After delivering a surprise hit with 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy, which took an obscure Marvel Comics team and turned them into the wildly popular breakout stars of the MCU, James Gunn is back to finish his unique spin on the fan-favorite space team with one last ride in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
Set after the cataclysmic events of Avengers: Endgame, Gunn makes a bold creative choice by eschewing the multiversal trappings of the MCU’s recent output and centering Vol. 3 on Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper) in a surprisingly emotional blockbuster that reminds audiences why they fell in love with these characters in the first place.
You can see what the critics are saying below:
Mike Ryan, Uproxx:
To be perfectly honest, I didn’t expect to feels so sad so many times while watching Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. To be clear, this is by design. This movie, at times, wants you to feel very sad. To the point I had to internally scold myself, “Dude, you cannot start crying in public about a CGI raccoon. You know people here. Don’t be one of these people who cry during Marvel movies. It’s embarrassing.”
Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter:
Cinematic superheroes have been going through a rough patch lately. Already this year, both Shazam and Ant-Man proved a bit at sea in their latest adventures. So it comes as a relief to report the trilogy-capping Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. achieves what it sets out to do, which is provide a stirring and audience-pleasing finale for a franchise that has proven to be one of Marvel’s biggest and most unlikely success stories.
Damon Wise, Deadline:
For anyone unfussed by the minutiae of the Marvel Multiverse, returning director James Gunn is surprisingly cavalier — in a good way — about backstory, not only in terms of the first two GotG movies but in the wider world of The Avengers, too. How Quill and Gamora (Zoe Saldana), once lovers, came to be estranged is covered with a witty scene inside an elevator, and references to Thanos are scarce. The absence of clutter allows the cast to shine, notably Dave Bautista — who’s really on a tear right now in the wake of Glass Onion — as the funny, charming and only mildly psychopathic Drax the Destroyer.
William Bibbiani, The Wrap:
There’s no status quo to uproot anymore, no baseline normal to turn upside down. Heck, even something as simple as “telling a story set on our own planet” is a little alienating, since the MCU version of Earth is just a cracked egg with the corpse of a giant space god hanging out of it. So, in a funny way, it makes sense that “Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3” is more grounded than the other Phase Four movies. Set in the farthest reaches of outer space, the only connection this corner of the MCU ever had to our reality was its vibrant, emotional characters.
Peter Debruge, Variety:
Gunn’s saga comes to a close in “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” which repositions Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper) as the soul of this team, while adding dimension to every member of the core ensemble — including relatively new recruits Mantis (Pom Klementieff), Kraglin (Sean Gunn) and Cosmo the Space Dog (Maria Bakalova). At a jam-packed, planet-hopping 150 minutes, it also feels less like a conventional moviegoing experience than the endorphin rush that comes from waiting years for the next season of your favorite TV series, then binge-watching all the new episodes in a single sitting.
Kate Erbland, IndieWire:
If most Marvel movies make their audiences stand up and cheer, Gunn’s does something even more meaningful: make them stand up and cry. (Yes, we’re talking about the movies with the violent raccoon and the talking tree.) Gunn’s special brand of sincerity, humor, and violence has always made for a strong match for the “GOTG” crew — there are no other characters in the current MCU lineup who are so adept at cracking jokes while absolutely wrecking a room full of baddies — and he takes that alchemy to insane ends for his final chapter.
Brian Tallerico, RogerEbert.com:
This sci-fi/action/comedy still succumbs to a few of the MCU issues of late—bloated runtime, things-go-boom finale, too many characters—but there’s a creativity to the filmmaking, dialogue, and performances that modern superhero movies often lack. Much of the recent talk has been about the potential for AI-generated blockbusters, and I like when “GoTG 3” is at its messiest. Gunn is like that kid who is not only playing with his action figures; he’s pulling them apart and smashing them back together to make them into new creations. He doesn’t just love these losers, he wants to see them save the universe again. You will too.
Ross Bonaime, Collider:
With Gunn heading out to run DC, it’s time for him to say goodbye to this crew, and he does so in a satisfying way with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which is full of heart, humor, and action that feels like a creation only Gunn could come up with. Will we likely see some of these characters again down the line? Almost definitely. But with Gunn gone as captain, Vol. 3 feels like the last time we’ll see these characters in this way again, and Gunn gives them a wonderful sendoff.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 rockets into theaters on May 5.