Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

Strip off the mixtape and Guardians of the Galaxy has a very standard Marvel skeleton: a villain who scowls in eyeliner, a glowing orb everybody wants, and a giant ship falling on a city at the end. What makes it great is everything bolted on top. Chris Pratt plays Star-Lord like a guy who peaked at a middle school dance and never got the memo. Dave Bautista’s Drax takes every metaphor literally and steals scenes by accident. A raccoon with a gun and a tree with a three-word vocabulary end up as the heart of the whole thing, which should be impossible. James Gunn took a team almost nobody had heard of and turned it into $773.4 million worldwide, all scored to a cassette of old radio hits. Ronan is still a cardboard cutout with a hammer. An 8.3 because the jokes land, the soundtrack rules, and the misfits feel like an actual crew. $97 says you’re humming Hooked on a Feeling before you finish reading this sentence.

What works: The cast chemistry, Drax’s literal brain, Rocket and Groot, and a soundtrack that does half the storytelling.

What doesn’t: Ronan is a forgettable villain, and the last act is the same sky-falling-on-a-city finale Marvel kept recycling for years.

Who it’s for: People who like their space operas with a dad-rock playlist and a raccoon who holds a grudge.