Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (spoiler thread)

[JasonEvans]

This will be the thread where folks can discuss this movie and not worry about spoiling it for readers.

I'll start by saying I was a little bit stunned that no one died. I really thought Peter was toast when his face started to freeze and blow up (though Adam Warlock recreating Michelangelo's painting was hysterical).

I love Rocket being the new head of the Guardians and the huge super-Groot at the end looked like a BEAST!!

Lastly, did any of you pick up on the significance of Groot speaking in a language we understood at the end? Germain Lussier of iO9 had an amazing explanation for what happened there. I hadn't really gotten this on my first watch but now that I read it, I think it is brilliant and oh so beautiful!

(Most of the characters in the film are) so familiar with Groot by this point that when he says “I am Groot,” they hear what he really means. In Vol. 3, one person that doesn’t happen for is Gamora, because she’s the other Gamora who hasn’t spent much time with Groot.

Then that changes. At the end of the movie, Gamora finally hears what Groot actually means, and it’s a nice moment. She is finally friendly and comfortable enough with him that she understands Groot’s language. Plus, that’s in there to clue us into what happens next.

Soon after, the Guardians are all talking and we hear Groot say—not “I am Groot,” but “I love you guys.” And that’s the moment. Groot hasn’t changed how he talks. We, the audience, have just finally become part of the family enough that we can finally understand Groot

That explanation right there... it takes the whole movie to a different level, IMO. Brilliance on the part of James Gunn!

[Udaman]

This thread will talk about the movie. You've been warned...


As I said in the Movies and TV Thread, I thought this movie was great. Easily the best since Endgame (the movies since them have been barely good, with many of them outright awful (Marvels, Thor Lightning and Thunder).

I loved that this movie was Rocket centric. And I agreed with what the Otter said in his dream/afterlife "this has always been about you," because Rocket in many ways is the essence of the Guardians. I thought it was funny, violent, and touching. The bad guy was a pretty good bad guy (rumor is, they might have him replace the actor who played Kang in the last Ant-Man, which was pretty awful, given the issues facing the actor he would be replacing).

I didn't love the last few minutes, with everyone breaking up to go their own ways - and ESPECIALLY didn't like that Quill and Gamora don't end up back together. She is the same person as in the first two movies, she just hasn't become that person yet. It's not that she is from another dimension. I wish they had kept her in the group. It's clear she saw how special they were, and that is always who she was at her core. Also didn't really love the AfterEarth massacre - or the people there, as it wasn't really explained how he could just make a planet as big as Earth and then just destroy it on a whim. But I liked the effects of that, and how the last 30 minutes of the movie played out. I thought the Kevin Bacon abduction story in the paper was great!

The soundtrack was excellent as well (loved the opening song and the song they played as everyone was going their own way).

This is the first Marvel movie I plan to see again in the theaters since EndGame (though I did watch 10 rings again on cable). This also gives me hope that the DC movies will turn things around, because James Gunn seems to know what he's doing.

[Udaman]

Oh, and I REALLY didn't like the talking dog. Was a one trick pony and a dead horse joke mixed together.

But the movie had at least 15-20 laugh out loud moments, which is what Marvel has (mostly) always gotten right - the humor makes it relatable, and makes the characters human.