Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 (April 2017)

Official Australian release date: 27/4/17. Viewed: 24/4/17.

Director: James Gunn

Actors: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Michael Rooker

Genre: Action / Sci-Fi

Rating: M

‘Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2’ is the highly-anticipated sequel to one of Marvel’s surprise hits – and it doesn’t disappoint. Sure, it’s not as novel or zesty as the original, but it’s still one of the best sequels in a long time. It still looks – and sounds – great: vibrant colours, plenty of action, both in space and on strange planets and another killer soundtrack that will grow on people as well. Great use of Fleetwood Mac and Cat Stevens, in particular.

Peter/Star Lord (Pratt) is back with his rag-tag friends/family – Gamora (Saldana), the almost-love-interest; Drax (Bautista) who’s both endearingly stupid and means well; Rocket (Cooper), the alienated racoon and Groot (Diesel), in ultra-cute baby-tree form. Yondu (Rooker), Peter’s adopted father and Nebula (Gillan), Gamora’s sister, are dragged back into the fray, as Peter’s father finally appears – Ego (Bridges, charming as ever). There’s some great cameos – Hasselhoff, Stallone, and, as always, Stan Lee (+ The Watchers) – and some good development of Mantis (Klementieff) and Kraglin (Gunn).

The main plot is all about family – Peter and his new-found father, as well as his odd relationship with Yondu (and Gamora); Gamora’s love/hate relationship with Nebula; Rocket being lonely and struggling to accept that he cares for others; and them all looking after Baby Groot (excellent post-credits scene too). Obviously, a great final battle scene and plenty of laughs throughout.

Overall: Still a bright spark in the MCU.

Gav's Rating: 4 stars.

Get Out (April 2017)

Official Australian release date: 4/5/17. Viewed: 10/4/17.

Director: Jordan Peele

Actors: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Lil Rel Howery, Catherine Keener

Genre: Thriller / Mystery

Rating: MA

‘Get Out’ is billed as a horror film, but – no spoilers in this review! – it’s really more of a mystery/tense thriller. It’s shot really well and looks great (nice effort from first-time director Peele), with some smart use of the Alabama location and a good score. The premise is purposefully cryptic: “African-American man visits his Caucasian girlfriend’s mysterious family estate”. Chris (Kaluuya) is meeting Rose (Williams) parents – Missy (Keener) & Dean (Whitford) – for the first time, and they welcome him with open arms, even if the servants seem off.

It’s not all about race, but it is a key aspect of the film and handled quite well. The two leads easily carry the film, both having some great scenes. However, the best bits are probably whenever Chris’ friend Rod (Howery) is on screen, being hilarious and boisterous, even though often by phone. The humour and some slow bits do well to make the surprises seem even more shocking.

The twist isn’t as big as ‘Cabin in the Woods’ or ‘The Sixth Sense’, but the final 20min is certainly one of the better endings to a thriller/horror film you’ll see for a while! Bit of a slow build up in parts, but a very exciting finish and it’s all over in 100min.  

Overall: Fun and well-made thriller.

Gav's Rating: 3.5 stars.