Guardians of the Galaxy

What do you get when you team up a thief, two thugs, an assassin, and a maniac in one crazy superhero action summer blockbuster? You get Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, along with the voice talents of Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel. Is this movie one the best Marvel superhero flicks ever or is this just a dumb sci fi spectacle featuring a bunch of A-holes?In 1988, a young Peter Quill sits in a hospital listening to his Sony Walkman headphones while he patiently waits to see his mother on her death bed. His grandfather brings Peter in for her to say her goodbyes. His mom passes away in a room filled with family members, but not without giving her son a small token to remember her by. As Peter runs out of the hospital crying, he stumbles in the grass and a blinding light from the sky lights up the darkness. Suddenly a beam envelopes him and lifts him into a large spacecraft which takes him to the far reaches of the galaxy.Twenty-six years later, Peter has become a legendary intergalactic outlaw who goes by the name of Star-Lord and is always in search of artifacts to sell to the highest bider. He’s a member of a clan of space pirates who call themselves Ravagers. While investigating ruins on a deserted planet for a priceless orb, he runs into a soldier named Korath the Pursuer who also wants the orb so he can deliver it to hos boss, Ronan the Accuser, a fanatical zealot from the Kree Empire who wants to use the orb to destroy Xandar, the planet of his arch enemies. Peter escapes with the orb, but in doing so double crosses his treasure hunting partner, Yondu Udonta, the leader of the Ravagers. Yondu is not at all pleased so he puts a bounty on Peter’s head for 40,000 units.While on Xandar trying to pawn the orb to a man called the Broker, Peter runs into a couple of bounty hunters named Rocket and Groot who want the 40,000 unit reward. Rocket is a genetically engineered raccoon who can talk and Groot is his walking tree companion. Unfortunately, who else is after Peter is an assassin named Gamora. She is the daughter of the titan Thanos who has loaned her skills to Ronan in order to ensure she get the orb for him. All are captured by Xandar’s military police known as the Nova Corp and for past crimes are sent to the Kyln, a maximum security prison that floats in space.At the prison, they meet Drax who wants to kill Gamora as revenge for Ronan murdering his wife and daughter. Peter convinces Drax that Ronan is the bigger target and to use Gamora as bait. Because Gamora wants the orb, Peter wants the payment, Drax wants revenge, and Rocket and Groot want the bounty, they all decide to work together to escape the prison and get to a location called Knowhere to sell the orb to Taneleer Tivan who is better known as The Collector. Can this group of misfits get to Knowhere without being killed by Ronan and Yondo or will they change their minds when they find out what the mysterious object really is and why Thanos wants it so badly?If you’ve read my past reviews, especially the ones on the superhero movies, I’m really starting to sound like a broken record. DC Comics and Warner Home Entertainment make the absolute best direct to DVD animated movies, but Marvel Studios and Walt Disney Pictures rule the box office with their live action extravaganzas. First it was the Phase I movies that lead up to The Avengers, one of the greatest superhero movies of all time. Now that Marvel is in Phase II preparing for The Avengers: Age of Ultron, the final standalone set up movie is the highly anticipated Guardians of the Galaxy. I have to admit I was a bit disappointed with last year’s Iron Man 3 and Thor: The Dark World, but my opinion quickly shifted when Captain America: The Winter Soldier was released earlier this year as it became my favorite standalone Marvel movie, even over the original Iron Man. And even though 20th Century Fox released X-Men: Days of Future Past and not Disney, my love of Marvel flicks got me all excited again to see my favorite heroes on the big screen. My child-like giddiness for Guardians of the Galaxy grew, but so did my apprehension, because I said to myself, “how in the world could a movie be better than The Winter Soldier and Days of Future Past?” Well Marvel has outdone themselves by gambling on a relatively obscure comic book series and letting the masterful James Gunn write and direct it. The result is one of the most action-packed, humorous, visually stunning, and epic sci fi fantasies I have ever watched. Simply put, Guardians of the Galaxy is the Star Wars of superhero movies. And I’m talking the original trilogy, not the Jar-Jar Binks prequels.From the opening title sequence, the movie instantly kicks the humor in overdrive as Peter Quill aka Star-Lord dances like Michael Jackson to the tune of “Come and get Your Love” by Redbone in a temple extremely reminiscent to the one from the beginning scene of Raiders of the Lost Ark. From that point on, the movie never lets up. There were funny parts, in The Avengers especially with The Hulk punching Thor and slamming Loki, but nothing to the levels of intelligent humor in