…sigh!! Every year…or perhaps these days, it’s better to say, every few weeks…’it’s
the same old story’…
…huh-boy!! Here we go again, folks!! The dust hardly settles
from the dynamic, albeit overrated impact of the last great big blow-hard superhero
movie, and before you know it, along comes another one…with a heavy sigh, followed
by a deftly hand-gestured ‘yank, yank, yank’. Ah, me…alright, good or bad,
whether we like it or not, lay it on us. What do we got, this time?? Another
dark and brooding hero type, dedicated to a ruthless combat of the criminal
types who left him without family?? Even more genetically mutated wonders,
endowed with powers to defeat the evils of a world that superficially sees the
heroes as mere freaks of nature?? Can there possibly be one more deal with the
devil, with the person who made the deal, afforded dark powers to be used in
the devil’s servitude, to which that person then reneges on said deal, and
instead uses the powers for goodness, rather than badness. Is this world big
enough for yet one more super powered alien…the last of his race, sent to this
world, in an effort to preserve his heritage, and at the same time, lay roots
in a new home, with a new people, which he swears to defend against fiendish
perpetrators of evil and crime, both earthly and other-worldly??
…yeah, sing it again, and again, and again, Bonnie…”…isn’t
there a white knight, upon a fiery steed??”…huh-boy…sigh, with a bowed head
shake and eyeball roll (…nope!! Not suffering from superhero movie fatigue
here, folks…nope, not at all…sigh…)…
…ah yes, the stories are varied…the characters,
countless…the attitudes, like someone with bipolar affliction, ever- changing
on a dime. Of course, there’s also the assumed set and/or adjusted expectations
of the masses, especially from the viewpoint of those geek-savvy with the
popular arts, who might be familiar with it all, via the hallowed pages of
those four-colored, multi-paneled comic rags. Really, at some point, one cannot
help but feel that all these stories, characters and situations invariably
blend into each other, to the point where we, the paying audience, pretty much
rolls our eyes, let out a sigh, take in the next superhero movie…driven with an
almost commercially manufactured ‘do whatever the crowd does’
anticipation…then, just short of tossing that movie aside, followed by the sigh-instilling
after-thought of ‘harrumph…OK, next?’, here comes another generic,
assembly-line, cookie cutter episode of super powered daring do, with about damn
near the same goals, intermingled with the same conflicts and the same personal
problems…
…really, it’s totally understandable, when…after so many of
these ‘same-old, same-old’ superhero movies gone by, and still to come…well, we
just can’t help but jump the fence, and start rooting for the villains, rather
than the heroes. Hey...no secret that the bad guys are insurmountably much more
interesting, alluring and fun, than the good guys anyways, right??...
…and yet, despite all this yah-dah-dah, yah-dah-dah, wah-fucking-wahhing,
what do we do?? Why, we just saunter our butts right back up to that thar’ ticket
booth, and once again fork over our hard-earned simolians, for yet another jaw-dropping,
eye-poping, head-droning, rock ‘em/sock ‘em, CGI-oversaturated super-powered
epic. It’s kinda like that old George Carlin ‘ice cream’ gag…you know, you eat
the ice cream, you get that painful brain freeze, you rub away that
excruciatingly cold spot in your throat, and afterwards, what do you do?? Eat
more ice cream!! Gotta quote ol’ George in saying, “…what, are we fucking
stupid??”…
…truth be known…yeah, yeah sure…admittedly, amidst the polished
and clean-cut assembly-line standard and stereotype, as far as the seemingly
never-ending superhero movie genre…every few films or so, our fine tinsel-town
filmmakers, writers and directors do manage to invoke an unconventional twist,
a skewed change in tone, a rebellious attitude, a more jovially flavoring, which
genuinely manages to breathe at least some measure of fresh new life into the stale,
by-the-numbers proceedings. A generous whiff of ‘hey, what if’ into the
mix-master…maybe something a bit original to liven things up, perhaps beyond
that of what might have already been done or written. Something like…well,
like…
…come, as we shift the locale, and the time circuits to…oh say,
Russia…during the Cold War, some 40 odd years previous…when, under the cloak of
absolute government secrecy, two renowned scientists devise a lucrative and
ambitious project, code named ‘Patriot’…the sole purpose of which is directed
towards experimental human genetic manipulation, in an effort towards creating
super-powered soldiers. Well, now…it seems that one of the scientists…Professor
Kuratov…having something more than a difference of opinion with his scientist
