Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 sets a similar tone to the original film right away. The old faces are back, but become more developed with a deeper character study for each of them. The second installment in this film franchise is a much more emotional look at relationships than the original storyline was. When Star-Lord's father appears on the big screen, we know that the struggle between family and friends are going to engulf the storyline. Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax (Dave Bautista), and Rocket (Bradley Cooper) reveal more about themselves than we saw previously, with a cleverly written script. James Gunn (Scooby-Doo) does not get stuck on one character with too much detail, but the audience is given enough information about each one to gain a passion for each. The return of Yondu and Nebula also create character revelations for the audience's emotions to kick in. Their roles in this film are bigger and better.
Okay, I'm missing one character here. Who is it? Oh ya, Baby Groot (Vin Diesel)! Who can forget Baby Groot in such an iconic role? Baby Groot is just there for the ride. His character provides the sheer fun that audiences loved from the first film. I don't think anyone can deny that Baby Groot is cute, awesome, and adorable. James Gunn brings back all of the enjoyable effects from the original film, but reshapes them into a fresh batch of superb filmmaking. Constant action makes us root for the good and bad guys at different times. While the action is fantastic, the main villain is a bit weaker in writing than Ronan was. I was not a huge fan of the concept that Gunn went for, but I still had a heck of a lot of fun.
Of course, I have to finish off this review with a discussion on the soundtrack. NO it is not as good as the first film's soundtrack, but it is a very very close second. Iconic tracks such as "Mr. Blue Sky", "The Chain", and "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" round out the compilation soundtrack. These tracks bring us fun breaks in the film to relax and just zone out. Never before has a movie franchise been as nice to the ears as Guardians of the Galaxy is. Tyler Bates (John Wick, Watchmen, 300) crafts another action-packed original score to work alongside the compiled tracks. Bates manages to sway from battle to love in an instant, working with the story to touch our hearts. In all honesty, Bates is my favorite action film composer currently because of his talent in creating sweet melodies with the brass-heavy space themes.
The Bottom Line: Music, passionate character portrayals, and Baby Groot add up to create another Guardians movie that families can enjoy in a theater.
Score: 9.4/10
Okay, I'm missing one character here. Who is it? Oh ya, Baby Groot (Vin Diesel)! Who can forget Baby Groot in such an iconic role? Baby Groot is just there for the ride. His character provides the sheer fun that audiences loved from the first film. I don't think anyone can deny that Baby Groot is cute, awesome, and adorable. James Gunn brings back all of the enjoyable effects from the original film, but reshapes them into a fresh batch of superb filmmaking. Constant action makes us root for the good and bad guys at different times. While the action is fantastic, the main villain is a bit weaker in writing than Ronan was. I was not a huge fan of the concept that Gunn went for, but I still had a heck of a lot of fun.
Of course, I have to finish off this review with a discussion on the soundtrack. NO it is not as good as the first film's soundtrack, but it is a very very close second. Iconic tracks such as "Mr. Blue Sky", "The Chain", and "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" round out the compilation soundtrack. These tracks bring us fun breaks in the film to relax and just zone out. Never before has a movie franchise been as nice to the ears as Guardians of the Galaxy is. Tyler Bates (John Wick, Watchmen, 300) crafts another action-packed original score to work alongside the compiled tracks. Bates manages to sway from battle to love in an instant, working with the story to touch our hearts. In all honesty, Bates is my favorite action film composer currently because of his talent in creating sweet melodies with the brass-heavy space themes.
The Bottom Line: Music, passionate character portrayals, and Baby Groot add up to create another Guardians movie that families can enjoy in a theater.
Score: 9.4/10
Image credit: By Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America - James Gunn, Michael Rooker, Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Dave Bautista, Elizabeth Debicki & Kurt Russell, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=56227043
