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Guardians of the Galaxy - A Review
11 years ago
(Crosspost of this LiveJournal entry)
I finally get to write this. Free time where I’m not tired is rare lately.
First of all: relax. No mayor spoilers ahead. I will mention elements from three different scenes and give you a fair warning ahead. Bu those are none that will ruin the movie for you. In case you haven't seen it - what you should change as fast as you can. :)
About two weeks ago I was finally able to watch Guardians of the Galaxy. So here are some impressions on this flick.
The Story is, well, known and otherwise nothing I'd call special. It comes with a lot of spontaneous humor and also with humor that's predicable - in a way you know the authors want you to know what will happen next so you can watch every detail as our five friends advance towards a small disaster. Usually it ends in a funny argument or some hilarious shooting- and wreck-it-all scene. It’s the way of predicable humor where you sit there, thinking "Nononono! Bad idea! Told you I saw that comming!".
The timing works also like a charm. There are several scenes where, just when it start to become boring, something happens and changes the situation instantly so you forget about that from one to another second. Like when two characters talking to each other and it may lead to something cheesy.
Something that completely amazing about this movie is the special effects. It's done with a completely new grade of details and depth, even in the shooting and fire scenes where stuff seems to be blurry. Still, if you focus on it, you soon realize that the animators paid a lot of attention to even unimportant background elements - next to the important ones.
Start Minor Spoiler: There is one scene where, as far as I remember, Rocket undresses and turns his back towards the screen. About half a dozen connectors (like from Matrix) become visible on his back. He stands there, not moving, for about 1-2 seconds. It leaves a quite nasty and repulsive first impression. Naked, partly colored skin with some small patches of ugly fur and then those connectors. Eww! But suddenly Rocket shifts and his back becomes alive. The impression turns changes completely. From repulsive to beautiful. I have no clue how many hours/days/weeks the animators must have spend on this scene - but it's a masterpiece of animation. It's the most realistic animation of anatomy and physics I've ever seen so far. Every muscle is animated with so much detail as it shifts under the skin, pulling the skin along where the connectors are. It’s amazing to see the how realistic all those connectors affect the shifting of the skin and how it stretches between them. For a moment I was completely absorbed into the beauty of the scene that underlines how fragile Rocket is and how much the fact, that he's man made and how torn he must feel inside. Spoiler End.
What I'm very glad about is, despite a lot of shooting and fighting, there's nothing I’d call a carnage. The movie is quite unbloody what makes it, at least for me, a lot more enjoyable. Even when someone dies (what happens a lot) it doesn't ruin the impression that the flick is rather comedy and popcorn cinema then a war-flick (which would suit the story also).
Another thing worth mentioning is character interaction. Usually a group forms and sticks together. Each one gets a roll and stays true to it. Not in this movie. Seeing the characters develop, changing sympathies, having fights and changing opinions paints a quite realistic image. Honestly, we all know that nothing in life stays as it is, also not our relation to friends. It's one of the few movies where the characters change the person they're emotionally attached to.
Except for one couple. Groot and Rocket. They're a match. It makes sense, both characters get introduced as friends - for a long time as it seems. So they know what they have in each other already. It's also a special couple, both non-human and somewhat related to the wild world, to the nature, forest maybe. They just go along like they were supposed to do so since the beginning of time. Watching them interact is just so much fun and heartwarming.
But, blablabla, let's about the really important element of this move. Rocket, the Raccoon . Oh. My. God. I already said that this movie is the new kid on the block when it comes to animation quality. Rocket isn't the usual animated character. He's alive. I mean it. Just have a look at the references on the Internet. It starts with the fur which isn't well kept and perfect but it reflects his inner character. It's somewhat rough and unkempt. The texture changes a lot from nose to tail. There are parts where it’s thick and fluffy and there are parts where the skin shines through. Also, it's rough and here and there aslant. Still, he doesn't look dirty but rather like he doesn't give that much about grooming because there's nothing in his live that’s worth putting effort on it.
This brings me to his personality. I thought a lot about what makes him so special. I mean, of course, to us Furries he's eye candy and it's oh-so-easy to love that tormented, rough, and violent beast. But in the ends it's the contrast that gives him his personality. He's quite small but can kick ass like a big guy. He's smart, likes to destroy stuff but somewhere deep inside he does it only for a good purpose - like helping friends.
