Tonight, a lucky bunch of ticket holders across the US were treated to a 17-minute IMAX 3D preview of Guardians of the Galaxy, courtesy of Marvel. It was awesome.
SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS!
Much like the trailers we’ve all seen by now, the footage starts with depicting the group of misfits in a police lineup. We get some extended character introductions from Rhomann Dey (John C. Reilly) and a finally uncensored middle finger gag from Peter Quill/Star-Lord (Chris Pratt). Amid the introductions we also learn that Gamora is Thanos’ adopted daughter and that she has been loaned out to Ronan the Accuser for a mission.
Jump to Kyln, a mega space prison. The Guardians are walking in handcuffs, and then Quill gets tased after telling off a guard. “Hooked on a Feeling” plays and slowly, the group starts to learn about their connections. Peter Quill has stolen the orb that Gamora was sent for, Rocket Raccoon and Groot are bounty hunters that were after Quill, and Drax has made a deal with the team to help with the breakout so that he may go after Thanos.
A fight breaks out in the prison after a giant blue guy steps up to Peter Quill, but Groot comes to the rescue by sticking his fingers up the blue guy’s nostrils and lifting him up off the ground. Rocket and Groot quickly establish their dominance.
Cut to Rocket explaining plans for their prison break. He talks about things they’ll need to acquire while in the background Groot is seen recklessly gathering said items. One item in particular sets off all the prison alarms. A massive action scene unfolds in which we get to see all of the characters’ individual talents as they fight off prison guards. They manage to make it into a control room where Rocket figures out how to shut off all outside gravity. As all the police that were chasing them float around outside, Rocket detaches the control room and uses some hacked drones to make it fly. As they zip through the prison, they are suddenly stopped by a dead end.
The footage ends there.
Viewers in attendance also walked out with this limited edition poster:
Up until a few years ago, I had never heard of the Guardians of the Galaxy comics or any of its characters, and now it’s shaping up to be the source material for quite possibly my favorite film in the MCU. The CGI looks awesome, the acting seems genuine, and it is shaping up to have the perfect amount of comedy and action. Take my money already!
Guardians of the Galaxy stars Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, and Dave Bautista. Written by James Gunn and Nicole Perlman. Directed by James Gunn. In theaters August 1.
