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guardians of the galaxy dvd cover
guardians of the galaxy dvd cover

Many predicted that Guardians of the Galaxy’s plan to revive long-dormant characters from Marvel Studios’ back catalog would be the kiss of death.

A movie that features a giant walking plant, his best buddy, and an angry heavily-armed raccoon with a lust for danger doesn’t sound promising. But Marvel had a secret weapon: The visual and comic sensibility of director James Gunn, who created a fun-filled spectacular that rescued an otherwise dismal cinematic summer.

It is easily Marvel’s most daring and thrilling enterprise, with antics such as when an evil overlord villain is about to lay waste to a planet of innocents, he is dared by one of our heroes to a dance-off, the premise of which stops him cold and leaves him perplexed.

The story involves dance-off challenger Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), abducted from earth as a young boy on the night his mother loses her battle with cancer. Years later, Quill, who likes to refer to himself as Star-lord (although no one else does) is a Ravager, an interstellar thief who steals ancient artifacts and sells them to the highest bidder. One such item, an odd metallic orb he swipes from a ghost planet, turns out to contain an Infinity Gem, the rarest of all precious stones that wields almost unlimited power. The theft earns the wrath of evil Kree warrior Ronan (Lee Pace), who’s committed to elevate the Kree empire.

Quill gets thrown in prison for his trouble, along with bounty hunters Rocket (the aforementioned genetically modified raccoon, voiced by Bradley Cooper), Groot (an amiable walking plant, voiced by Vin Diesel), green-tinted warrior Gamora (Zoe Saldana) and Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), intent on avenging his family executed by Ronan during an earlier campaign.

The five break out of jail and take on Ronan while protecting Xandar, a peaceful world that houses the government for the whole solar system.

Gunn’s twisted moments of humor — which pop up randomly — give the film a bouncy looseness. And the actors are well-cast, including Pratt, who gets to play a souped-up action-hero version of his beloved character from TV show Parks and Recreation: A charming doofus with a big heart and just enough skill to stay alive through countless scrapes.

Time Bandits (PG, 110 minutes) The second solo feature from Monty Python’s Terry Gilliam (the first is 1977’s Jabberwocky), 1981’s manic Time Bandits, now available on Blu-ray, is a romping historical fantasy with young Kevin (Craig Warnock) and six dwarfs that’s designed to appeal to youngsters as well as adults. It’s a goal that doesn’t always succeed, but certainly keeps things interesting.

The premise concerns the creation of the universe, during which the Supreme Being (Ralph Richardson) accidentally neglects to seal up some holes in time, creating an opportunity for the dwarfs, who aided the Supreme One during that week of creation, to sneak into those time holes for the purpose of banditry. Kevin, a 20th-century London kid, is along for the ride. It doesn’t have to make sense to be amazingly inventive. With John Cleese, Shelley Duvall, Sean Connery, Katherine Helmond, Michael Palin.

Frank (R, 95 minutes) Not for everybody but beloved by many, Frank is a bizarre black comedy about young musician Jon (Domhnall Gleeson), who doesn’t exactly fit in when he joins a psychologically damaged pop band led by mysterious Frank (Michael Fassbender), a supposed musical genius who hides inside a large fake head. If Frank isn’t enough of a challenge for poor Jon, there’s Frank’s ill-tempered and perpetually angry band mate Clara (Maggie Gyllenhaal). Sparks fly, ignite, extinguish and rise from the ashes. It’s challenging, but give it a try. With Carla Azar, Scoot McNairy; directed by Lenny Abrahamson.

When the Game Stands Tall (PG, 115 minutes) There are things more important than football. That’s a good message that deserves a better movie than this one. A calculated, humorless sermon, When the Game Stands Tall is about legendary high school football coach Bob Ladouceur (played by perpetually dour Jim Caviezel), who coached the Spartans of De La Salle High School in Concord, Calif., from 1979 until 2012. From 1992 to 2004, his teams racked up 12 consecutive undefeated seasons and set a national record for high school football of 151 consecutive wins.

But the movie isn’t about that streak. It’s about the end of the streak, and the aftermath — the life lessons that were learned when adversity finally dressed out. Three incidents play a big part in the first half of the film: On New Year’s Eve 2003 Ladouceur had a heart attack. In August 2004 the Spartans’ star linebacker, Terrance Kelly (Stephan James), was shot to death two days before he was to leave for the University of Oregon on a football scholarship. Then in September the Spartans lost their season opener to Washington’s Bellevue High School.

On the plus side, the football choreography is pretty good. And the kids look almost age-appropriate.

The film has a faith-based message that’s not entirely unwelcome; unfortunately it’s pure vanilla, blandly cast and predictably plotted. Caviezel is unconvincing as an inspiring leader, as uncharismatic a football coach as ever seen on film.

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