Start Minor spoiler: What I like a lot is the duality of his character. Pretty rough and violent but more and more frequent his grief shows as the movie goes on. It's related to his partners around and how they start to like each other. Finally, he can't cover it any longer and when getting drunk in a bar it all pours out. Close to tears he screams how hard and hurting it is to know that he's a thing, manmade and the there is no other thing like him. When watching the scene closely it becomes obvious where his violence against other people is based on. Getting rid of everything that reminds him about all the things he can't have. Deep inside he longs for what he never felt. Being taken honest as a being and not just a thing. He longs for being taken honest, feeling welcome and loved. But instead people address him as vermin or rat. He’s a wonderful and beautiful being in a world that unable to recognize it. Inside, he feels utterly alone and lost - in a vast world of stars and beauty. Spoiler End.
It's easy to like the little bugger and to identify with him. He’s the personification of evil feelings in us we fight. The only being around that seems able to read and communicate with him is Groot. And it's bidirectional which shows each time when Rocket is able to read the meaning in his repetitive statement "I am Groot". It also hints how long both must know each other. Groot in general is also a character I can only wonder about. I never saw him commit violence first hand. He's always the one responding to it. At one point I was wondering if both match so perfectly because both are able to read the other one from deep inside. Groot is the only one capable to see though Rockets violence and knows about his inner journey and longing. Rocket, on the other hand, seems the only one being capable of proper communication with Groot.
Start Minor spoiler: After the mentioned scene that took place in the bar (where Rocket poured his feelings) he slowly changes, becomes less aggressive, at least towards his partners on the journey and at the end there's a remarkable scene. Rocket sits on a rock, lost in his grief when one if his friends sits next to him. The camera shows only a hand that slowly advances towards Rockets ears. He's going to be petted. For the first time as it seems. By the time Rocket gets aware of that he tenses and the most likely reaction to that touch will be another outburst of violence. But instead he freezes, looks confused, and squirms, not knowing what to think and feel about it. In the end Rocket changes back to the position he was in before. But still, it shows that slowly the good side in him wins over and he dares to discover new sides and feeling in himself. And even more important - he allows himself to accept those. Spoiler End.
I can't wait until this piece of hart warming eyecandy is available on DVD/Blueray.
Also, of course the Internet is full of fanart by now. If you haven't seen the flick so far and want to get some impressions beforehand: here's a bunch of screenshots and fanart of Rocket I happend to save from social media. Of course Furries ruin everything - there's also a lot of smutty artwork to be found online. But you can dig for that yourself. I keep my blog clean. Mostly.
I finally get to write this. Free time where I’m not tired is rare lately.
First of all: relax. No mayor spoilers ahead. I will mention elements from three different scenes and give you a fair warning ahead. Bu those are none that will ruin the movie for you. In case you haven't seen it - what you should change as fast as you can. :)
About two weeks ago I was finally able to watch Guardians of the Galaxy. So here are some impressions on this flick.
The Story is, well, known and otherwise nothing I'd call special. It comes with a lot of spontaneous humor and also with humor that's predicable - in a way you know the authors want you to know what will happen next so you can watch every detail as our five friends advance towards a small disaster. Usually it ends in a funny argument or some hilarious shooting- and wreck-it-all scene. It’s the way of predicable humor where you sit there, thinking "Nononono! Bad idea! Told you I saw that comming!".
The timing works also like a charm. There are several scenes where, just when it start to become boring, something happens and changes the situation instantly so you forget about that from one to another second. Like when two characters talking to each other and it may lead to something cheesy.
Something that completely amazing about this movie is the special effects. It's done with a completely new grade of details and depth, even in the shooting and fire scenes where stuff seems to be blurry. Still, if you focus on it, you soon realize that the animators paid a lot of attention to even unimportant background elements - next to the important ones.
Start Minor Spoiler: There is one scene where, as far as I remember, Rocket undresses and turns his back towards the screen. About half a dozen connectors (like from Matrix) become visible on his back. He stands there, not moving, for about 1-2 seconds. It leaves a quite nasty and repulsive first impression. Naked, partly colored skin with some small patches of ugly fur and then those connectors. Eww! But suddenly Rocket shifts and his back becomes alive. The impression turns changes completely. From repulsive to beautiful. I have no clue how many hours/days/weeks the animators must have spend on this scene - but it's a masterpiece of animation. It's the most realistic animation of anatomy and physics I've ever seen so far. Every muscle is animated with so much detail as it shifts under the skin, pulling the skin along where the connectors are. It’s amazing to see the how realistic all those connectors affect the shifting of the skin and how it stretches between them. For a moment I was completely absorbed into the beauty of the scene that underlines how fragile Rocket is and how much the fact, that he's man made and how torn he must feel inside. Spoiler End.