Guardians of the Galaxy. Now don’t be confused, this movie isn’t a comedy. it’s an action-adventure/sci fi space opera to the likes of the original Star Wars. Instead of a farmboy, two robots, a wizard, a princess, a pirate, and his furry co-pilot trying to stop an evil empire and their technological terror, you get a thief, two thugs, an assassin, and a maniac reluctantly team up when they realize the future of the galaxy is at stake.Leading the cast of misfits is Chris Pratt who was the voice of Emmett in this year’s biggest surprise hit, The Lego Movie. I was introduced to Pratt as the goofy and pudgy Andy Dwyer from NBC’s Parks and Recreation. A lot of people were concerned how an actor who plays an air head who broke both of his legs falling into a pit could pull off being the next Marvel superhero. I can tell you that Pratt absolutely nails the role. Just like how Emmett in The Lego Movie goes from zero to hero, Pratt’s performance makes Star-Lord one of the most memorable characters in the Marvel Universe. He’s charming, funny, intelligent, and always has a plan, even if it’s only 12% of a plan. Imagine Peter Quill as a combination of Indiana Jones adventurer, Han Solo scoundrel, and Captain Kirk ladies’ man all while armed with James Bond’s gadgets. You could tell that Pratt took the role seriously as he shed weight and got ripped to look like his comic book counterpart. But it’s Pratt’s emotions and comedic timing that will make Peter Quill a fan favorite on par with Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark.Pratt has some action scenes, but not as much as Zoe Saldana as Gamora and Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer have. Star-Lord relies on gadgets and his cunning to get out of situations. Gamora and Drax use their blades and hand to hand combat skills to. Saldana looked great as the green skinned assassin and adopted daughter of Thanos. She has a lot of battles throughout the movie like during the prison escape scene and her battle with her step-sister Nebula played by Karen Gillan. It was a crazy martial arts sword battle between a green chick and a robotic blue chick. Who I really have to hand it to is WWE professional wrestler Dave Bautista as Drax. I know a lot of people don’t give pro-wrestlers the benefit of the doubt when it comes to acting, but Bautista was more than some maniac wrecking machine. Bautista delivered some amazing dialogue with comedic flare I was not at all expecting. Of course he does kick some serious ass, but his literal interpretations of what Star-Lord and the other characters say to him is priceless. One example was when Rocket tells Peter not so say anything too complicated or it will go over Drax’s head. Drax replies, “My reflexes are to quick that nothing goes over my head, I would just catch it.”But who really steals the show are Rocket Raccoon voiced by Bradley Cooper and Groot voiced by Vin Diesel. They guys are the complete heart and soul of the movie. Rocket is the MacGyver of the group. Give him some tin foil, a battery, and a rubber band and he’ll literally make a bomb out of it. He’s the sarcastic one of the bunch that isn’t afraid to say what is on his mind and that’s usually what ends up also being what the audience in the theater is also thinking. Groot is a walking tree with a heart of gold. He’s just like Chewbacca in that he’s loyal and kind, but if you piss him off, he’ll tear your arms off. Groot is a simple creature that has a childlike innocence quality to him. Groot only has the ability to say “I am Groot” but the inflection and tone changes of Vin Diesel’s performance allows you to still understand what he’s saying. It also helps that Rocket pretty much translates much in the same manner Han Solo did for Chewbacca. Both Rocket and Groot’s computer effects looked spectacular. They both looked amazing realistic. If you are still bewildered how a movie could have a talking raccoon and a walking tree as superheroes, I guarantee if you give them a chance, you’ll fall in love with them as I did.The big bad villain of the movie is Ronan the Accuser played by Lee Pace. He’s the judge, jury, and executioner of the Kree Empire. He’s a radical zealot on a personal jihad against the people of Xandar that he blames for the death of his father and grandfather.. His world’s leaders signed a peace treaty with Xandar to stop a centuries old war, but Ronan acts on his own. Thanos wants the orb that Peter Quill has, so Ronan makes a deal to take the orb back in exchange for the obliteration of Xandar, thus the motivational plot point of the movie. Ronan is a complete bad ass. He’s super strong and carries a huge hammer of destruction. His character looked like a galactic Marilyn Manson and reminded me of Lord Marshal, the leader of the Necromongers in The Chronicles of Riddick. Ify ou don’t convert to his beliefs for the greater good of the Kree Empire, you’re civilization will be cleansed. My only complaint of the film was that Ronan was sort of a boring character. Maybe we’ve been just spoiled with the charisma and deadly charm of Loki, but Ronan was sort of dull. Now don’t get me wrong, he’s so super powerful that he can pick Drax