"Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2" Movie Review

‘Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2’ brings back the band of misfits who teamed up in the first movie – and pretty much everything else. And though that’s not a bad thing, it feels like the makers are struggling to add the element of surprise that was the biggest strength of the first movie. The irreverent humour, the soundtrack of 80s music, the jazzy special effects, it all feels familiar. But it still is a fun ride, so it’s not like audiences would be complaining too much.

This movie primarily focuses on the parentage of Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), when he is met by his biological father Ego (Kurt Russell) and taken to his planet along with Gamora (Zoey Saldana) and Drax (Dave Bautista). Meanwhile, Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper) and Baby Groot (still Vin Diesel) are trying to keep Gamora’s sister Nebula (Karen Gillian) hostage while evading the Ravagers led by Yondu (Michael Rooker). Everything is not what it seems, and the true motivations of all the characters are revealed as the movie progresses.

This movie is definitely packing more in the emotional content than the first one. Themes of family, identity and sacrifice are explored here, and at times it seems a little out of character when the movie treads into serious territory. But those are brief moments and not too out-of-place. The one thing which felt out of left field was the final act, which seems to take an abrupt turn from the rest of the movie. But that is also covered up nicely with the cracking one-liners and fun effects.

The movie does what it is expected to, it dazzles us with the visuals and gets us laughing with the jokes. The characters we care for are still the same (the makers have done a great job with Bautista’s Drax in particular). The actors are charming and don’t take themselves too seriously. It feels almost formulaic, but hey; it works.

‘Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2’ is fun while it lasts, but chances are it won’t stay with you very long after you leave the theatre. Still, it’s a good time to be had – go for it!

P.S. 1: There are five post credits scenes, so don’t leave the hall until you’re sure that you’ve caught them all.

P.S. 2: It was disappointing that the version I saw had some scenes cut – unfortunately censored because of some mildly adult humour I’m guessing. I am thinking the censor board should lighten up.

"Babubali 2: The Conclusion" Movie Review

The wait is finally over! Arguably the most eagerly awaited movie in Indian cinema of all time, ‘Bahubali 2: The Conclusion’ is finally out. So, does the movie live up to the hype? Though I personally felt it wasn’t as great as the first movie, it definitely does stand up to the great expectations and turns out to be an epic in all respects.

‘Bahubali 2: The Conclusion’ picks off with the flashback chronicling the story of Amarendra Bahubali (Prabhas), who has been recently chosen as the would-be ruler of the kingdom of Mahishmati. Pretty much the entire first half is spent in showing the camaraderie between Kattappa (Sathyaraj) and Bahubali, and the romance between Bahubali and Devasena (Anushka Shetty). Without going into too much detail, a mix-up causes Sivagami (Ramya Krishnan) to get angry and give the throne to Bhallaladeva (Rana Daggubati). Despite this, Bhallaladeva and his father Bijjaladeva (Nasser) continue to plot Bahubali’s downfall. Once the big question of why Kattappa killed Bahubali is answered, it’s time for the son to take revenge and claim his rightful throne.

Straight off the bat, there is no doubt that the movie is a visual spectacle. The camera work is superb, and it’s not just in the grander scenes (of which there are many). Especially in the battle scenes, many images will awe you. The word “epic” keeps coming to mind, and for good reason. The set design, make-up and costumes, special effects and music (for the most part – I felt that the special effects in the final portion weren’t able to do justice to Rajamouli’s grand vision, and the music was nothing too special but background music was good), all of the elements work together to come up with something that is truly of a scale that hasn’t been matched in Indian cinema.

The acting matches up. Both Prabhas and Rana Daggubati do full justice to what are probably roles of a lifetime – both in terms of the physicality as well as the emoting. Prabhas plays the lighter moments and the emotional bits with equal ease, and Rana Daggubati embodies the menacing and evil nature of his character well. The rest of the cast matches up as well – especially the ladies. Anushka Shetty, with probably the strongest character of both parts, shines. And Ramya Krishnan also exudes the authority and fury of her character perfectly. It also helps that all the actors are given well written characters, and though there are some contradictions here, for the most part the strong writing provides a solid foundation for all performers. Kudos to the writer especially for giving us strong female characters.

The biggest problem for me was the length and inconsistent pacing. There is way too much time spent on the romantic relationship of Bahubali and Devasena, and that takes away from the bigger parts of the story. Key plot points, like Bahubali’s loss of the throne and his subsequent banishment, could have used a little more screen time. And not to mention the final act, where Shivudu rises up and leads the rebels in the final battle against Bhallaladeva (again it would have been good to have some more examples of Bhallaladeva’s cruelty) – it is probably not even a quarter of the film. My biggest pet peeve was that the part where Shivudu needs to change from an inexperienced soldier to a master strategist; is explained off in a single line and the whole sequence gets under a minute. It was a good idea but didn’t get any screen time. Despite its length, many portions like this felt rushed – which is actually a major criticism if it was a lesser movie. In my opinion, it would have helped if the great reveal of why Kattappa killed Bahubali happened just before the interval, and post interval it was the final battle. Or else have this one only for the flashback, and a part 3 purely for the battle.

I felt the comedy track in the first half stuck out as a sore thumb, and felt like an abrupt shift in tone. And I didn’t particularly enjoy it either. Speaking of abrupt shifts, the changes in the motivations of Sivagami also felt odd – such a strong character being swayed so easily, though essential to the plot, felt forced and out of place. It’s to the credit of Ramya Krishnan’s talent that she keeps us invested throughout.

But all said and done, despite its flaws, this is not just a movie – it is landmark in Indian cinema. Hats off to S. S. Rajamouli for his vision, and his ability to realize that vision. Definitely go watch it if you haven’t already.