I only had one wish this summer with respect to movies and that was to watch Marvel’s latest offering of Guardians of the Galaxy when we visited the USA. Alas, we returned to Beijing before the much-anticipated film arrived. Thinking the release dates might have aligned, we checked the listings only to find it absent on screens in Beijing. September rolled by with no news, until now. On 10 October, Guardians will open in Beijing. I don’t think I’ve been this excited about a science fiction offering since the Matrix, and this promises to be a lot more family friendly.
Marvel comics have brought a lot of iconic superheros to the screen lately with multiple Spider Man releases, X-Men, Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, and the crew of the Avengers. As Nell Minow, the Movie Mom, points out, they are often anguished, even tortured characters. That makes for good drama, but can take some of the fun out of what tends to be, well, a fun film genre. The unlikely lead in Guardians, Peter Quill takes the screen with all the charm of a swashbuckling pirate. From all reports, his character feels like a mash up of two of my favorite unlikely heroes from my own childhood, both played by Harrison Ford – Han Solo from Star Wars and Indiana Jones.
Guardians held the top spot at the box office in the USA for three weeks and still sits in the top 10. It has received a 92% rating on the peer review site Rotten Tomatoes, and the Movie Mom gave it an A-. Mark Kermode of the BBC described Guardians as largely an extraterrestrial comedy that is laugh out loud funny and completely nuts. What more could you ask for? With so few English offerings to choose from on Beijing’s big screens, this is one film you and your kids won’t want to miss.
Guardians of the Galaxy received a rating of PG-13 in the USA and is suitable for middle school children and up. It does have scenes of intense sci-fi violence and action, and a couple of uses of the F-word. For an in-depth review from the Movie Mom, visit her bog here.
Like all Marvel films, be sure to sit through the credits until the end.
Photo: fanpop.com
