GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY is a fun and light-hearted superhero romp from Marvel. The setting is outer space and the film is a sensory overload at first, featuring an unknown cast of colourful alien beings interacting in a standard storyline involving the possession of a magical, world-destroying device. The first thing you notice is the quality of the CGI effects, which as in the recent DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, are quite remarkable and photo-realistic for the main part.

The hero of the piece is Chris Pratt, nowadays hot property but an actor I can take or leave. He does his usual cocky routine, but the supporting cast are much more interesting: Zoe Saldana takes a similar role to her one in AVATAR but has a lot more fun, while Dave Bautista is hilarious and even Bradley Cooper's raccoon character is lovable. Groot isn't quite on the same level as Treebeard but is still amusing, and you have to love others like Michael Rooker's larger-than-life space pirate. The plot is derivative and predictable, and the spaceship action scenes are still copying STAR WARS some thirty-plus years later, but the camaraderie is good-natured and, more importantly, funny. The result is a light and breezy movie that never loses momentum, and leaves you happily looking forward to the sequel.

Currently, about a week after its debut, "Guardians of the Galaxy" is ranked #37 on IMDb. I assume that by the time you read my review it will have dropped in the rankings--mostly because the most rabid fans were probably the first to see and review it and the rest of us folks will be getting to it a bit later. This is often the case with big blockbuster films--though with an overall score of about 8.7, it's bound to stay well within IMDb's top 250. As for me, I really enjoyed the movie but cannot agree that the film is THAT good. Excellent yes....#37...nah.

The best thing going for "Guardians" is that with the huge glut of super-hero films during the last decade or so, this one manages to stand apart--something that cannot be said of most of the films. There is just a certain sameness that make me less than thrilled with all the comic book hero films. But a few, like this film and "Scott Pilgrim" manage to seem different enough to merit your rushing to see them. So, of course, rush to see this one

So how is it different? Well, there are MANY ways. Chris Pratt (Peter Quill) is NOT your typical super-hero. He is NOT a disaffected millionaire or guy bitten by a spider or a super-being from outer space- -he's actually pretty ordinary in most ways. But, like his character on "Parks and Recreation", Pratt is a bit of a goof-ball--a dopey but likable guy who manages to do well despite himself. This is kind of cute--but fortunately the film is NOT just about a dopey goof-ball but he's assisted by a strange group of new-found friends with strange abilities. Another way this is VERY different is that almost the entire film takes place in outer space. While "Thor" and "Superman" have their brief moments in space, "Guardians" is almost completely there--and as such has a HUGE reliance on special effects and CGI. It is a SUPER- expensive film because of this and its all-star cast--coming in at about $170,000,000--which is greater than the gross national product of many nations!!! So, although the film has earned over $100,000,000. it has a long way to go to earn back its costs--though I am pretty sure this will soon be the case. As for these special effects, they are beautiful and the film has such an other-worldly look as it jumps from one weird planet to another. So, the film is absolutely jam-packed with eye candy. Finally, the dialog (mostly from Pratt but also due a lot to his new friend, a VERY sentient raccoon) is amazingly strange. Often crude, it sounds much like the dialog was spiced up a bit here and there by 13 year-olds. While I usually don't like this, it DOES make the film very different.

So what's not to like? Well, not much. However, because the story has so much action and CGI, you do sacrifice a bit when it comes to plot, back story of many of the characters and you might just feel a bit overwhelmed. Still, it's the sort of overwhelmed I don't mind feeling from time to time.

By the way, if you do see the film, you'll certainly enjoy the obligatory Stan Lee cameo--it's one of the better ones I can recall.

Is 'Guardians of the Galaxy' as amazing as the IMDb rating (which this reviewer learned long ago is not something that should be taken to heart) and ecstatic reviews suggest? To me, not quite. Is 'Guardians of the Galaxy' well made and entertaining? Absolutely.

'Guardians of the Galaxy' boasts spectacular special effects, gorgeously psychedelic colours, slick-yet-with-enough-visual-depth cinematography (nothing cartoonish or plastic here) and very colourful and atmospheric sets that more than effectively makes one think they are immersed in this galaxy. Costumes and make-up are also of very good quality. The 70s soundtrack and score is rousing and touchingly nostalgic. The action is beautifully edited, choreographed with lots of entertainment value and thrills and is at best exhilarating, there's plenty of it without feeling too much.

James Gunn directs with style and a sure hand, always seeming as if he knew what tone he was going for and who he was aiming at ('Guardians of the Galaxy' is far and above anything else he's done and his best overall direction is here as well. Personally really enjoyed the way that 'Guardians of the Galaxy' was written too, the jokes are enormously entertaining and the film also has heart with a genuinely emotional opening.

The story is non-stop energy and compelling, with a nice balance of comedy, drama and section. It is not perfect, and is one of the film's weaker points, with a been-there-done-that feel, a couple of overly-sentimental moments and a couple of randomly placed moments that were not needed at all and just took away from the flow and tone of the scene (Chris Pratt's dance).

The characters are on the most part incredibly colourful and engaging, with a great chemistry throughout. Peter is a likable lead character and Groot is quite adorable and amusing, but Rocket the Racoon doesn't just threaten to steal the show, to me Rocket actually does steal the show. The one exception really is the very bland and barely developed villain Ronan.

Chris Pratt is highly charismatic, Zoe Saldana is suitably fiery, Karen Gillan is imposingly formidable, Dave Bautista induces lots of laughs and charm while showing a very intensely played vengeful side (though that was a little too hastily introduced) and a surprisingly well-cast Vin Diesel does a great job as Groot. Bradley Cooper stands out, being a sheer delight as Rocky. Lee Pace tries but struggles to bring any menace or dimension to Ronan, can't say I blame him as anybody given the role if written in the way it was here would have struggled to bring believability to it.

All in all, not perfect and not quite as great as all that but exciting, well-made and lots of fun, really enjoyed it. 8/10 Bethany Cox