Marvel's newest franchise debuted at #1 at the box office this weekend, as expected, since any movie with the word Marvel in it seems to be a shoo in for multi-million buckeroos. The film follows the adventures of five unlikely heroes who find out a secret that could single-handedly destroy the entire galaxy, then concoct a plan to save it. In truth, I found Guardians to be fun, but that was really it. The movie has explosions, talking raccoons and multicolored dames galore, but the problem was that while the film was blowing up as many space ships as possible, it neglected to acknowledge its gaping plot holes and lack of character development. Chris Pratt plays a charming Peter Quill, but it would be nice if the audience wasn't left questioning [SPOILER] why he was abducted by aliens in the first place. Or how Zoe Saldana's character Gamora, escaped the clutches of the evil Ronan, or why she betrayed him. Although Gamora gives a 30 second blurb into her tortured past to Quill, it would be nice if she could elaborate a little bit. But then--perhaps the filmmakers are waiting for a sequel to explain that.
As for the humor of the film, many jokes were funny, many jokes were not. Bradley Cooper voices the genetically enhanced raccoon, Rocket and adds humor to the film, but like I said, many jokes just resulted in eye-rolling from yours truly. The movie isn't without its charms, however. It has great special effects, and spectacular imagery as well as fun characters. It's just too bad the script isn't as spectacular. Although, Chris Pratt's body was pretty spectacular. To me, Guardians of the Galaxy was Marvel's version of Star Wars without the mythological or religious influence. In the end, it really is a fun movie, but it's not exactly...deep. I'll give it a K.
