“Guardians of the Galaxy”, directed by James Gunn, is a modern space opera that is

included in the immensely popular and successful film franchise, the Marvel Cinematic
Universe. It follows the main character, Peter Quill, and his rag-tag group of misfits from across
the galaxy who are tasked with defeating the main villain of the film, Ronan the Accuser. Apart
from James Gunn’s ability to create a sense of family and heart between all of the characters,
one of the main focus points of the film is his gift of incorporating music into his plot. Guardians
of the Galaxy has a critically acclaimed soundtrack, filled with rock and pop songs from the
1970s and 1980s. Not only does the music add background sound for the viewer, but it is also
integrated into the story and is heard by the cast of Guardians.
My favorite scene of the film is from 50:51-53:35. In this scene, the Guardians have just
escaped the prison and have landed themselves at a bar. Peter Quill and fellow Guardian,
Gamora, are outside staring into the endless abyss of space. James Gunn does a very good job
of creating a sense of emptiness by having no noise when the scene is introduced, other than
the faint clinking and clanging of beer glasses from inside. The vacuum of space is quiet, setting
up the dialogue between Quill and Gamora perfectly. Gamora starts by cleaning her blade,
which transitions into Gamora explaining her relationship with her father, Thanos. During the
beginning of her dialogue, a nondiegetic song plays that is very emotional, conveying the
message of sorrow and agony. Gamora was kidnapped from her home planet and was forced to
watch Thanos kill her parents right in front of her own eyes very early on in her life. She became
a warrior from that point on, being forced to train against her sister, Nebula, who was also
kidnapped by Thanos.
Gamora then notices Peter Quill’s Walkman equipped to his belt and begins to question
what the device is. Peter Quill explains that is from his mother who passed away from cancer
when he was a child. Moments later, Quill is abducted from Earth by Yondu and the Ravagers,
making the Walkman the only memory he has left of his mother. Because of this, he goes out of
his way to protect it, even jeopardizing his life when escaping the prison from earlier on in the
film. At 51:41, “Fooled Around and Fell in Love,” by Elvin Bishop begins to play very softly. This
is supposed to represent the Walkman playing the song and the characters hearing it faintly
from the headphones. Gamora has no previous concept of music, so Quill explains how it can
be listened to and even danced to. At 52:41, Quill puts the Walkman headphones on Gamora’s
ears, and “Fooled Around and Fell in Love” intensifies. The intensification fully submerges the
viewer into the scene, along with signifying how this song is the only thing that Gamora can
currently hear. Quill then takes Gamora’s hand and leans in for a kiss, which is immediately met
with a blade to his throat. Gamora exclaims that she will not fall for the infamous charm of his
that is known across the galaxy. The scene ends with a brawl breaking out between Drax the
Destroyer and Groot, two members of Quill’s team.
James Gunn’s ability to incorporate music into a film is unlike anything that I have ever
seen. The seamless cohesion between scene building and plot development through his use of
music is what makes the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy so special to me. “Fooled Around and
Fell in Love” perfectly encapsulates every part of the scene. Not only does it make it feel
romantic for the viewer, but it also identifies how Quill is falling for Gamora and how it is
catching him off guard. For the first time, Quill is able to connect a song to another woman
other than his mother. A memory and feeling so special to him can finally be shared with
someone who is slowly becoming the love of his life. One of my favorite scenes in all of cinema.