James Gunn He is the director who has best been able to put his personal stamp on the films he has directed for Marvel. Already in ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ it became clear that we were facing a work with its own voice within this great universe of superheroes, a feeling that was reaffirmed by the second installment. Then the doubts came with his firing, but it soon became clear that the franchise could not go on without him and he was reinstated.
However, that period of doubt was used by DC to deal with ‘The Suicide Squad’ and just a few months ago it was announced that it was going to focus full time on the relaunch of Marvel’s great competitor. That left “Guardians of the Galaxy 3” in a strange position, something that was accentuated after the box office failure that was “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.” Obviously, I can’t know if Gunn’s new job is going to be a blockbuster, but what I do know for sure is that it’s about a great ending to the trilogyto the point that with the passing of the days it is increasingly clear to me that it seems to me to be the best film of it.
The Gunn touch is still intact
The first thing that should be made clear is that It is clear at all times that ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 3’ is a James Gunn film, and also that there is nothing that seems left to improvisation to try to save it in any way at the last minute. The filmmaker himself commented this year that in Marvel it is too common to go around doing touch-ups until the last moment, but that this way of carrying things does not fit with him and here we have a new demonstration of it, noticing from the usual selection of great songs by its part to the rest of the elements that shape everything.
From the first moment it is perceived that ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 3’ is designed as a farewell film and that Gunn knows where he wants to go. It is not difficult to detect how some seeds are being planted to return to them in the final minutesbut it does so without relying on a smooth start, since only a few minutes pass until a huge danger lurks over them and forces them to start a mission that does not seem to have much chance of success either.
That emotional touch was already present in the first two installments, but here it reaches another level by also serving to delve deeper into the past of one of the protagonists and that the story itself develops from there. It is true that this also leads to flashbacks having a much greater weight than its predecessors, but it is not a mere whim of Gunn or something that hinders the narrative of the film.
That’s right, Gunn He also does not forget to print that comic component of the house that at specific moments it can have a certain tendency to joke -there is a recurring joke with Cosmo as the protagonist that is especially funny-, but more often than not, it is an extension of the personality of its protagonists and of the dynamics existing between its characters.
And it is that one of the great strengths of ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 3’ is precisely the care with which its protagonists are treated, the affection that Gunn professes towards them being evident. If you add to that a successful feeling that we are at the end of the road, everything feels more momentous, the dangers feel more real and the moments of relief shine brighter. And I do not want to forget the good use that is made of Gamora’s new personalityserving both for lighter moments -those greetings with Nebula- and for others much more forceful on an emotional level.
If I had to put a but, that would be in the part of the villains. I am aware that there are going to be quite a few complaints about what Gunn does here with Adam Warlock (Will Poulter), since everything indicated that the character was going to go in another direction, but for me the one that seems a bit unsuccessful is the High Evolutionary of Chukwudi Iwuji, who already collaborated with Gunn in ‘The Peacemaker’, as he suffers a bit from the syndrome of a very powerful enemy that later isn’t such a big deal and also his attitude is somewhat reminiscent of Thanos. I don’t think it’s a disaster, much less, but it is surely the most generic of the whole function.
Except for that detail -it’s curious that ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 2’ is the least successful of the trilogy but in return it has the best villain-, which is not very annoying either, the film is very satisfactory in the rest of the sections. For example, visually it is impressive without detecting any of the strange irregularities typical of Marvel’s fiddling until the last minute. Of course, some of the designs chosen by Gunn may shock some viewers, but when it comes down to it, everything fits with what this filmmaker has been showing over the years.
Finally, it will be inevitable that not everyone will be equally satisfied with the closure chosen by Gunn for this group of superheroes, but for me it works as a perfect climax to your story. From the unexpected song chosen for one of the climactic scenes to the fact that it felt like a logical and natural conclusion to the plots of each one of them. Then the same thing Marvel ends up recovering some characters, but for me, let it stay here, I doubt very much that things will work better.
So is it worth it or not?
‘Guardians of the Galaxy 3’ is a film with the seal of James Gunn and also a work very disconnected from the rest of the Marvel universe. Here the real objective is to close the story of this group of superheroes, maintaining the same style as in the first two installments but raising the emotional touch. I am aware that there are many viewers who are disenchanted with the direction the MCU is currently taking, but here I can’t think of any reason why those who already enjoyed the two previous installments are not going to have a great time again.
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