Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 Parent Guide

Parent Movie Review
by Rod Gustafson

Classic tunes from the 1980s rock the soundtrack again in this sequel to the 2014 Guardians of the Galaxy. The first movie’s origin story of this group of space renegades was a surprise hit with both Marvel comic aficionados and newcomers like myself. Along with the music and a priority on humor, we were introduced to a cast of misfits that were easy to love and root for.

In volume two, there is the immediate assumption we know these guys and are in on the jokes. (Yes, viewing the first episode is mandatory homework.) However, the original provided much more opportunity for humor and hijinks. Now the Guardians feel a little more like a sports team that accidentally made it to the playoffs. The plot explodes into various parallel stories about past rifts between family members and friends, and forges forward to predictably resolve differences. It’s a lot to fit into even the two-hour-plus running time, especially when we spend what feels like eons in battle scenes that are dependent on catchy tunes to keep us engaged.

The humor is wedged in between squabbles and the resulting laughs feeling less natural. 1980s kitsch, like an ongoing gag about David Hasselhoff, and sexual innuendo that comes off as immature grade-school speculation of whether an alien has male anatomy, are some of many overworked topics. You’ll also hear a few scatological terms and other profanities.

Yet it will likely be the violent content that causes careful consideration of the film’s appropriateness for younger audiences. Like what was found in the original Guardians, this film also adds a slightly crueler tinge when characters are bullied and even tortured by a wide variety of bad guys using everything from Tasers to forced confinement. A scene with the now tiny Groot being knocked around and drowned in booze by a gang of drunks is particularly bothersome. In addition, the countless portrayals of stabbing and impaling include some tissue damage and other explicit elements.

Parents may appreciate the messages of reconciliation and coming together as a family, but Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 depends too heavily on violent action in its storyline and has lost some of the sincere charm of the first outing.

Directed by James Gunn. Starring Karen Gillan, Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana . Running time: 136 minutes. Theatrical release May 5, 2017. Updated August 22, 2017

About author

Rod Gustafson

Rod Gustafson has worked in various media industries since 1977. He founded Parent Previews in 1993, and today continues to write and broadcast the reviews in newspapers, on radio and (of course) on the Internet. His efforts also include writing and researching media in all its forms and observing how it effects society and culture. He and his wife Donna have four children.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2
Rating & Content Info

Why is Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 rated PG-13? Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for sequences of sci-fi action and violence, language, and brief suggestive content.

Violence: Many scenes in this movie portray conflict between individuals and between political and ethnic factions. Much of this fighting is seen in a grand scale of spaceships fighting one another, however many also depict conflict on a personal level. A character controls an arrow with his mind and we see the weapon working its way through hordes of people, entering and exiting the bodies of each and killing them; in one of these sequences we see some tissue damage as the arrows exit. A child character is bullied and covered in what appears to be alcohol by a group of drunken characters. A character is confined and released into space, we see the character’s prolonged death with some detail (eyes and skin begin to glaze over, etc.). Bodies are seen floating in space. Characters punch, hit, smash and choke one another. A man is dropped from a height and presumably killed. A crowd of people are blasted with poisonous darts while others are electrocuted. People are shot, sometimes repeatedly, by various weapons. A character jumps inside a large monster’s mouth, another character slashes the beast’s throat open—huge amounts of body fluids gush out. A character steals property which results in a major conflict. A spaceship crash lands on a planet—characters are tossed about and one hangs precariously on a tether behind the ship. A character vomits.

Sexual Content: Conception is discussed. A god-like character discusses his plan to visit various planets and breed with women. A man is seen with various scantily clad women, a man, who is doing up his pants, appears in a window. A man shown standing alone and we hear him urinating. A man is seen without a shirt. Male characters make comments about their nipples. A man discusses his “nether regions engorging”. Various characters discuss male anatomy and its role in mating. Male and female characters embrace and kiss.

Profanity: Infrequent scatological slangs, mild profanity, a crude term for male anatomy, and a term of deity are heard. Some slurs are used to describe characters.

Alcohol / Drug Use: A group of people appear drunk and bully a child-like character by pour what appears to be alcohol over his body.

Page last updated August 22, 2017