‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’: How James Gunn Made His ‘Empire Strikes Back’
If “Guardians of the Galaxy” was director James Gunn’s Marvelization of “Star Wars,” then “Vol. 2” is his riff on “The Empire Strikes Back,” as the Guardians struggle to stay intact as a dysfunctional family of social misfits.
In this follow-up, Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), the half-human, half-alien Star Lord, meets Ego (Kurt Russell), the aptly named cosmic god and living planet. who claims to be his father. Their interaction forces Quill to confront the dark side of his own over-sized ego. Also thrown into the mix is Baby Groot (Vin Diesel), a reboot of the sprouting humanoid and the epitome of innocence, who requires constant parenting from the Guardians.
“‘I love ‘Empire’ — it’s my favorite of the ‘Star Wars’ series,” Gunn said. “Bad parenting doesn’t get any worse than in the first trilogy. The heart of [‘Guardians’] is a family melodrama. It’s a story about the relationships between these characters that we got to know and like in the first movie. And in this movie they learn to treat each other with respect.”
Gunn knew he had to dig deeper and not repeat himself. Feeling looser and more confident, he made what he believes is a tighter and more emotional “Vol. 2” — but still with that signature snark.
“The first one was the story of Peter Quill,” said Gunn. ‘And this is basically a multi-protagonist film with a true ensemble. You look at it in one direction, and think it’s Yondu’s [Michael Rooker] film, you look at it in another direction and think it’s Rocket’s [Bradley Cooper] film, or in another direction and think it’s Gamora’s [Zoe Saldana] film.”
“Vol. 2” adds up to a choice between being selfish or selfless. Yondu, the blue-skinned leader of the Ravagers, figures more prominently as an anti-hero and father figure to Quill. His shirtless, melancholy introduction in a cybernetic brothel also lends a sense of pathos that becomes the through line. And Gamora’s sibling rivalry with Nebula (Karen Gillian) finally delivers their moment of truth.
Yet “Vol. 2,” which doesn’t pull back at all on the snark, still comes back to Quill and his increasing responsibilities as leader of the Guardians. He’s overwhelmed by the power and beauty of Ego’s existence as a living planet (inspired by the fractal art of consultant Hal Tenny and made by Weta Digital). It’s also telling that Quill ignores Baby Groot (a living Emoji) throughout the film, who’s lovingly looked after by the other members of the Guardians.
“You had that strong connection between Peter and his mother in the first movie and in this one it’s about Peter looking beyond himself,” Gunn said.
Of course, pop music once again plays an important role and the Awesome Mix Vol. 2 includes “Brandy” by Looking Glass, Fleetwood Mac’s “The Chain,” Mr. Blue Sky” by Electric Light Orchestra, and Cat Stevens’ “Father and Son.”
“‘Brandy’ was a part of the initial inspiration for the movie,” Gunn said. “I love the lyrics, I love the [music] and I thought it fit perfectly for the way Ego sees the world [as a sailor who always returns to the sea]. I also thought it was an interesting way for them to be discussing pop culture in a really specific, serious way.”
By contrast, Gunn calls “The Chain” “a beautiful song about the [Guardians] possibly disbanding or staying together,” and “Mr. Blue Sky” the hardest song to select for Baby Groot’s joyous, opening dance number.
Members of Fleetwood Mac and ELO’s Jeff Lynne first wanted to view the scenes with their songs cut together before giving approval, and Lynne, who hadn’t seen the first “Guardians,” was initially a tough sell.
“Father and Son,” though, was tricky because it was so on the nose. But after hearing it on “The Howard Stern Show,” Gunn was hooked on its bittersweet sentiment.
And what can we look forward to in “Vol. 3”? A riff on “Return of the Jedi” with more assistance from Yondu buddies Stakar (Sylvester Stallone), Martinex (Michael Rosenbaum), Charlie-27 (Ving Rhames), Aleta (Michelle Yeoh), and Mainframe (uncredited Miley Cyrus)?
“It’ll tell the end of this particular story about Peter Quill,” said Gunn. “We’ll get to know the characters a little better and how they need to change, especially Rocket, and we see that very specifically at the end of the movie.”
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