Tell me a story

For as much as I talk about movies and as little as I talk about TV on this site, I might give the impression that I prefer the big screen over the little one. That’s not quite true. I spend more hours of my week watching TV than I do movies. There are plenty of shows that I watch loyally every week (or in a marathon session once they’ve piled up on the DVR). NBC’s Parks and Recreation is one of those shows. I’ve been watching it from the beginning and have grown to love it as the years went on. The writing is great, its cast of main characters is unique and well-developed, and the side characters that populate the fictional city of Pawnee, Indiana rival the cooks of The Simpson’s Springfield. It’s a funny show that’s just filled to the brim with heart. A big chunk of that heart is Andy Dwyer. He is of course played by Chris Pratt, who will soon be better known for his role in Marvel’s The Guardians of the Galaxy, and that’s pretty cool.

Andy started out as a dim-witted side character who we wanted Rashida Jones’ Ann Perkins to leave for her own good. Eventually the show figured out that Andy was interesting in his own right, and they found any reason at all to keep him around the central characters even after he and Anne broke up. Then the show had the brilliant idea of making April Ludgate (played by Aubrey Plaza) his love interest. Over the course of the show he’s grown into this great big teddy bear of a man (one who you’d assume gives great hugs), and it’s all thanks to the warmness and charm with which Chris Pratt imbues him. I’ve only seen a couple of interviews with Chris Pratt, but both times he came across as a fun, genuine and easy-going dude. So it was a little surprising to see that he was cast as the lead in a superhero movie. From the moment they announced it, I’ve been dying to see just what that would look like. Now with the trailer for The Guardians of the Galaxy out, we get our first glimpse.

Chris Pratt is kind of like Donald Glover (who played Troy Barnes on my all time favorite sitcom Community), in that I find it hard to separate them from the character they play. It feels a little weird seeing Pratt not be as goofy as Andy, though it seems like his “Star-Lord” is going to be anything but smooth. You get the sense that he’ll be a wise ass, which Robert Downey Jr. has showed us is not a bad direction to go in, but still kind of bumbling. I had a hard time envisioning Pratt as a serious hero type, so I’m really glad to see that they’re utilizing his comedic sensibilities, which has so far seemed to be his major strength. I’m also sure he’ll be able to handle the demands of any action sequences. He’s certainly physically prepared himself.

From this

To this

I’ve mentioned it a couple of times on this site that I have grown a bit tired of superhero movies. The Dark Knight series was the pinnacle for me, and I didn’t get really excited for another one until Man of Steel came out last year. I was looking forward to Marvel’s The Avengers a lot, but I think Guardians of the Galaxy looks even more intriguing. Maybe it’s because I don’t know anything about these characters, so it just seems new, or maybe it’s because they have a talking raccoon and weird ent-looking guy, but mostly it’s just Chris Pratt.

Now, for your viewing pleasure, see these video featurettes that introduce us to the Guardians. I haven’t watched them all because I don’t really like going behind the scenes of a movie until after I see it, but far be it from me to stop you.

Rocket

Groot

Drax

Gamora

Peter Quill

 
 
PS How cool does Rocket look? He’s being voiced by Bradley Cooper, but I kind of hope all he does is sneer and spit and mumble all movie long.
 
 
Source: Today.com