“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” marks the final entry of James “JG” Gunn’s involvement in the Marvel Cinematic Universe or MCU for short. He’s shepherding the DC Universe rebooting the DC Extended Universe beginning with “Creature Commandos” and will direct “Superman: Legacy” without Henry Cavill coming back. This time a successor will fill in his role. Prior to the third solo film of the titular team, Disney fired JG for posting controversial subjects on his Twitter account. As a result of termination, JG’s fans signed numerous petitions to persuade Disney to rehire him.
MCU Cast and Crew who supported him.
- Michael Rooker
- Chris Pratt
- Bradley Cooper
- Zoe Saldana
- Dave Bautista
- Vin Diesel
- Karen Gillan
- Pom Klementieff
- Sean Gunn
- Elizabeth Debicki
- Mike Colter
- Mikaela Hoover
- David Dastmalchian
- Salma Hayek
- Patton Oswalt
- Rhett Miller
- Michael Rosenbaum
- Kurt Russell
- David Hasselhoff
Non-MCU Cast and Crew who supported him.
- Jim Starlin
- Justin Roiland
- Dan Harmon
- Uwe Boll (yes really)
- Lloyd Kaufman
- Bobcat Goldthwait
Thanks to all the full support from fans, friends and colleagues, Disney rehired JG. After “The Suicide Squad” earned praise, JG resumed development of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and the Holiday Special on Disney Plus giving him creative control without studio control interference. Anyway, the third entry earned praise from critics, fans and movie goers.
Today’s review contains no crucial SPOILERS.
Strong & Weak Aspects
Strong: Chris Pratt, Bradley Cooper, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Sean Gunn, Maria Bakalova, Sylvester Stallone & Elizabeth Dekbicki reprise their roles. They all did an excellent job for their respective performances.
Newcomers to the MCU such as Chukwudi Iwuji & Will Poulter both did a decent job for their respective performances as Adam Warlock & High Evolutionary.
James “JG” Gunn did an excellent job giving the titular team an emotional farewell. You can tell he really cares about the characters we all know in love.
Linda Cardellini plays an old friend of Rocket. She previously played Hawkeye’s wife, Laura.
Action Sequences are spectacular. One hallway fight scene is best described as a cross between “The Revenant” and the original “Oldboy.” Both films have a continuous uninterrupted shot.
Visual Effects are gorgeous. They didn’t look cringeworthy like “She-Hulk.”
Cinematography was shot perfectly capturing in-depth imagery.
Chemistry between the characters serve as the main highlight.
Pacing didn’t take forever. I was hooked since the beginning.
John Murphy (28 Days Later, Sunshine, The Suicide Squad) orchestrated instrumental tracks.
Songs contain a variety of tunes from various decades coming from Peter’s Zune. It serves as a replacement for his Walkman. By the way, JG has a Spotify account. He has a playlist dedicated to Peter and his mom who share a good taste in music.
As depicted in the comics, Rocket’s tragic origins factor in. If you’re an animal lover, you’re gonna cry. Be prepared, don’t forget to bring a couple tissues. Without giving anything away, his past comes into full circle on why he hides his vulnerable emotions outside his snarky personality.
High Evolutionary has a legit motivation. He’s ten times ruthless than previous baddies Ronan & Ego.
Even though the humor retains hilarious dialogue and pop culture references, the third movie is darker than the last two movies. For instance, the Opening Scene officially establishes what you’re about to see, is gonna be filled with emotional stakes.
JG’s good friend, Nathan Fillion makes an appearance.
Primary Themes are Family & Friendship. Both of ‘em are treated carefully.
Weak: I couldn’t find nothing wrong, I’m giving JG and his crew an Extra Point for making a proper send-off.
If you’ve seen the Holiday Special on Disney Plus, Peter has a long lost relative.
Stay tune for a Mid-Credits Scene and Post-Credits Scene. They could set up a future installment of MCU.
The Final Verdict: A, FOR APEX!
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is a definite grand finale worth your money and spare time. As of May 2023, this is my favorite film of the year. The second time I’ve given a film my highest grade. First one was “John Wick: Chapter 4.” If you have nothing to do over the week, get off your rump and support James Gunn’s swan song with Marvel.
I hearby declare Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 as a Straight A threequel next to “Return of the King,” “The Dark Knight Rises,” “John Wick: Chapter 3,” “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” “Skyfall” & “Toy Story 3.”
I have faith in Mr. Gunn’s vision of rebooting the entire DC Universe. Hopefully, they’ll do better than the DC Extended Universe. JG if you’re reading this? I’m a fan of your work. Thank you for introducing the Guardians of the Galaxy. I hope you do an extraordinary job as the Kevin Feige of DC. I cannot wait what you have in store for the Justice League and other characters.
Sincerely, Nick The Movie Critic
Nickthemoviecritic.com 