Thoughts on Rocket Raccoon
Before going in I was questioning how Rocket Raccoon would go over. I was questioning the CGI, I was questioning the voice over and I was questioning the Bradley Cooper casting. I had my doubts about all of these things, but they were all put to rest after seeing the screening. Not only am I not worried about Rocket Raccoon, I now feel as if he will be the linchpin to this film and come off stealing the show entirely. He's expertly woven into the film with fantastically realistic CGI effects, where you are never taken out of the film, even for a second when seeing there is a talking raccoon walking around, and Bradley Cooper comes off as a surprising plus to the character. I wasn't sure he fit the whole persona of Rocket Raccoon going into this screening, and I felt as if maybe they had just casted him for added star power, but coming out of the screening my opinion has taken a complete 180. He's brilliantly funny and incredibly witty in the role, and completely steals every scene he's in. He has indeed made me eat my words and I now love Cooper in this role. There were also several action shots during the screening that showed off Rocket's expertise in weaponry as well as his superior piloting skills. In one scene you also see some scaring and implants on his back, referring to his origin of being experimented on. I feel like this was a pretty true to the comics interpretation of this character and it seems like James Gunn took a lot of care in developing this character for the big screen.
Thoughts on Star Lord
If you loved what you saw of him in the trailers, than you'll be happy to know you get even more of that from the preview. I'm pretty sure Chris Pratt might actually be the real Star Lord at this point. He comes off so witty and so cocky in the screening and only expands upon what we saw of him in the trailers. We don't get any more of his back story per say from the screening, but we do walk away with the general feeling that he is very attached to his earthly past and he has a strong will to protect the galaxy he lives in, which syncs right up with his comics origin, and I'm sure this will be expanded upon and revealed throughout the rest of the film. When it comes to his relationship with the other members of the Guardians he meshes with them like peanut butter and chocolate. You get an instant sense of camaraderie between him and the rest of the team, with all your usual friendly arguments and banter between them all. Also best of all, the middle finger doesn't get blurred out in the screening!!! You know what I'm referring to ;)
Thoughts on Gamora
Gamora, for me, actually came off less imposing and brutal in this screening than she did in previous trailers. In the screening she was a little more soft spoken and less of her deadly physicality was shown, but that was mostly because of the small sample size of what was shown in the screening itself. I have no doubt you will see her for who she is in the comics on screen for a majority of the rest of the film. However, the big thing I took away from this trailer which got me insanely giddy in my seat was the Thanos connection. In the screening the rundown of the guardians scene from the trailers is shown again, only this time expanded upon, and in this expanded look of that scene Rhomann Dey is discussing how she is the adopted daughter of Thanos and Nebula will indeed be her sister. Now I'm not a total expert on 'The Guardians' but if I'm not mistaken I actually think in the comics that Nebula is thought to be the alleged *grand-daughter* of Thanos and not daughter but I could be wrong, and even if I'm right I'm still perfectly ok with this. This will add extra tension between the characters in the film and I love how they are mostly sticking to the comics origins. Always a plus! The other big get here is It was also revealed in a later scene that she was after the orb seen in the trailers that Star Lord is attempting to steal, and that the orb is indeed an infinity stone. It is explained that she is after the orb not in the name of Thanos, but rather she intends to betray Thanos and sell it to a third party (The Collector) in order to keep it away from Thanos, as he could use it to destroy the Galaxy. It's also shown in the screening that everyone in the galaxy is aware of who she is and she is widely hated for being connected to Thanos and Ronan the Accuser, and her motivations for joining the Guardians and betraying Thanos is so that she can rid herself of him and that stigma.
Thoughts on Drax
Drax actually comes off incredibly funny in this screening. I wasn't sure what to think when they casted Dave Bautista in this role, as he's a wrestler and not really too well known for his acting prowess...as he doesn't really possess much, but he really does come off extremely likable from this screening. He plays his part in a little bit more of a comedic fashion when compared to the comics, and portrays this warrior out for vengeance against Thanos but his gimmick per say is that he takes everything literally and doesn't understand the concept of sarcasm, which actually leads to some pretty entertaining scenes. However, Drax is a pretty stoic and serious character in the comics with real emotion and pain, so James Gunn will have to walk a fine line here with how he uses Drax, to avoid this character turning into a complete joke. The sample size was small, so I truly hope they bring a bit more emotion into his character as well as his back story throughout the rest of the film, but I fear this character could become a little too comical. There was some nice action scenes with him though, and in terms of the look of him, he is spot on as to what Drax should look like, so there is that.
Thoughts on Groot
Groot was simply awesome. He comes off as the total R2D2 to Rocket Raccoon's C-3PO. The duo of these two on screen is effortless, and yes he says "I am Groot"....A LOT! However don't let his limited vocabulary fool you. Groot portrays a wide array of emotions and despite only being able to say "I am Groot" finds the way to communicate with the rest of his team through his physical actions and expressions. The mocap team they used to bring Groot to life did a fantastic job and Vin Diesel will make you believe that trees-can-walk! Also in the screening you get plenty of action scenes featuring Groot using his tree powers to grow and shrink on command as well as using his brush for cover. It totally works on screen and it gives you a nice early indicator that these same type of effects will look brilliant a year from now when Ant-Man gets released.
Other miscellaneous thoughts
During the screening there were several mentions and cameos to many of the sub characters of this film, so I'll quickly break down the ones I caught.
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The Collector is shown talking to the Guardians about the infinity stone they are after. In the scene the Collector offers up a visual representation of what the infinity stone could/possibly has done in the hands of Thanos, as he shows a world being destroyed.
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A quick shot is seen of Thanos sitting on his throne from behind the back. Thanos is however not fully shown in this shot.
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Yondu, played by Michael Rooker, who is a member of the original Guardians of The Galaxy is fully shown, but only for a split second.
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Ronan the Accuser is featured in a multiple amount of split second scenes, only partially more than what we have seen in the trailers. He looks spectacular and is seen in a few action scenes wielding his 'Universal Weapon.' It is also mentioned in the screening that he is under the employ of Thanos and has murdered a great many people in his name. His Kree origins however are not discussed.
Final Thoughts
All in all the 17 minute screening was absolutely fantastic. It did a great job of catering to the hardcore fans of the comic while also giving people who've never heard of the Guardians of the Galaxy before a taste of what they're all about and a proper introduction into this world. I left this screening totally amped up and anxious for more. In my opinion this could easily be one of Marvel's best films yet and the sleeper hit of the summer. The movie looks absolutely amazing. It so closely mimics Star Wars in so many ways; From the look of it, to the dialogue on screen and the atmosphere it creates. It's a space driven action adventure movie with the right amount of comedy that I was so craving for when I first heard they were taking this movie on, and from what I have seen so far James Gunn has done a dynamite job of making that world a reality. It seems as if Gunn has so far successfully followed in the footsteps of Joss Whedon, and this movie looks to be as fun a flick as the Avengers was. I cannot wait to see the final product on August 1st. See you all there!