Early this May Marvel Studios brought the apparent final chapter of its Guardians of the Galaxy story to theaters worldwide in the form of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Now today less than three months after making its theatrical debut, the movie is now available in physical form on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD. The quick turnaround honestly should come as no surprise considering that its total domestic ticket sales barely made up for the roughly $350 million total cost for the movie’s production and marketing. Its total domestic revenues topped $358 million during its brief theatrical run, according to boxofficemojo.com, though globally it proved far more successful, pulling in $845 million. The one major positive to this story is the work of the movie’s cast. This will be discussed shortly. While the cast’s work does plenty to engage and entertain audiences, the story actually proves somewhat problematic over the course of its two-and-a-half hour run time. This item will be examined a little later. The bonus content that accompanies the movie in its home release rounds out the movie’s most important elements and will also be examined later. Each item noted here is important in its own way to the whole of the movie’s presentation. All things considered, they make Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 maybe not the best finale to Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy cinematic series, but still worth watching every now and then.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is a bit of a mixed bag presentation. It is not perfect but is worth watching occasionally now that it is available in stores on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD. The main positive in this seeming finale to the series is the work of the movie’s superstar cast. Dave Bautista, who stars once more as Drax, is honestly one of the best examples of the cast’s work. Throughout his time in the role, the former pro wrestler became a fan favorite because of how he made Drax a loveable goon type figure. This time out though, he shows so much more depth. He shows more heart and humanity for lack of better wording. The way in which Bautista exhibits that growth in Drax makes his character all the more loveable. He shows so warmly that he has more than just a bruiser mentality, but in fact has heart and his smart. It is one of the most understated, and in turn underrated, of the performances this time out.
Chris Pratt deserves his own share of applause as he returns one more time as Peter Quill (a.k.a. Star Lord). Not to give away too much but at the movie’s end, it states “Star Lord will return,” meaning even if there is not another Guardians of the Galaxy movie, odds are there will be a Star Lord solo presentation. Knowing Peter’s personal growth over the course of the franchise’s first two movies, his depth of emotion this time out is fully understandable. The anger and frustration he feels when Rocket is nearly killed by Adam Warlock makes him such a sympathetic character. At the same time, his frustration in dealing with the alternate timeline Gamora plays into that frustration. That is because she is the polar opposite of the Gamora he came to love over the course of the series’ first two movies and who came to love him. The impact of dealing with her brings out a whole new side from Peter that Pratt handles so expertly throughout the movie.
On yet another note fellow cast members Bradley Cooper and Pom Klementieff (who returned once again to take on the roles of Rocket Raccoon and Mantis respectively) are also deserving of their own applause. Knowing the movie’s story centers on Rocket, Cooper gets plenty of screen time so to speak (he actually voices Rocket, who is seen on screen digitally. Watching Cooper bring out emotions from Rocket that Rocket has kept pent up for so many years, viewers will not be able to help but tear up to a point. That is because Cooper makes Rocket’s reaction to everything he experiences in his memories fully believable. Klementieff meanwhile continues to show so much innocence for Mantis through her performance even as she grows into her own person. That is shown as Mantis takes on the giant killer worm creatures aboard the High Evolutionary’s ship. She shows such strength where Drax and Gamora were scared to death of the creatures. Between the pair’s performances, that of Pratt and that of Bautista, the Guardians’ performances bring so much enjoyment to this installment of the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise.
While the cast’s work does plenty to engage and entertain audiences, the positive ensured by their work is offset to a point by the work of writer-director James Gunn in regard to the movie’s story. The story is action-packed. To that there is no doubt. The themes of everyone deserving a second chance and of “the self” (as is explained by Gunn in one of the movie’s bonus features) do manage to keep viewers engaged and entertained. However, the bigger story proves a concern. The story is for lack of better wording, a continuation of the story featured in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. The problem herein is that after Warlock nearly kills Rocket, he does not even come back into play until the movie’s final act, which spans a little more than half an hour. It creates a bit of a plot hole considering how Adam’s role was set up in this movie’s predecessor. It was made to be as if Warlock would play a much bigger role here, yet he did quite the opposite. The rest of the story is focused on Rocket’s fellow guardians trying to save him. It plays out like so many of the hospital/coma story lines that soap operas used in days gone by. The drama all played out in the main character’s mind. That is exactly what happens here in this story for roughly 100 minutes of the movie’s 150-minute run time. The only difference here is that the hospital is replaced by the “sick bay” in the guardians’ ship and instead of some over-the-top story arc audiences instead get lots of back story on how Rocket became Rocket. From there, the attention suddenly turns to the Guardians’ conflict with the High Evolutionary. The connection between The High Evolutionary and Rocket is actually believable considering his back story in the comics, as is the loose connection between Warlock and the High Evolutionary. Overall, though, the way in which the story was crafted does leave some slower moments and a certain lack of believability. To that end, the story is imperfect but still worth watching thanks in large part, again, to the cast’s work through it all.
While the story featured in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is problematic to the movie’s presentation, it is not enough to doom the movie. As a matter of fact, it is made more bearable thanks to the bonus content that accompanies the movie in its home release. Gunn points out in one of the bonuses, the movie’s story centers on the previously noted theme of “the self.” He makes the revelation as he explains how the franchise evolved from focusing on the guardians as a whole to Peter’s own personal growth in the second movie, to focusing on Rocket’s acceptance of his past and present this time out. Understanding this deliberate approach over the course of all three movies shows Gunn’s clear long-term plan. It gives hope for the future of the DC cinematic universe under Gunn’s watch. He expands on the discussion, explaining how that concept of self also plays into the development of the rest of the guardians. That discussion makes for even more appreciation for the cast’s work and in turn, leads to even more engagement and entertainment in the movie, even despite the very clear problems with the movie’s story. To that end, this extensive discussion by Gunn adds so much to the movie’s presentation. When Gunn’s discussion (and the deleted scenes that are also included as bonuses) pair with the work of the movie’s cast and even some positive elements of the story, the whole makes Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 an imperfect ending to the Guardians of the Galaxy series, but still worth watching occasionally.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, the apparent end to Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy cinematic story, is an interesting finale for the franchise. It shines in part thanks to the depth that the cast brings to its characters as they really grow and become so much more than their pervious selves from the series’ first two movies. While the cast’s work does much to make the movie worth watching, the story at the center of this movie proves somewhat less entertaining though not a total loss. The story proves engaging because it really does build on the elements of the series’ first two movies in terms of character focus and development. At the same time, that the story spends so much time being presented in the vein of the old soap operas’ “coma” story arcs that the very approach becomes somewhat laughable. At the same time, the downplaying of Adam Warlock’s role in the story proves just as problematic, especially considering it was Warlock who caused everything to happen and that his role in this movie seemed to be so played up in the franchise’s second installment. Thankfully the negatives of the movie’s story are not enough to doom the presentation. To that end, the bonus content that accompanies the movie in its home release add some depth and back story for the presentation, making it somewhat more bearable. Keeping all of this in mind, the finale to Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy cinematic series proves a work that while somewhat enjoyable, certainly could have been better.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is available now in stores on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD. More information on this and other titles from Marvel Studios is available at:
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