MOVIE REVIEW – Let’s face it: nobody gave a damn about Guardians of the Galaxy before this strange offspring of the Marvel Cinematic Universe hit the multiplex in 2014. Then it was a total surprise hit: we all adored it. While the comic book, which was created in 1969 felt like a lite version of the Avengers on paper; on screen, it accomplished a near- flawless comic lift-off – in part thanks to cowriter-director James Gunn, who threw out the rulebook invented to protect major Hollywood investments and just letting the madness rule. But what about the sequel?

Similar to many sequels of a funny, much-adored mega-hit, “Guardians of the Galaxy” isn’t quite as much fun, as clever, or nor quite as fresh as the first movie – but it still packs a cheerful and shiny and sweet punch.

The original “Guardians” (2014) was the class clown of superhero movies if the class clown also had a strong heart and equally strong wit prowling beneath the goofy exterior. It was cool and sarcastic and warm and fuzzy at the same time. It was one of those films you know you’re going to see again to enjoy it just as much the second time around.

Don’t change the recipe!

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 sticks to the same formula, from the reappearance of that lovable ragtag band of universe-saviors to the constant arguing and bantering to the “Mix Tape” soundtrack of pop-rock hits from the 1970s. (And naturally, in the tradition of just about every sequel ever, we’re introduced to new, important characters as well.)

The second movie starts with an outstanding credit sequence. As an extremely expensive CGI battle evolves in the background, the camera stays fixated on a lovely Baby Groot, dancing to ELO’s “Mr. Blue Sky.” Thit is a series more about funny excitement, and family than the traditional, all-around action sequences and that’s what separates it from the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

And the clever opening credits, in which the other characters have the nerve to interrupt Baby Groot’s dance number as they fight for their lives, sets the tone perfectly for what’s to come: a thoroughly enjoyable summer blockbuster.

More of the same?

Yes, indeed, the second movie didn’t change much from the original recipe of the first movie.  The film rarely deviates from what came before, and in some cases, might even be a bit sloppier, but it offers enough added volume and energy to improve on the original.

The soundtrack, as it did in Guardians of the Galaxy, shapes the film not only in its musical beats but its narrative ones. Gunn largely structures the film as a mixtape, linked by an underlying theme but frequently discombobulated by the story’s sudden lurches in unexpected narrative. The frivolity of the action is laid bare in the opening scene, in which the camera remains focused on a dancing Baby Groot (Vin Diesel) as the rest of the Guardians fight a colossal, many-toothed creature in the background. Other sequences largely act as ways for Gunn to experiment with how to shoot a large-scale blockbuster, and the freedom exhibited by these scenes is striking when set against the frequently bland, interchangeable sequences in other Marvel productions.

Still, to some degree, Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 is a more offbeat film than the original, with better gags, better (and more cartoonish) action, and more visual variety. But like its predecessor, it is hamstrung by the fact that it exists in part to smirk at its own corniness and space opera trappings.

Dad’s a god

Throughout the movie, the character of Drax is the source for some of the movie’s best laughs. An enormous muscleman (who avoids shirts because he has nipple sensitivity), he’s a wonderfully developed comic character, with a tendency to laugh uproariously at the most inappropriate moments and to say awful things to people with no awareness that he’s offensive.

“Guardians 2” finds a good story within which to frame its bits and laughs. In the previous installment, we met Peter (Chris Pratt), a space adventurer whose mother was dead and whose father was unknown to him. Now he gets to meet his dad. His name is Ego (Kurt Russell), and he has been searching for Peter for many years.

Of course, there are warning signs — the name, Ego, for one. But he seems genuine in his desire to be a real father after all these years. And he has a great living situation, an entire planetary paradise that he created with the power of his mind. He is a kind of god.

Fun at every turn

Guardians 2 throws a lot into the pot, but it keeps all the elements clear and finds ways to have fun at every turn. Michael Rooker has a nice role as an inter-space rogue who helped raise Peter but also terrorized him. Sylvester Stallone shows up for a couple of scenes as a major space honcho. Throughout the film, the people of a planet known as Sovereign keep figuring in the action. They are a perfect-looking and perfectly mannered golden people — very self-serious and thus the ideal foil for the movie’s irreverence.

Yet, amid all the irreverence, whenever the writer-director wants to be serious about something, he can do it. These dives into sentiment aren’t disconcerting or discordant, but seem sincere. Gunn creates a tonal atmosphere that gives him a wide range.

Visual splendor

I’m not ready to advocate seeing Volume 2 in 3-D, but the movie is visually arresting. The CGI is extreme – sometimes showy, sometimes subtle. There probably isn’t a single shot that wasn’t altered in some way – even the simple Earth-bound sequence that opens the action uses technology to convincingly rejuvenate Kurt Russell. The soundtrack once again relies more heavily on ‘70s pop/rock songs than orchestral themes, with Looking Glass’ “Brandy” and Fleetwood Mac’s “The Chain” being anthems.

Sometimes it tries too hard

Shot for shot, line for line, it’s an extravagant and witty follow-up, made with the same friendly virtuosic dazzle. Yet this time you can sense just how hard the series’ wizard of a director, James Gunn (now taking off from a script he wrote solo), is working to entertain you. Maybe a little too hard. “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” is an adventure worth taking, and the number of moviegoers around the planet who will want to take it should prove awe-inspiring. But it doesn’t so much deepen the first “Guardians” as offer a more strenuous dose of fun to achieve a lesser high.

The main problem of the movie is the ending which leaves the corny fun for an unnecessary “epic” and “moving” ending, which is more in line with a more traditional and heroic Marvel adaptation, then this Guardian of the Galaxy adaptation.

There’s an in-the-middle-of-space farewell between Peter and someone close to him that’s beautiful and moving. If only the film could have left it at that! The fallen character winds up being given a light-show funeral worthy of a Communist head of state. The difference between the first “Guardians” and “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” is that the new movie is flush with what a big deal it is. Ironically, that makes it a smaller deal.

-BadSector-