up by the neck with one hand, but he’s got zero personality. The positive to that is that is it made the Guardians even more interesting.In supporting roles are Michael Rooker as Vondu, Glenn Close as Nova Prime, John C. Rielly as Nova Corpsman Rhomann Dey, Djimon Hounsou as Korath the Pursuer, Benicio Del Toro as The Collector, and Karen Gillan as Nebula. Each one adds a specific characteristic and quality to the film, however most are barely on screen only to add to a plot point or enhance a particular scene. Example, Del Toro as The Collector is on screen as much as he was in the after credits scene of Thor: The Dark World. The Collector is there just to explain the mystery reason on why the Orb is so important. Michael Rooker was a blue skinned version of his Merle Dixon Character from AMC’s The Walking Dead TV show, minus the southern racism, but with a really cool weapon that he commands with a whistle. Hounsou was there to basically start the chase after Star-Lord. The supporting cast adds so much to the tension of the movie, but characters like John C. Reilly add so much to the comedy. Unfortunately a lot of the characters could have easily been eliminated and it really wouldn’t have changed the movie. However, their inclusion adds so much to the depth.Guardians of the Galaxy has amazing visuals and probably one of the best movie soundtracks I’ve even heard in a long time. The 3D effects look stunning. This is a movie that just seeing on a 2D screening will not do the film justice. The space scenes look gorgeous as they are filled with colors in the aurora of space. The set pieces look great. This movie was just such a pleasure to watch. And don’t get me started on the song choices used in the movie. As a huge Quentin Tarantino fan, I’ve been spoiled by how amazing his hand-picked songs add to the feeling of scenes. Who doesn’t think of cutting someone’s ear off when their hear “Stuck in the Middle With You?” Guardians of the Galaxy has such a soundtrack. I still can’t get songs like “Come and Get Your Love” by Redbone, “Cherry Bomb” by the Runaways, “Escape (The Pina Colada Song)” by Rupert Holmes, and “Go All The Way” by The Raspberries.” Some songs add to the depth of the scene while other are actually used by Star-Lord in the movie as the songs are on his Walkman mix tape. This is one of those movie soundtracks that you should buy and jam to in your car or use when you want to steal a mysterious orb.As a huge fan of his previous superhero movie Super, James Gunn does an amazing job with this movie. To be honest, “amazing” is an understatement. His final result with Guardians of the Galaxy is on par with Joss Whedon’s The Avengers… if not better. This is the funniest Marvel movies to date and just about the most entertaining. Maybe it’s the Star Wars fan in me (I prefer Star Wars over Star Trek), but this could easily be classified as this young generation’s Star Wars. Everything that made the original George Lucas space opera has elements in this movie. Awesome characters meeting strange creatures on distant exotic locations and have jaw dropping space and weapon combat. I am also in love with this movie because young Peter Quill was taken in 1988, the movie has a huge 80’s vibe that was reminiscent of my own childhood. Quill has ALF trading cards on the dashboard of his spacecraft, references all things from the 80’s, and if I may be so bold, probably fashioned his legendary outlaw status of Star-Lord after Han Solo, because he would have seen the Star Wars trilogy as a child.As my most anticipated movie of the ENTIRE year, Guardians of the Galaxy doesn’t disappoint, not for one second. I’m still jamming to the soundtrack in my car and dancing like Chris Pratt. I had so much fun with this movie. I laughed the entire time and was just impressed with everything. And what’s great, the movie is for all audiences. Other than minor swearing, there is nothing really inappropriate for little kids. My three year old son loves Rocket and Groot and asks me to rewind the commercials when he see them on TV. If you’re a parent and are concerned with taking your kids, don’t be. If they’ve seen The Avengers or Star Wars, then they will love this movie. Guardians of the Galaxy is such a fun movie going experience that I could ramble on and on about everything. This is one of those genre defining flicks that took the standard of quality superhero films and raised the bar to the next level. Move over Avengers, there’s a new group of heroes out there and they call themselves the Guardians of the Galaxy.This may be one of my boldest statements I’ll ever make, but Guardians of the Galaxy just may be Marvel’s best movie ever in their entire cinematic universe. The Avengers is such an amazing movie on par with The Dark Knight, but I left Guardians of the Galaxy being thoroughly entertained from beginning to end. It has great characters, dialogue, action, visuals, soundtrack, and most importantly, tons of humor. I cannot recommend Guardians of the Galaxy highly enough. It’s a must see in 3D, especially during the space and aerial combat scenes. It’s also a day one Bluray buy to add to your superhero movie library.

