Chris Pratt, costars on bittersweet finale for ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’
From left: Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Zoe Saldaña, Vin Diesel, Karen Gillan, Dee Bradley Baker and Pom Klementieff in “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3”
Director James Gunn gives the quirky bunch of Marvel Studios’ “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” a fitting sendoff with a film that is as heartwarming as it is spectacular. Yes, fanboys and movie buffs alike would be thrilled to learn that MCU’s latest adventure gathers Chris Pratt (Peter Quill aka Star-Lord), Zoe Saldaña (Gamora), Bradley Cooper (Rocket), Vin Diesel (Groot), Dave Bautista (Drax), Pom Klementieff (Mantis), Karen Gillan (Nebula), Sean Gunn (Kraglin), and newcomers Will Poulter (Adam Warlock), Maria Bakalova (Cosmo) and Dee Bradley Baker (as the voice of the cuddlesome F’saki creature, Blurp) for one final mission.
It’s a roller-coaster ride of action, humor and deep emotions—where each tear shed is well-earned and every cosmic blast or punch thrown packs a mighty wallop.
Full disclosure: Before watching its preview last Friday morning, we had misgivings about “Vol. 3” because we’ve been finding Marvel’s more recent productions “uneven” and “underwhelming.”
They were hit-or-miss viewing experiences for us: While we were swept off our feet by “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (84 percent on Rotten Tomatoes), we left the theater somewhat discombobulated by the bum-numbing dourness of the cerebral “Eternals” (47 percent) and were bored by Paul Rudd’s visually flashy but predominantly ho-hum trip to yet another dimension in “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (47 percent).
Rocket, voiced by Cooper
And while “Thor: Love and Thunder” (63 percent) had satisfying moments, we were gutted by Taika Waititi’s wisecracking iteration of a superhero who has become very different from the brooding god we grew up knowing from comic books that we bought at Filbar’s or Comic Quest.
While those distortions could initially be amusing, directors and actors should nonetheless serve the story of a superhero they’re tasked to bring to life, not tamper with a brand or IP beyond recognition.
Marvel has to bring its superheroes back to the surface of the Earth, literally and figuratively—which the latest “Guardians” flick manages to do. In fact, “Vol. 3” lives up to its predecessors’ winsome appeal with a story that, as far as derivative sequels go, far exceeds our expectations.
At the press con moderated by Nathan Fillion (Master Karja in the movie) last weekend, James Gunn recalled feeling good about the franchise when he began conceptualizing it almost 12 years ago.
Scene from “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” —PHOTOS COURTESY OF MARVEL STUDIOS
Something different
“From the beginning, I felt like we were doing something different,” he disclosed. “The world needed a space fantasy that was different from the ones we had seen before. In terms of the story that we were telling over the three movies, I did have a sense of how it would go from the beginning. These films changed me in so many ways… including everything I’ve learned from (Marvel boss) Kevin Feige and (executive producer) Louis D’Esposito.
“Also, in terms of this family of actors, I’ve been really good at hiring nonjerks (laughs). They’re people who are actually positive, compassionate, loving and kind, so I’ve grown incredibly close to them. This has made making movies a much more pleasant experience.
“My main memories are not going to the premieres or doing these press junkets. They’re about being on set and having the little moments. It’s doing bits with Chris in between takes, watching Chukwudi Iwuji (who plays the villainous High Evolutionary) turn in an amazing performance, laughing with Pom at Karen’s expense, or goofing around with Pom and wondering what the hell she’s talking about (laughs).
“I’m going miss the characters—that’s the saddest part for it. I love all of them, but there are certain ones that I have a special fondness for, especially Rocket.
“I’ll be seeing all these people again because they’re friends of mine. But I’m not going to see or write their characters anymore, at least not in the near future. And so, that’s a real source of sadness for me.”
Aside from James and Nathan, the global press con was also attended by Will Poulter, Chukwudi Iwuji, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Sean Gunn, Maria Bakalova and Kevin Feige.
