Irreverent humour saves the plot

IT doesn't take super powers for a 75-year-old comic book institution to realise that the time for reinvention is now, what with anything paper-related coming under threat in this digital age. Which explains why, since the box-office success of the X-Men in 2000, Marvel has become a fixture in Hollywood's summer blockbuster season with one superhero after another brought to life on the big screens this time every year.

Guardians of the Galaxy is the 10th instalment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. First introduced to comic fans in print 35 years ago before being rebooted in 2008, the superhero ensemble never came anywhere near to becoming the household names X-Men or Fantastic Four are; but they have always been a fan favourite and a best-kept secret for comic book nerds.

All that could well change with this rollicking movie adaptation, co-written and directed by James Gunn (Scooby Doo). It's made with the sort of giddy fanboy love not seen since Joss Whedon turned The Avengers into the granddaddy of all Marvel superhero films.