This is the most bonkers but biggest and best Marvel movie yet - something that on paper feels like it shouldn't work but in reality is class from start to finish.Chris Pratt is on stellar form as Starlord, the best space outlaw since Han Solo. We follow his journey as he hurtles between planets, ships and prisons, picking up various characters along the way - a talking raccoon, a walking tree, a green skinned lady and a (probably) ex WWE wrestler. The plot is fuelled by the search for something called The Orb, our merry band want it but so so some very bad people who intend to do some very bad things. It's largely a macguffin though which Starlord himself admits - comparing it to The Maltese Falcon and The Ark. It services the plot and gives reasons for the blur of top notch action that follows.There are some great, quieter character beats as well as we move along, giving us reasons to care about these eccentric characters. It's not just Pratt who excels - Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista and Bradley Cooper are all excellent and Vin Diesel makes the most of what is essentially just one line of dialogue. Each character has their chance to shine and their own demons to face. The big bad guy Thanos is lurking in the shadows but there's plenty of other ace villains to go around.It all looks great as you'd expect, the budget has been well spent and director James Gunn brings a fair amount to invention and imagination. The script is witty and funny, at times very funny, and the soundtrack is outstanding. Basically I feel that I can't talk this up enough - if you're a fan of The Avengers, Star Wars, Indy, Spaceballs, whatever then check this out. Stick with it right to the end of the credits as well, there's one last touch of class

