Reviews

Written: July 31^st, 2014

  Personally I don't like even typing out spoilers when the movie hasn't been out for a full 24-hours.

  Granted about a million people have probably already seen it, but let's not ruin it for them, hmm?

  So in this Movie Review I will do my best to not give away any spoilers...I'll save that post for another time!

  And now...

  My Movie Review of...

  First off, let's talk about the actors.

  Everyone knows who they are because they have been ALL over the media lately. In fact, I would say that this is probably one of the most hyped up movies Marvel has ever put out.

  Seriously, the actors, some clips, behind the scenes, posters, billboards, everything except the movie itself has been touted across the world! It was a trending topic long before it was released and Marvel even plotted a sequel just based on fan-feedback from the trailers, teasers, clips, and commercials!

  Chris Pratt from Parks & Recreation is Peter Quill aka Starlord. And, yes, he brings his style of humor with him...but that's not what defines his character. His character has a drive, has a purpose, has a history, and has charisma that can charm the limbs off some people! Chris jumps, runs, slides, punches, kicks, and even dances his way across the screen in such a way as to make outer space and the weird and bizarre seem common-place. When audience members are cringing over a particular alien life-form he does something to show that it's no big deal, and so when we laugh it's mostly because the scene is funny, but also because he has shown us that we don't need to worry about it.

  Zoe Saldana, from Avatar and Star Trek, plays Gamora. A genetically altered and enhanced woman who was raised to be a fighting machine. Her acting was superb and I'll tell you why. She played a young woman who was raised by a horrible person to know nothing of love, laughter, or pretty much anything good in life. She was raised to fight and win. So when she is confronted by goodness, mercy, friendship, and even dancing, Zoe portrays the character perfectly...like someone who is hesitant to experience these things yet yearns for them. Someone who wants those things, but doesn't know if she should or if she even deserves them. THAT is why I think her acting skills were amazing in this film.

  Dave Batista, a professional wrestler, plays Drax the Destroyer. And boy was he a pleasant surprise! He was crisp, clean, and articulate in his lines. He was funny and yet seemed to also be the straight man of the group. Even with all that make-up on (I heard it took several hours to get it all on) his facial expressions and mannerisms were shown clearly and made us feel as he felt. I can't say much more without revealing spoilers, but just know that his character was not just for brute strength. His character is important and probably will be again.

  The next two are harder to describe. Groot, the tree-man, and Rocket Raccoon were CGI characters that were voiced by Vin Diesel and Bradley Cooper, respectively. As such, the animators were able to so perfectly twist, move, create the movements and expressions of these two characters that it made it SO easy to set aside reality and just believe in a walking/talking tree and a talking, gun-toting raccoon. Again, I can't go into too much, but suffice it to say, this dynamic duo were worth every penny that was spent in creating them for the screen.

  This movie (I saw it in IMAX 3D) wasn't just good, or just bad...it was a bit of both.

  First the Bad...just to get it out of the way.

  For me, there were certain scenes that were hard to hear the lines because the background noise or music was just a tad too loud. Granted this makes me have to see it again, but I was disappointed that the soundtrack took first place over the dialogue.

  On that note, while the lines were great and the dialogue played well off of real and CGI characters, there were instances when a line was humorous and, as we all should when someone says something funny, we laughed. But our laughter drowned out the next line. So there is dialogue in the movie that I cannot remember because I never heard it.

  But this leads me into the Good. The jokes were not jokes purely for the sake of being funny. The jokes were funny because they made sense for that situation...or that person. The funny parts helped sculpt a character, define their personality, and showed us that these characters are "real," in a sense, in how they react to things.

  The special effects were nearly spot on perfect. There are certain flying scenes that made it hard to concentrate, but I'm guessing that's because of the 3D rendering. I will have to wait to pass judgement on that scene for after I watch this movie again in normal 2D. Otherwise, the effects were clean, crisp, clear and amazing! To me, at least, none of the effects looked fake or out-dated and that, I think, is why it was so easy to believe in.

  This movie has comedy, a bit of romance, plenty of action, and even a couple moments to tug at our heart-strings.

  All together this movie was worth every penny I spent on it, every minute I waited in line for it (3 hours) and every minute of missed sleep I'm getting so I can stay up and write this review.

  Go see it. In fact, go see it twice.

  But be ready, for later I'll be posting a SPOILER-FILLED Movie Review for all of us to discuss!

  Oh, and we have plenty to discuss!