Movie Review: ‘Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3 Manages To Fly Above The MCU Din
As a reviewer, I've always found it counterintuitive to criticize the Marvel Cinematic Universe. By the end of Phase III, with Avengers: Endgame, it was clear that these films were less self-contained pieces of cinematic art and more pieces of a content puzzle designed to fit into a large, connected media experience. Designed in a house style that allows for only the occasional automated viewpoint, the narrative emphasizes vivid surprises and a crossover multiverse. MCU movies dominate the box office no matter what critics think, sometimes despite the reviews (no spoilers!). Now that two films have entered their fifth stage, it can be difficult to generate the excitement to even watch them, let alone develop new thoughts and ideas in response.
But there's also Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn, who started writing low-budget horror comedies at Troma Entertainment and is the new co-president and co-CEO of DC Studios at the Warner Bros. studio, Gunn is a director who has nothing to lose in the MCU, and at the end of his trilogy, his Marvel Swan theme song "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" throws everything against the wall in one satisfying swoop. .
Thanks to Marvel and Disney for allowing Gunn to deliver such a bizarre and hilarious portrayal. It's a nod to his roots, but there's a surprisingly emotional core to the origin story of Rocket Raccoon, the CGI rodent voiced by Bradley Cooper. The film appears from 'The Island of Doctor Moreau' and 'The Stepford Wives' features the sci-fi creature kaiju, all set in the turbulent world of 'Guardians'.
The first act is a colorful and bizarre thriller in which the Guardians infiltrate the space biotech laboratory OrgoCorp to steal the code to save Rocket's life after an attack by Golden Age superhero Adam Warlock (Will Poulter). This gives way to a suburban gothic sci-fi interlude as we meet the highly evolutionary Dr. Moreau (Chukwudi Iwuji) who inhabited a planet called Counter-Earth with its human/animal hybrids genetically engineered to be perfect and peaceful.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 hits with manic music in a mostly 90s playlist (although it also includes the 80s and 2000s). At times it gets messy and busy, trying to do too much at once, sidelining characters like Adam Warlock. It ponders the slightly unflattering relationship between bruised Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) and badass Gamora (Zoe Saldana) and the downright absurd chemistry between Drax (Dave Bautista) and Mantis (Boom Klementieff), but Gunn pulls it off with True Pathos - In flashbacks, explore Rocket's experiments at OrgoCorp as a raccoon lab under the High Evolutionary, particularly in the cruelty he and his animal friends endured as abandoned experiments.
These are the wild and bizarre moments - the obscenely bold set design of OrgoCorp, the Guardians' descent into the manicured streets of Counter-Earth, the 'Children of the Corn'-style rescues in Act III - 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" continues to thrive, finding something original and creative to offer. Though Gunn has been bogged down by the MCU's incomprehensible action and fan service, he's not afraid to make such a big movie weird.
It's not perfect, but the moral of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is that the pursuit of perfection isn't just a stupid thing to do, it's also inherently toxic. Jan challenges audiences to embrace the strange, the messy, the imperfect and seek connection, not subtlety, in this world and beyond. It's a message that resonates amidst all this noise.