great movie

Guardians of the Galaxy is a blockbuster Sci-Fi from Marvel set in outer space. Unlike all the other Marvel offerings so far, this is not a superhero film. It is a fun, almost family-friendly action adventure with plenty of laser shooting. Guardians has a run-time of two hours with the DVD somehow being a minute shorter than the theatrical release. There are no DVD extras with the only feature being a forward look to an Avengers film.The hero of Guardians of the Galaxy is Peter Quill played by Chris Pratt. Quill is a roguish explorer on the hunt for treasure. His backstory is the opening segment, it is a powerful start to a film. Quill's mother is on her death bed, presumably dying of cancer. She doesn't make it but she does give him a collection of her favourite tunes to remember her by. It is an excellent concept and works so well because the soundtrack is awesome.The soundtrack to Guardians of the Galaxy is at least the best Sci-Fi soundtrack of this century. Normally a US film with such a great soundtrack comes from the genious of Quentin Tarantino. There are a couple of over-played songs like Spirit in the Sky and Ain't No Mountain High Enough but generally it is great pop music that has not been too over-exposed recently. The use of Come and Get Your Love and Quill's reaction to hearing it are great. It really sets the tone for this film - fun, not too serious, yet still really cool. Of course the reminder of one of the great song intros of all time in Hooked on a Feeling is life-affirming. The soundtrack includes tracks by Bowie, 10cc, the Jackson Five and other well-known acts but also includes some who might not be immediately recognised by name. The tunes are mostly crackers though and help speed things through so well. It helps that this soundtrack is from the 70s because the pre-MTV era allows some American songs to be lesser known elsewhere in the world.Chris Pratt is good as the lead, he is not quite the great screen presence that would have made Guardians one of the all-time greats. Pratt does not have the charisma of someone like Harrison Ford but he's plenty good enough to make this a fun feature. His interaction with the other characters is often a little lost in his own world but Quill does have some good lines of banter. Pratt is really good as Quill, he's fun and endearing. The emotional impact of the memory of his mother works. Quill's trouble-finding nature is entertaining. Unfortunately Pratt is heavy. His movements are heavy which means his dance moves look like they're supposed to be a joke at his own expense. The dance-off sequence seems to draw inspiration from fellow larger-jowled actor Jack Black in that it is all positive vibes and little real humour. Pratt is also heavy in his facial work. He does not have the range of expression the true greats possess.That Pratt could even be talked about in the same conversation as Harrison Ford's performance is a reminder of how good this film is. He doesn't have the charisma of Ford, William Shatner, or even Tim Allen in the better scripted Galaxy Quest who all made for much more memorable appearances in the same character type so the casting may be an issue as the character design is tried and tested.The most banterous character is genetically-engineered raccoon Rocket voiced by Bradley Cooper. Rocket is extremely violent both with his action and his words. He's not really all that witty, his humour is mostly pretty obvious but Cooper's delivery of a relatively average script is outstanding. Rocket is a fairly one-dimensional character but he is fun. The idea of the character is great, he's an expert in his fields, and comes up with great escape plans that do work. The abusive outer-shell hides a genious engineer underneath.Rocket's sidekick Groot is a magnificent character, so unlike most of what screen can offer. Groot and Rocket are both animated but Groot has such a humanity about him. He is some kind of tree-based life form capable of extraordinary bravery and power. Groot is played by Vin Diesel and it might not be a stretch to say this could well be Vin Diesel's best ever performance. Groot mainly uses just the phrases "Groot" or "I am Groot" through the film. The delivery with various different inflections gets across meaning even when the words themselves are not there. Groot's moment of triumph is a spectacular destruction of a group of bad guys followed by a huge grin. It is one of the funniest moments of a pretty funny film. That grin is total awesomeness.The two other Guardians are physical opposites. Super-skinny Zoe Saldana is perfectly fine as Gamora, the green alien whose allegiances are unclear. Gamora does not have a huge amount to do but through her the plot develops. A background hint of romance between Gamora and Quill alludes to sequels.Perhaps the most interesting character is the one who could be dubbed the first autistic hero of cinema. Drax the Destroyer is a huge physical presence with a vocabulary that can only encompass the literal. Dave Bautista looks a slightly different shape to his WWE days, clearly benefiting from a different set of vitamins. He's really good as Drax, a character very different from his wrestling persona. Drax is loyal and single-minded. He is not really able to see the bigger picture at all but he has a great heart. It is a really endearing character for such a muscle-bound freak. Drax's concluding sentiment is awesome.The main villain is not a subtle character. Ronan the Accuser is a genocidal maniac shrouded in a dark mantle and who has an overriding lust for power. Ronan is clearly just an antagonist, there's nothing of The Accuser's backstory in this tale. The most impressive parts of Ronan's screen time are his dismantling of physically larger opponents with no trouble at all. Ronan's tossing of Drax into yellow gloop looks great.Much more entertaining is Yondo Udonta played by Michael Rooker. He's an interesting blue bandit leader with motives that are apparent but never spoken. Udonta's main motivation as an antagonist is the saving of face rather than securing glory. Maintaining his position as bandit leader comes with expectations of how he will deal with others. That he chooses not to kill at will is fascinating because when backed into a corner, his special weapon is utterly and hilariously deadly. Rooker's performance fizzes throughout. The Texas accent and a sense of humour behind his eyes add to all his scenes.A couple of major Hollywood stars play minor roles in Guardians. Glenn Close as the leader of planet Nova Prime has relatively little to do so it is a surprise to see such a legend take on what is not much more than the role of an extra. Benicio del Toro plays The Collector, a very small role. Del Toro plays it minimalist. The Collector is involved in the only post-credits scene. It is a rubbish scene - the appearance of Howard the Duck is literally signposted as otherwise it is hard to know how an audience would be aware of that character. Much funnier is the unreferenced appearance of a dog resembling Laika, one of the unfortunate pioneers of space travel.A good cameo from John C. Reilly works well, hopefully he'll return in a larger role for future Guardians activity. Reilly's delivery of his line about 100% is probably the best bit of comic timing on show. Amid a few too earnest performances, Reilly clearly gets it with his role helping to defuse the lead character's ego a little. There needs to be more of this guy next time.Visually, Guardians is absolutely stunning. Almost every scene is awe-inspiring. The cinematic creation of alien worlds is now so intense that even without 3D it is hard to look at what is going on in the foreground when the background is so beautiful. The lighting, rendering, and depth on display is mesmerising. 90% of the film is computer generated and those machines did great work. Guardians is a visual feast right up there with anything so far produced.The plot of Guardians is secondary to its people and its look. There is not much of a plot. The Guardians and a whole lot of other beings are after a MacGuffin of universe-altering power. Good fights evil after good realises that it is indeed good.The action sequences in Guardians are top notch. Quill is a superb combatant because of his use of technology, the changes of direction he achieves creates drama in his fights against opponents he would be expected to be over-matched by.There is one major action sequence in Guardians and it is outstanding. Two fleets take on the hulking ship of evil-doers in an excellent tactical exchange. Space combat works when it is well designed. The design here seems to owe a lot to Babylon 5 given the creation of a much better Line than B5 could display but along the same concept. It is beautiful when shown in such advanced graphics. That the battle ebbs and flows is excellent including changes of tactics as one side or the other grabs the advantage.Guardians of the Galaxy is a spectacular action adventure. It has no real plot to speak of but is generally fun and good-humoured. It is not as funny as it could have been and lead Chris Pratt does not quite have the charisma to turn this from good to all-time great but with stunning visual backdrops and a fun team of likeable good guys to cheer for it is a positive and easily likeable couple of hours to enjoy.