partner, as far as the speed and direction of the project’s science and
application, goes rogue, steals the project’s research data, and begins
initiating his own experiments on chosen ‘volunteers’; the military, hard and
fast on the hunt for Kuratov, catches up with him…though the professor’s
capture is thwarted when he blows up his own laboratories, and presumably
himself, in the process…
…four decades later, Kuratov inexplicably returns; however,
he has since become quite scarred and mentally screwed, assuming crazed
delusions of grandeur, and having harnessed a cache of artificially endowed
psychic powers over all electronics and mechanical devices. Stealing military
weaponry and prototypes, Kuratov instigates a path of destruction, with the
ultimate intent upon assuming worldwide control over all man-made mechanics and
technology…
…with a good measure of caution and reluctance, the Russian
military re-initiates the ages-old ‘Patriot’ program, and launches a
countrywide search for any of the numerous, now-super-powered, and hopefully
still living human ‘guinea pigs’, who were invariably discarded and scattered
across the continent, soon after Kuratov explosively eighty-sixed his work…all
now rumored to be living out their lives in conflicting, bittersweet peace and
secrecy. The covert military search manages to find four of them: Ursus (Anton Pampushnyy), a
young and rugged-looking scientist, living in isolation deep in the sheltering Siberian
forests, and possessing the ability to willfully transform himself partially or
completely into a hulking and powerful beast of a bear. Khan (Sanjar Madi), discovered in
white sand desert wastelands…there, applying his martial arts skills as a darkly
clad mercenary…is armed with large, crescent-shaped, scythe-like swords, and
has the ability to move at lightning speed. A weathered and elderly, monk-like
farmer named Ler (Sebastien Sisak), has staked claim in the war-scarred battlements of a castle’s
ruins…his power, the ability to move and manipulate the very earth and surrounding
rock formations, beneath his feet. And found applying her unique abilities of
underwater invisibility to the awed delight of an appreciative
audience…applauding witnesses to a lavishly staged magic show, Xenia (Alina Lanina) completes
the sought team of reluctant super-powered dissidents…
…bitter, reluctant and bewildered, considering a tortured
past which they’d rather forget, or have outright forgotten altogether…the
genetically altered foursome, despite inner conflict and reservations, find a
common purpose with which to bond with…the capture and persecution of the one
that created them…an old adversary who is as powerfully altered as they are.
But will their combined might, as difficult as that proves to be to assemble,
be enough to see them through the impending battle…a battle, which although
their first, might well be their last??...
…now, right out the gate…the most intriguing ‘cлoh’
(…read: 'elephant') in the room, is the front & center fact that…hey, we’re
like, talking Russian superheroes here, folks. OK, yeah…we’ve sorta been here
before, given that, despite a certain beloved, Slavic-accented, metal-skinned member
of the X-Men…not to mention, the imaginatively alternative reality ‘what if’ published
exploits of a certain legendary interstellar ‘man of steel’, told from the
perspective of having landed, as an infant, in a Ukrainian Farm commune, vice a
vast, albeit random Kansas grain field, the idea of super-powered heroes, originating
from Russia…yeah, this sort of thing nonetheless remains a rather unique and
novel one. And as far as the fictional superhero realm, as a whole, the mere suggestion
ideally mirrors a juxapositioned measure of creative literary arrogance, that
presumptuously dictates…for the most part…that the crust of the superhero
populous would exclusively and stereotypically originate from these 'might makes
right', wholesome ‘apple pie and stars ‘n’ stripes’ domestic shores…
…indeed, in retrospect of having seen “Guardians”, and
genuinely walking away with a respectable amount of appreciation for the notably
flawed, though moderately engaging drama, dynamic action and rousing adventure,
featuring a new, albeit clearly inspired rag-tag band of cross-continental,
super-powered rogues…yes, inspired, but a wholly original-enough written crew,
as opposed to the already set-forth ‘comic page panel to silver screen’
translations from the renowned minds, over at Marvel and DC…this reviewer is of
the subsequent opinion that…yeah, there might well be room enough for this
special brand of ultra-powered misfit daring doers, in the hallowed and honored
annuls of the superhero film genre…
…and a rather unconventional, albeit relatable and tragic
crew of regionally diversified misfits, this motley bunch most assured are.
