours I've found myself revisiting that statement, questioning it, and applying caveats. It's certainly one of the most fun comedies I've ever seen; perhaps not the most reflective or contemplative. And then there are questions of originality, influence, and a host of other factors. Is it really better than Princess Bride, Shaun of the Dead, or a host of other classics? Is it really in the same genre?

Who cares? That's not the point.

It's that visceral reaction that deserves recognition. It's entirely possible this won't hold up to repeat viewings at all, or it will settle into a far more modest spot. In fact, that's likely. But it doesn't change the fact that the experience of sitting in a theater watching this yesterday was an absolute gift.

And if you're a genre fan, I invite you to stop reading, drive to the nearest theater, and buy a ticket. Seriously, don't read another word. Go see it before you trip over the countless spoilers littered below.

That was actually a joke - I couldn't spoil this movie if I tried. Hell, the trailers did their best to show us as many twists, key moments, and important sequences as they could squeeze in a minute and a half, and it didn't diminish the impact in the slightest. Because this movie wasn't built around story - it was built around character relationships.

Well, those and jokes. If we're being honest, it was mostly built around jokes, but those were built out of relationships, so it works out.

Every moment of this movie, every argument and fight, was about characters, their love for one another (or, in the case of the villains, for themselves), and their personalities. Every time the movie is presented with a choice between showing you something epic and a character moment, it doesn't just show the character moment: it flaunts it. And right off the bat, you'll love it for it.

I wish I could say that I found myself deeply invested in the characters' journeys. There was a lot here to sink your teeth into in that respect - every character was given at least one arc built around a relationship with another character - but, if I'm being completely honest, I was laughing too hard to care. Intellectually, I love what Gunn did with Nebula, Yondu, Gamora, Rocket, the list goes on.., but these didn't click with me emotionally on this viewing.

I don't think that's a failing, at all. The content was there, but at the end of the day, I connected with this as a comedy and loved every minute at that level. Your mileage may vary - I'm seeing plenty of testimonials from people who loved other aspects.

It's not hard to see why. The first Guardians, while a lot of fun, contained a couple cloying flaws. Gamora was under-utilized, the team was under-powered, and the scale was too small, while the story was perhaps a little too big. This time, every one of those issues is addressed, several in the opening fight.

In addition, Gunn manages to improve on the already fantastic setting. This is outer space filtered through the collective imagination of the 1970's and 80's, a neon-lit universe of rock and pop music album covers.

There's more to say. So much more. Fans of Marvel Comics will get whiplash catching the references and Easter eggs. The post-credit stingers alone are just awesome.

But I think I've gone on long enough. I went into the theater expecting something great, and this still caught me off guard. If it's not the best blockbuster of the summer, this will be a year to remember.