As described love the music

Despite being a bit of a comicbook geek, I know NOTHING about the Guardians Of The Galaxy - it's a series that I just never got into. So with that being said, I have no preconceptions or ideas of how this film should have gone.It is amazing - funny, dramatic, action-packed. I found myself laughing hysterically in places. It does a great job of fleshing out the main characters and showing how they become a team. I will say that the main villain is a little under-developed and seems a little trivial in the end but at the same time, there is a LOT of story to try and cram in with some complicated lore that only Marvel can do. I'm guessing if you read more of the comics, you'd understand why the Kree and the Nova are at war, etc.That being said, it is a welcome addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and I can't wait to see how they wil tie in with the rest of the movies as they go along.

Brought to complete my collection..as expected, no issues, played ok.

Recipient loved it

comme d'habitude prix et livraison impecable

Didn't like it that well

国内ではブルーレイ」が主流でDVDは売ってない。ブルーレイとの抱き合わせ販売があるが意味がない。この作品は大好きなのでぜひ見たかったが、次々と変わっていくメディアに腹が立つ。ハリウッドじゃあ、ソニーのビデオテープが重宝されてるそうじゃないか。ま、普通のDVDプレーヤーじゃ見れないんだけどね。

Very disappointed. This movie will not work on any of our DVD players. Says "Check Regional Code" when I hit Play its says error.How do I return this movie?

Dosen't work with my DVD player not pleased with it