Yahoo News Guardians of the Galaxy 2 review: Is bigger better?
Back in 2014, Guardians of the Galaxy was a little-known Marvel property – so little-known, in fact, that there was wide speculation that it could be the MCU's first flop.
Three years later, circumstances are very different. The first film turned out to be a huge hit (and still stands as one of the MCU's best films), so all eyes are on James Gunn to see if he can strike gold for a second time with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2.
The simple answer is yes. He can.
The movie kicks off with the Guardians fighting an interdimensional monster with many arms and even more teeth at the behest of a snooty golden race of "perfect beings" called the Sovereign. They upset their employer, the high priestess Ayesha (The Night Manager's Elizabeth Debicki), and find themselves on the run once again.
Into this mess appears Star-Lord's long-lost daddy, the not-at-all-ominously named Ego (Kurt Russell), who has finally managed to hunt down his son Peter Quill (Chris Pratt). While half his team become embroiled in a Ravager mutiny, Peter is left to sort through his feelings for his deadbeat dad.
The first Guardians was a lot of fun, and the sequel knows it has to raise those stakes. Luckily, the cast works like a well-oiled machine, delivering plenty of belly laughs, and the movie only rarely feels like it's trying too hard for them. Baby Groot is adorably hilarious, and for those of you who thought from the marketing that he might suffer from overuse, put your fears aside. And Pom Klementieff shines as Drax's delightfully odd new buddy, Mantis.
The first film gave great banter, but repeat watching revealed a certain hollowness under the shiny façade. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 corrects that by digging deeper into the emotions and painful pasts of its characters, and literally none of the large main cast goes without a substantial arc.
The best example of this might be Karen Gillan's Nebula. As Gamora's adopted sister, she was grim and, dare we say it, a bit po-faced in the first film. This time, Gunn digs out and exposes the horrible past that drives her. Her grim demeanour is given meaning, and hell, she even gets the chance to drop a few jokes too.
It's not Terrence Malick, but the cast is given some extra depth to bolster the '80s-influenced action comedy, delivering a balanced and meaty movie on a par with Captain America: Civil War.
As for the main antagonist (no spoilers), they manage to avoid the curse of the throwaway Marvel villain, although there is one subplot that overstays its welcome. Along with a bit of a flabby second act, said plotline contributes to the biggest flaw in the film – at 136 minutes it warranted some stricter editing.
There was a lot riding on the return of Star-Lord, Gamora, Drax, Rocket and the rest to the MCU, and Gunn can be satisfied that he has delivered with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2. Now he deserves to go and put his feet up – once he's finished working on Avengers: Infinity War and writing the Guardians 3 script, that is. Chop chop, James, none of us is getting any younger. (Except Groot.)
Director: James Gunn; Screenplay: James Gunn; Starring: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki, Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell; Running Time: 136 mins; Certificate: 12A
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