The Guardians embark on one final adventure in “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” the third and last film of the “Guardians of the Galaxy” trilogy.
It’s crazy to think about how I’ve basically grown up with theses movies. The first film came out when I was only nine-years old, and now, the finale is coming out the exact month I am graduating high school.
In this film, Rocket has been attacked and is in critical condition with only 48 hours left to live. He is unable to heal, due to a device attached to his heart that can only be removed by a passcode.
In order to save their dear friend, the Guardians must go seek out the lab where Rocket was created and discover the horrific origins of his past.
During this mission, they also encounter The High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji), Rocket’s creator and the fascist villain of this movie.
The High Evolutionary is a mad genius that has Thanos-like intentions to create a perfect society, but he implements his plan in a much more twisted and less sympathetic manner. Iwuji has a very strong and menacing presence on screen and does well in performing a villain that is very manipulative and abusive towards others with supposed ‘imperfections’ (especially towards Rocket) while ignoring his own imperfections.

Along with The High Evolutionary, Will Poulter (“The Maze Runner”) plays side villain Adam Warlock, a foe with extraordinary powers but with the mind of a child.
All team members of the Guardians gets their own character arc; the most character development goes to Rocket and Peter Quill (A.K.A. Star Lord).

Drax and Mantis continue to charm audiences as an increasingly hilarious duo that lightens much of the tension throughout the film.

Gamora, however, is a completely different character since she is a version of Gamora from a timeline where she never met any of the Guardians or fell in love with Peter.
This version of her is a lot less emotionally invested in the team and has a much more pessimistic attitude. During heist scenes, she acts recklessly in a comedically psychotic nature and doesn’t feel seem to feel as much remorse for innocent lives.
This final installment has a much darker and mature story than the previous two films and that applies to its humor, fight scenes and dramatic moments.
I would not advise taking younger children to this movie due to some of the gore and dark themes in certain scenes.
In addition, I will warn those that love animals to be prepared for some scenes of animal cruelty and abuse seen in glimpses of Rocket’s backstory, shown throughout the span of the film.
While some may not like the extra emphasis on dramatic scenes, I believe the film (mostly) keeps a good balance of both emotional and hilarious moments.
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” hits on themes similar to the previous to films like the concepts of found family, moving on and confronting trauma.
Every member of the team is a survivor of some kind of extreme trauma, and in this film, we see them each start to fully process it and discover how they can continue on as their own individual self.
The music and overall soundtrack in this movie, of course, continues to excel with plenty of iconic 70s, 80s, 90s and even 2000s tunes that perfectly go well with each scene.
Fans should also make sure to stay after the final scene, because, like other Marvel movies, there are two end-credit scenes along with a final “thank you” to the fans from director James Gunn.
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” serves as an emotional and fitting end to the Guardians’ adventures, effectively showcasing familiar comedy and dramatic moments to further develop fan-favorite characters.