Nerdly » ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ Review #2

09th May2023

‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ Review #2

by Alex Ginnelly

Stars: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper (voice), Vin Diesel, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki, Will Poulter, Sylvester Stallone, Linda Cardellini, Chukwudi Iwuji, Michael Rosenbaum, Sean Gunn, Maria Bakalova, Daniela Melchior | Written and Directed by James Gunn

Perhaps since Avengers: Endgame, but certainly since Spider-Man: No Way Home, superhero fatigue has seemed to set in. Both by audiences and creatively from the studios. Half-baked projects have hit both streaming services and the big screen. Marvel, in particular, has had a struggling output in the last few years, both critically, and by their standard, financially. For myself I haven’t enjoyed a Marvel project in a long time, I’ve had no fun, no laughs, and no connection to anything they’ve put out. Going into Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 was something that felt more like hope than excitement. I wanted to enjoy one of these films again, and if anyone was going to deliver I hoped my faith in James Gunn would be rewarded. In the end that faith was rewarded and then some, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is not just the best MCU instalment since Avengers: Endgame, but perhaps one of their best-ever films.

James Gunn and his cast of Guardians return for a third instalment, and a lot has changed since the last time we saw them all together. They’ve appeared in two Avengers movies facing off against the might of Thanos, a member of the team has been killed off and brought back to life, and they’ve even had their own Christmas special. This time around they’re in a race to save the life of one of their own. After Rocket is seriously injured the crew must find his maker and track down a code that could save Rocket’s life. This set-up gives us the opportunity to go back to Rocket’s beginnings, through a series of flashbacks we see how Rocket came to be, showing us a darker, meaner side to the MCU. It’s no doubt the rawest and most emotionally challenging Marvel film in a long time, maybe ever. It’s through the characters that these emotions are challenged. For the first time in a long time, we get characters we genuinely care about and characters that showcase real emotions. Emotions for the world, and more importantly for each other. It’s the characters we care about and their journey to change and grow as characters that create our empathy towards them. Their choices and actions create that empathy and make us care for what happens, something that feels missing from many modern-day blockbusters. The stakes are no longer your typical “the universe will end” this time the stakes are all character driven and that makes us care so much more about the film as a whole and the story it is telling.

From the very first moments of the film, the tone feels different, and the weight feels heavier, but with that weight James Gunn manages to balance it perfectly. He balances the shift of the emotional moments with the funny ones, with many well-timed jokes that never feel out of place or off tone. Mixed between all of these are many exciting set pieces that feel like they’re pulled straight from the pages of a comic book. It’s something James Gunn has become so good at. His films are also packed with kindness, compassion, and empathy, while still being exciting and fun all at the same time. All of this together, perfectly balanced, creates one of the best comic book movies in years.

The returning cast are all great too, they’ve always embodied these characters so well and this time around it may be the best they’ve all ever been. Chris Pratt feels like he was born to play Star-lord and again gives a brilliant performance. Pom Klementieff and Dave Bautista are a great duo, showing their chemistry in abundance that proves for some great scenes together. Of the returning cast, Karen Gillian is one that stands out as Nebula. Her character has had one of the best arcs in all the MCU and Gillian has given another fantastic performance that showcases that arc wonderfully. Chukwudi Iwuji is a new face in the MCU as the film’s antagonist. He plays The High Evolutionary, a sinister villain who set out on creating the perfect species. He is the man responsible for creating Rocket and both his performance and character will go down as one of the best villains the MCU has ever had. From the moment we meet him we hate him, there’s no conflicted villain here, or a place where we understand his goals. It’s a good old-fashioned hateful villain, one you really hope to see get his comeuppance. Iwuji pulls all that off brilliantly, he knows his role so well and tears up the scenery all around him. He may seem over the top, but he’s meant to be, he completely understands the project, which will no doubt make him one of the most memorable villains any comic book film has had.

The real star throughout all of this is Rocket. Both as a character and through his voice actor Bradley Cooper. Not only in the MCU but in any superhero film, I can’t remember the last time I cared so much about a character. It’s a character I’ve always enjoyed, but now one that I fully connect with on an emotional level. The film as a whole feels like the perfect end to these character’s story, whether or not we will see any of them again, however, remains to be seen. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is a comic book film filled with love and passion, both from its creators and from its characters. If there was ever any proof needed that James Gunn will be the perfect man to take on Superman, this is it. It’s a film that showcases the kindness and compassion of a hero, and a family. It has jokes that will make you laugh out loud, action to keep you on the edge of your seat, and emotional beats to get the waterworks going. It may just be my favourite Marvel movie to date, and I can’t recommend it enough.