Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) Movie Review

Star Warlords

Let's gear up, this Summer, for the surprise winner of the big budget blockbuster so far in 2014. When the fate of the galaxy is threatened by a warlord hell bent on destruction, to fulfill a prophecy he believes he is meant for, it will be up to Bert Macklin, Avatar Green, Not Brock Lesnar, Silver Linings Playbook and I am Vin to stop him. As you can tell, so far, I fucking loved this movie. This is how comic book movies that aren't Batman should be made.

When Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) decides to steal an artifact from cave, he sets off a chain reaction that leads him on course to becoming a hero. You see, Quill is a thief, except this time, he's stealing without his usual crew, led by Yondu (Michael Rooker), and Yondu don't like that. Little does he know, by stealing this artifact, he's put himself in the sight lines of Ronan the Accuser (Lee Pace) and Thanos (Josh Brolin). This lands him in prison, where he meets Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax (Dave Bautista), Rocket (Bradley Cooper), and Groot (Vin Diesel). Once all that happens, the fun really begins.

Chris Pratt is fantastic as Quill aka Starlord. He brings the perfect leading man looks and charisma, while also maintaining the right kind of comedic nature (something Robert Downey Jr. has made a career resurgence on). He gives the performance of his career, giving us a great anti-hero. Bautista, Cooper and Diesel are all excellent as well in their roles. Bautista plays Drax with a certain aloof nature that benefits his character, Cooper snarls and yells Rocket's way into our hearts, and Diesel is given a character that suits his acting style. Groot may only be able to say "I am Groot" with Rocket being the only one that understands him, but the vocal inflection helps the audience to get a sense of Groot. Saldana as Gamora is fine, but did nothing to stand out in my opinion. Lee Pace as Ronan is completely menacing and Karen Gillan as Nebula is such a badass.

The thing that this movie, due in large part to writer/director James Gunn, is that it knows how to be properly funny. The humour isn't just joke-punchline, but rather the characters playing off each other, and humour coming from the characters nature, as opposed to the words being said. Bautista in particular has some absolutely hilarious line deliveries that had my whole theatre rolling.

Overall, Guardians of the Galaxy is everything I hoped for from a Marvel movie. As most people know, I'm not their biggest fan, but with the last Captain America and now this, they are on an upswing. Full of big laughs, awesome action and a compelling story, this movie will have you happy you spent as much as you did to see it.

Grade: A

Calvary (2014) Movie Review

If someone told you that they were going to kill you in one week because of the sins of someone else? Now what if you might know who that person is? This is the driving force behind Calvary, the latest from John Michael McDonough, the story of Father James Lavelle, a priest told in confession that he will be murdered in a week because of the pedophilia abuse given by another, now dead, priest. The problem is, it's told to him in confession, and he's not entirely sure if he can break that secrecy, or that he knows exactly who it is. And so we begin our journey in this incredibly dark humoured film.

Father James is a good man with darkness in his past, trying to do right by the people of his small Irish town. All around him, there is adultery, greed, and hatred, amongst many other vices. So when he is told that he will be killed in one week, off we go to figure out who it is, even though we're pretty sure he already knows. Add into that his daughter visiting from London, and we've got what should be a hilarious comedy from the makers of The Guard. Instead, we get a dark, introspective look at the evil inside all of us, and what it takes to control it. 

Brendan Gleeson is fantastic has become a commonplace expression, but it, nevertheless, rings wholeheartedly true here. The Irish actor has the look of a man at his wits end, desperately trying to understand his place among sin. His ability to make you believe in his own beliefs, yet harbour a deep sadness in his eyes is the work of a truly extraordinary actor, and one that I hope gets some more love at some point down the road.

The supporting cast is all excellent too. Chris O'Dowd, as a butcher whose wife is openly cheating on him, is great, as he's given some of the funnier dialogue, but also balances it out with a strong dramatic turn that will definitely get him some work down the road. Kelly Reilly is great as Father James' daughter, Fiona, Dylan Moran is great as a wealthy business man and Aiden Gillan is hilarious as a drug addicted local doctor. Domhall Gleeson, son of Brendan, is also great in a couple scenes as an inmate who ate the people he murdered.

What I was most surprised with in this movie was how dark and serious it got as The Guard, McDonaugh's previous film, was full of hilarity. And with his brother, Martin McDonaugh, who has done In Bruges and Seven Psychopaths, there's always been an overtly comedic nature. However, the writing and feel of Calvary is somber, reflective and powerful. Ultimately, the film relies on the pairing of John Michael McDonaugh and Brendan Gleeson, who one again prove that they both deserve way more attention than they seem to get, and that their next film is something to definitely look forward to.

Grade: B+