Ursus, the burly and seclusive were-bear scientist…later armed with a
gargantuan-sized, psychically directional version of the ol’ Painless Gatling
gun, from ‘Predator’…harbors inner torture, conflict and insecurity, in the
sense that every time a desperate situation necessarily calls for him to
initiate his monstrous and beastly transformation, he fears losing control one
day, in finding the inability to become human again. The weathered and
burnt-out loner Ler, who’s powers are supplemented by the military, enabling
him to string and weld conjoined pieces of rock into an electro-plasma-charged
whip, is the most defiant of the quartet, as far his reluctantly gifted
abilities…preferring to remain in solitude, but nonetheless finds vengeful
purpose in being recruited into the team. Xenia invariably, though later
willingly joins up in an effort to shed light upon her past…a clouded past,
which she has absolutely no memory of; she is later provided with a specialized
suit that enables her to control her invisibility at will, as well as being
able to focus those powers on anything she touches. And then, there’s the
zen-spirited, ninja-like Khan…for the impending battle, retrofitted with an impenetrable
armor…though preferring to further his solo fervor as a hired
soldier-of-fortune, nonetheless brings his extraordinary talents to the table,
if only to do what is right, in thwarting a world threatening megalomaniac,
welding a formidably disastrous and destructive power…
…for the most part, the able-bodied cast is adequate to the
varied and diversified characters they portray; however, much like the film’s
reluctant superhero components needing to cooperate with each other…work with
each other, to exude that classic ‘sum of the whole is far greater than the
individual parts’ ideology, “Guardians” shines best when this misfit ensemble
share their screen time, as opposed to individual focus. In fact, the more notably
singular standout characters, though affecting, are not even directly
associated with the team itself. Actress Valeriya Shkirando proves a more
dynamic presence on the screen, than even our hapless superhero
entities…channeling an alluring and feminine ‘Nick Fury’ like presence in the
proceedings, in playing the military’s Major Larina. And as an equally dynamic
adversary type, Stanislav Shirin deliciously plays up the over-the-top, ‘crazy
but not stupid’ card, as the super-mega-charged megalomaniac Kuratov…so much
so, in fact, one might genuinely believe this totally formidable, mad and
insane character could potentially give any number of the Marvel or DC
goodie-goodies, a run for their money. Crossover, anyone??...
……to the film’s credit…eh, definitely better than some, but falling
short of greatness…the overall production values and visual dynamics seem to fall
with the range of…oh say, just short of your basic big-bucks Marvel ensemble
entry, and one of the more ambitiously reaching fantasy films, culled from the budget-driven
knock-off/mockbuster folks, over at The Asylum. Yet surprisingly enough, and going
into “Guardians” with an open mind, the imperfections…as far as the level of, the unpolished
quality of, and the interchanging chemistry between the CGI, optical and practical
special effects…are pretty much acceptable, forgivable, and really not all that
distracting (…as opposed to the demanding expectations, versus the resulting
imperfect visuals of Marvel’s recent ‘Captain Marvel’ domestic release…though
fleeting, but very distracting…but that’s a whole other story). Also to the
film’s credit…the outstanding, though economic set designs, the nice
integration of outer locales with the special effects (…the city-rampaging ‘bug
robots’ were pretty cool, reminding me of a more up-scaled and ‘lifelike’
version of the ‘animated’ grid bugs, in 1982’s “Tron”), and the slick, varied &
extraordinarily detailed prop and costume work…overall and clearly, a matter of
resourcefully making so little, look like a helluva lot…a higher level of the ‘silk
purse, out of a sow’s ear’ type of economic production, so to speak…
…storywise, the approach to this material has it wearing a
distinctly dark and stone-cold cloak of air, with sort of forced moments of
levity, and a mostly haunting soundtrack (…the ‘Guardians’ theme, is
particularly and memorably mesmerizing), which anyone on these shores might
stereotypically expect, considering this is a Russian production; however, that’s
also what makes these dynamic proceedings surprising…that Russian filmmakers herein,
vied for the stereotype, or what might have been expected, versus something
wholly unconventional and unexpected (…this, among other reasons, might
possibly explain why the film was unanimously lambasted by Russian and European
audiences, upon initial theatrical release). Oh, without a doubt, the basic superhero crust is
there…with clearly notable and inspired nods towards the Avengers (…and the team’s
singular components), the X-Men, and Guardians of the Galaxy…but the core of
the premise itself…from the characters, to the story components and set-up…
seems not unlike that of classic paper dolls, with their interchangeable
variety of ‘fold-the-tab-over’ clothing, and the clearly mad clothier was left
to the whims of his wild imagination, in doing the clothing…adding layer upon
layer…until you have something totally absurd and outrageous, yet still oddly appealing…
…short and sweet (…as usual with me, far too late for that), for a superhero film best watched in the original Russian language, with subtitles (...the domestic dubbing is a little on the silly side), “Guardians”
is not a particularly great entry into the mass super-powered hero relay…but it is a respectably
good and worthwhile one...original, in an inspired way (...i.e., not based upon any direct literary source, but taking it's cues from other, higher-profile sources), which cries out in curiosity, towards being further explored (…a reportedly
financial flop in Russia, the lead production company went bankrupt…though, a
proposed sequel , co-produced and co-financed with filmmakers in China, has not been ruled out; take my money now, guys...I'm in);
in culinary terms, the film is like half-baked chocolate chip cookie dough, in
that it’s not quite all the way done yet, but it’s still pretty damn tasty and
eatable. Can you imagine what they'd have, and we’d subsequently have, if they’d just let that puppy cook to
it’s full potential??
...uh, should the folks over at Marvel and DC be concerned, or worried??
TEXT HERE
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