Film Review: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3 (2023): An Entertaining but Overlong Sequel Focusing on Rocket’s Origin Story

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Review

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023) Film Review, a movie written and directed by James Gunn and starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Chukwudi Iwuji, Pom Klementieff, Karen Gillan, Austin Freeman, Stephen Blackehart, Terence Rosemore, Sean Gunn, Maria Bakalova, Sarah Alami, Will Poulter, Giovannie Cruz, Nico Santos and Miriam Shor.

James Gunn’s latest sequel, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, runs on way past its welcome but keeps the spirit of the first two films in the franchise alive and well throughout. This new picture is essentially about how the raccoon, Rocket (voice of Bradley Cooper), came to be and the movie examines his current dilemmas which challenge the heroes known as the Guardians of the Galaxy.

Chris Pratt is as reliable as ever playing Peter Quill whose relationship with Gamora (the terrific Zoe Saldana) becomes all the more interesting following its development from the first two movies. Gunn keeps the pace and momentum pumping for the majority of the new picture’s two-and-a-half-hour running time even though it sometimes feels like it takes an eternity to get through the mid-section of the film. Nevertheless, Rocket is a likable hero who loves his music and the new movie knows how to make the viewer invested in both his past and present stories that are intertwined throughout the film.

The movie begins with Rocket’s development and re-introduces the audience to all the Guardians one by one, including Groot (Vin Diesel) and Drax (the always solid Dave Bautista) who carries a torch for Mantis (a solid turn by Pom Klementieff). Mantis is a character who sort of has antennas coming from her head and yearns for a new and exciting life. It is the blue-faced, Nebula (Karen Gillan), however, who gets some of the movie’s best lines with her no-nonsense attitude that will certainly keep audiences invested in this character. Maria Bakalova plays the voice of the dog Cosmo which is probably a bit of a stretch for the actress who was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for the second Borat film not too long ago.

There are some characters on board here who also help make the film maintain viewers’ attention throughout. Sylvester Stallone, of all people, is back in yet another quick but memorable turn as Stakar Ogord. If you remember, Stallone co-starred as King Shark in Gunn’s The Suicide Squad too. Stallone is quickly becoming a Gunn movie staple. Will Poulter plays Adam Warlock, a blonde haired character whose actions early in the picture propel the film’s action into motion and, later in the film, make a major difference to the plot. But, the movie is centered mostly around the High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji) who was the scientist responsible for Rocket’s coming into existence. Rocket escaped the High Evolutionary’s evil tendencies and eventually made a name for himself alongside The Guardians’ Peter Quill and company.

The highly intelligent star raccoon, Rocket, suffers immensely in the picture as his fate is left hanging in the balance for much of the film while the movie traces his development in terms of how he came to fit into the Guardians of the Galaxy universe. Rocket is terribly appealing as a character and makes the picture feel like the blockbuster that it will be thanks to Rocket’s energy and charisma. Cooper’s voice work is very distinct here while the High Evolutionary is well-developed as a character as we eventually see this villain (which is played with vicious zest by Iwuji) get “unmasked” later in the picture.

The charismatic Chris Pratt is the definitive movie action hero. While his status in the Guardians of the Galaxy series changes by the time this film reaches its conclusion, he’ll always be the most likable star in this franchise, for me. You’ll even get to see Groot says something different as the plot progresses to its conclusion which will be nice for fans of the series to hear.

Pratt’s Peter Quill comes into some serious trouble towards the end of the film which leads to a couple of truly crowd-pleasing scenes near the movie’s conclusion as well. However, this picture essentially serves as a game-changer for the character of Rocket the Raccoon who makes himself the key figure in the franchise through the events that transpire during the course of the new film.

Guardians of the Galaxy has expanded as something more than just a movie franchise with special programs and the characters from the films have made appearances in several other Marvel pictures as well. Gunn’s big budget is certainly up on the screen with terrific visual effects. Some scenes in particular, stand out towards the end such as when some animals are rescued by our heroes. These animals include penguins and so many different types of fun animals. Also, Peter’s confrontations are handled well by the filmmakers. You may just be wiping a tear away from your eye when a group hug finally arrives on screen.

Rocket is an example of a cute character with a lot of personality who has continuously driven the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise forward. You’ll certainly cheer him on in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 but you may find yourself looking at your watch by some of the slow-moving filler scenes in the movie’s center. Still, the action scenes make up for any flaws in the picture which fans of the series may not even pay close attention to. Although the jury is still out on whether the new picture works as a stand-alone picture, there is probably nobody who would go to this movie without having some exposure to the Guardians— at least in other Marvel Avengers films. Therefore, this is a mainstream movie which should do well with audiences whether you’ve seen all these movies or haven’t. It would help one follow the plot threads better, though, if you’ve seen the previous two films in the series.

Rating: 7/10

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