In the final installment of the franchise, the lives of our favorite band of misfits are upended by the echoes of Rocket’s turbulent past. Peter, still reeling from the loss of Gamora, must rally his team on a dangerous mission to save Rocket’s life—an undertaking that could signal the end of the Guardians as we know them.
Asked to explain Peter’s situation after what happened to Gamora, Chris shared, “He’s definitely lost. There’s a wonderful monologue that Drax delivers that comes from Mantis… that Quill is a guy who needs to learn how to swim. He’s been hopping from woman to woman, and relationship to relationship.
“That’s a pretty human condition. In the beginning, he was running away from the death of his mother, but he got to pretend to be this character based on the pop culture icons of his childhood in the late ’80s. And so, he was dancing around, but all of that was kinda BS, you know? Then, he found himself with the Guardians of the Galaxy. “Peter’s just constantly searching for who he is. Then, he found it again in his relationship with Gamora. So when that’s stripped away from him, he’s really lost.”
Will Poulter (left) and Elizabeth Debicki
Chris was then asked to share what it was like to say goodbye on the last day of filming. Was he asked to make a speech?
He recalled, “I don’t know if they wanted me to, but they certainly weren’t going to stop me. You know, the thing that you want to avoid is regret. I didn’t want to look back thinking, ‘Why did I just let that go by without trying to enjoy every moment? Why didn’t I savor that?’ I wanted to be ‘present’ for it.
“This may sound trite, but the only thing I was feeling was just gratitude. I wanted to be the guy who reminded everyone how far we’d come and all the things that we had overcome.
“So, I read a few reviews from people who had predicted that ‘Guardians’ was going to be Marvel’s first big flop (laughs). I don’t know how those [reviews] ended up in my notes for the past nine years. But it was important to me. I’ve had the experience of being part of things that have come and gone.
“I remember what it felt being on ‘Parks and Recreation’… like it was the last day of school before summer, and you won’t be coming back to school together. It’s that summer-camp vibe. ‘Am I ever going to see these people again?’
“It’s an emotional feeling. And having gone through that, I also ‘coerced’ others into being ‘present’ as well. That was a responsibility that I felt I had… to make sure to check in with everybody.”
In the same press con, we also asked Will Poulter what it was like to get cast as Adam and be the newcomer in a tightly knit group of people.
“The thing that I shared with Adam mostly was just that sense of trying to work out what the hell was going on,” Will quipped, laughing. “When you find a parallel between your character and your own experience, it can be quite something to latch on to.
“I was the new kid on the block arriving on this set. So, it felt very much like how Adam Warlock was arriving into the Guardians’ world… trying to find his way around and working out the rules.”
Zoe Saldaña as Gamora
Unexpected moments
When Nathan asked the team what question were they dying to get asked, Kevin Feige answered, “I want to tell the story about Pom (laughs)… So, we were on a plane the other day. You know, Chris is a clumsy oaf. And he came in with coffee as we were taking off. There’s a cup holder right there, but he didn’t put his coffee in it. Instead, he placed it on the armrest.
“Pom had this cool-looking purse with her (“It just happens to be very expensive and unique,” Pom pointed out in the background). And she’s been getting compliments for it all week long. It was just the four of us—Karen, Pom, Chris and me—as the plane took off. Maybe Chris has never been on one before (laughs) because he didn’t realize that sometimes planes tilt at different directions! “So, his coffee slid down and fell all over Pom’s beautiful, expensive purse that we’ve all been complimenting for a week. And Pom was a little irritated with Chris, as she should be. So, we cleaned it up.
“Then, we flew for another 10 minutes. But all of a sudden, Pom burst into tears and said, ‘I’m so sad.’ Chris and I looked at each other, and I told him, ‘You really screwed up by dropping coffee on Pom’s purse!’ “We thought she was sad about her purse getting wet. Then she said, ‘I feel like something is ending….’”
Pom explained, “It’s funny because I wanted to hide and cry because it was like I was in mourning [for the end of ‘Guardians’]. Sometimes, it comes at unexpected moments. It’s the beauty of it, too—it just comes, and I can’t contain it. And I wanted to hide in the bathroom to cry, but Karen was in it for a long time (laughs).”
