Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Movie Name: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Year of Release: 2023
Director: James Gunn
Starring: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Karen Gillan, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff, Bradley Cooper, Sean Gunn, Chukwudi Iwuji, Will Poulter, Elizabeth Debicki, Miriam Shor, Nico Santos, Vin Diesel, Maria Bakalova, Sylvester Stallone, Nathan Fillion, Daniela Melchior, Michael Rooker, Gregg Henry, Karen Abercrombie, Linda Cardellini, Mikaela Hoover, Asim Chaudhry
Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
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Synopsis and Review

Writer, producer, director James Gunn is back with the set of characters he first adapted and brought him a wider audience recognition, this after venturing into DC comics with his solid adaptation of "The Suicide Squad". This time around "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" finds the team in Knowhere, trying to rebuild what Thanos destroyed, until they're attacked by a powerful being by the name of Adam, who hurts Rocket quite severely. When they try to heal Rocket, they realize they can't do so, due to a kill switch that is embedded in him, which harks back to his genetic manipulation by an entity who calls himself High Evolutionary. The team decides to go find a way to bypass that kill switch, but in order to do so they need the help of the Ravagers, who are now led by a new version of Gamora. Their investigation leads them to Counter-Earth, where the team gets split, and matters get even further complicated when the High Evolutionary decides to decimate that entire planet. As Peter and a newly restored Rocket try to save the rest of the team, they realize the High Evolutionary's spaceship has a lofty cargo, forcing them to make some dramatic decisions.

One of the most interesting traits to James Gunn's work lies in his ability to mix a somewhat visceral approach to depicting horror/violence, with a hearty sentimentality for (and with) this lead characters, with dashes of various pop culture references, all wrapped in a rhythm that is perpetually in motion. "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" is one of the most interesting films of the series, if not the most, since while it does have a fair amount of sentimentality, it's also peppered with various layers, some of which are very humorous, and others that are quite violent. This balance of humor/violence/sentiment is fairly well distributed, and for a change the characters have clearly established motivations, with a few of them having a backdrop which explains their origin. And while the villain of the narrative is somewhat two-dimensional alien, there's something perversely human and quite historically pertinent to his horrific experimentations, which brings to mind said experimentations people have done to animals and people themselves in the past. It's a film that ultimately focuses on the meaning of family, finding one's roots and a sense of belonging. The fact that it does so within the trappings of a comic book adaptation, is even more commendable to James Gunn's talents, who places all these narrative threads in motion with a visual aplomb that is superb, even more so than the previous films. The cast does a great job of bringing these characters to life, with their chemistry and camaraderie being both palpable and riveting. The production team is superlatively good, with highlights going to Henry Braham's cinematography, score from John Murphy, production design from Beth Mickle, and stupendous costume design from Judianna Makovsky. The visual effects are of course fantastically good. Entertaining and worth watching.