What I'm very glad about is, despite a lot of shooting and fighting, there's nothing I’d call a carnage. The movie is quite unbloody what makes it, at least for me, a lot more enjoyable. Even when someone dies (what happens a lot) it doesn't ruin the impression that the flick is rather comedy and popcorn cinema then a war-flick (which would suit the story also).
Another thing worth mentioning is character interaction. Usually a group forms and sticks together. Each one gets a roll and stays true to it. Not in this movie. Seeing the characters develop, changing sympathies, having fights and changing opinions paints a quite realistic image. Honestly, we all know that nothing in life stays as it is, also not our relation to friends. It's one of the few movies where the characters change the person they're emotionally attached to.
Except for one couple. Groot and Rocket. They're a match. It makes sense, both characters get introduced as friends - for a long time as it seems. So they know what they have in each other already. It's also a special couple, both non-human and somewhat related to the wild world, to the nature, forest maybe. They just go along like they were supposed to do so since the beginning of time. Watching them interact is just so much fun and heartwarming.
But, blablabla, let's about the really important element of this move. Rocket, the Raccoon . Oh. My. God. I already said that this movie is the new kid on the block when it comes to animation quality. Rocket isn't the usual animated character. He's alive. I mean it. Just have a look at the references on the Internet. It starts with the fur which isn't well kept and perfect but it reflects his inner character. It's somewhat rough and unkempt. The texture changes a lot from nose to tail. There are parts where it’s thick and fluffy and there are parts where the skin shines through. Also, it's rough and here and there aslant. Still, he doesn't look dirty but rather like he doesn't give that much about grooming because there's nothing in his live that’s worth putting effort on it.
This brings me to his personality. I thought a lot about what makes him so special. I mean, of course, to us Furries he's eye candy and it's oh-so-easy to love that tormented, rough, and violent beast. But in the ends it's the contrast that gives him his personality. He's quite small but can kick ass like a big guy. He's smart, likes to destroy stuff but somewhere deep inside he does it only for a good purpose - like helping friends.
Start Minor spoiler: What I like a lot is the duality of his character. Pretty rough and violent but more and more frequent his grief shows as the movie goes on. It's related to his partners around and how they start to like each other. Finally, he can't cover it any longer and when getting drunk in a bar it all pours out. Close to tears he screams how hard and hurting it is to know that he's a thing, manmade and the there is no other thing like him. When watching the scene closely it becomes obvious where his violence against other people is based on. Getting rid of everything that reminds him about all the things he can't have. Deep inside he longs for what he never felt. Being taken honest as a being and not just a thing. He longs for being taken honest, feeling welcome and loved. But instead people address him as vermin or rat. He’s a wonderful and beautiful being in a world that unable to recognize it. Inside, he feels utterly alone and lost - in a vast world of stars and beauty. Spoiler End.
It's easy to like the little bugger and to identify with him. He’s the personification of evil feelings in us we fight. The only being around that seems able to read and communicate with him is Groot. And it's bidirectional which shows each time when Rocket is able to read the meaning in his repetitive statement "I am Groot". It also hints how long both must know each other. Groot in general is also a character I can only wonder about. I never saw him commit violence first hand. He's always the one responding to it. At one point I was wondering if both match so perfectly because both are able to read the other one from deep inside. Groot is the only one capable to see though Rockets violence and knows about his inner journey and longing. Rocket, on the other hand, seems the only one being capable of proper communication with Groot.
Start Minor spoiler: After the mentioned scene that took place in the bar (where Rocket poured his feelings) he slowly changes, becomes less aggressive, at least towards his partners on the journey and at the end there's a remarkable scene. Rocket sits on a rock, lost in his grief when one if his friends sits next to him. The camera shows only a hand that slowly advances towards Rockets ears. He's going to be petted. For the first time as it seems. By the time Rocket gets aware of that he tenses and the most likely reaction to that touch will be another outburst of violence. But instead he freezes, looks confused, and squirms, not knowing what to think and feel about it. In the end Rocket changes back to the position he was in before. But still, it shows that slowly the good side in him wins over and he dares to discover new sides and feeling in himself. And even more important - he allows himself to accept those. Spoiler End.
I can't wait until this piece of hart warming eyecandy is available on DVD/Blueray.
Also, of course the Internet is full of fanart by now. If you haven't seen the flick so far and want to get some impressions beforehand: here's a bunch of screenshots and fanart of Rocket I happend to save from social media. Of course Furries ruin everything - there's also a lot of smutty artwork to be found online. But you can dig for that yourself. I keep my blog clean. Mostly.
