Costumes in Film: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2

Breaking down the prospects of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2!

By Shrey Sankalp

To say that 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy was a surprise is an understatement the size of Shaquille O’Neal.  The Marvel Cinematic Universe had built its reputation as “grounded” fantastical universe with a few colorful costumes and sets thrown in to make it as comic book-like as possible, and the recent string of Phase 2 films such as Iron Man 3 and Captain America: The Winter Soldier had done nothing but strengthen that notion, and it seemed like Guardians of the Galaxy would be the first major misfire from the studio.

Two years, some $800 million at the box office, countless costumes sold, Chris Pratt becoming a bona fide movie star and a strong fan base later, I can’t help but think our predictions may have been a little off.

Not much, just a little.

As is the case in today’s superhero market, Marvel immediately greenlit a sequel to Guardians of the Galaxy and the film is even getting the much coveted May slot that Marvel usually reserves for their Avengers or Iron Man films (yeah, I’m counting Captain America: Civil War as one) showing there’s significant confidence on the part of the studio.

Marvel/Disney

One of the reasons Guardians of the Galaxy worked so well was its thoroughly old-school vibe. The retro soundtrack may be the first thing that comes to mind when I say old-school, but it really extends to everything, whether it is the costumes, the set design or the general aesthetic of the film.

At the time of the film’s release, I was 16 and had never seen Star Wars (joys of living in a third world country, I know), but seeing Guardians of the Galaxy made me feel what I’m sure what people watching Star Wars for the first time must have felt.

Of course, the great thing was how Guardians of the Galaxy capitalized on the old-school aesthetic and costumes and served us with a story and characters that felt worthy of that aesthetic and those costumes.

Here we had a film that was free of the machinations required of every Marvel movie to set up the endgame, and as such the film was free to establish the cosmic side of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and allow us to see I through the eyes of completely new characters with completely different personalities to the costumed policemen that the Avengers were, and as such it provided the audience a welcome refresher between the costumed heroics seen in Avengers, the espionage thriller intensity of The Winter Soldier and the all-out action fest that Age of Ultron was.

The task faced by Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is certainly enviable. It must succeed as a tentpole now rather than an indie effort, while moving the Marvel Cinematic Universe forward and continuing to set up its own world.

It’s a good thing then that Marvel has recruited some more fine actors such as Pom Klementeiff, Elizabeth Debicki and the legendary Kurt Russell to dish out the goods.

A lot of sequels make the mistake of going too big (looking at you, Age of Ultron and every Michael Bay movie ever) and losing sight of what made the first one a classic, and I’m hoping Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 avoids this sequel trap, but makes sure it adds and innovates enough to remain its own animal, and not a retread like The Hangover II. 

One thing I hope they keep are the songs, because dear Lord, those songs were the best part of the film!

One area I do hope sees some innovations is the costumes! Don’t get me wrong, the costumes in the first movie were as innovative as costumes in a space opera can be, but they lacked the uniqueness that costumes in other Marvel movies have shown.

A costume that gets the job done is fine, but sometimes you just need a costume that remains etched in your memory and ends up making its way into your costume closet.

I’m certain that the added cast of characters (and the costumes the main characters received at the end of the first film) will open up the room for some invention in the costumes department because it’s Marvel and they can do no wrong!

Two costumes I’d recommend looking out for, are the Baby Groot costume (as it looks just so darn cute), and the Ego costume, because he is a living planet, and getting a living planet’s costume right, is a very slight challenge.

Nothing a little bit of CGI can’t fix, right?

Either way, stock up on Guardians of the Galaxy costumes now, because the sequel opens 5th May 2017, and if you don’t hurry, you’ll be attending the premiere in your regular clothes!