Comic book heroes meets “Star Wars” in the Marvel sci-fi adventure, “Guardians of the Galaxy.”

It tells the story of Peter Quill, a human who, 26 years after being abducted from Earth, is now an intergalactic thief. Quill has become the target of Ronan the Accuser.

This film was a huge gamble. Marvel Studios, instead of hashing out a by-the-book sequel or reboot, decided to take a risk with this project.

On paper, it looks like a failure from the start. The comic books had a very small following and some of it’s characters would be hard to portray on screen.

I myself had little faith when I saw the original previews.

However, Marvel has proved, as they have time and time again, that they are like the blackjack dealers in a Las Vegas casino. They keep the aces up their sleeves and the odds are always in their favor.

From start to finish, “Guardians” is a wild ride, bolstered hugely by Chris Pratt’s funny and charismatic performance as Quill. He proves that he is much more than the foolish oaf from “Parks and Recreation.”

What makes the film so great is that not only are the action sequences incredible and exciting, but it’s also one of the funniest films I’ve seen all year.This is due, in part, to Bradley Cooper’s hilarious voice-over performance of the wily, gunslinging Rocket the Raccoon.

Rocket, along with his partner, the heartwarming tree of few words named Groot, steal the entire show with their impeccable comedic timing and love for all things destructive.The other members of the crew include Drax, the vengeful alien whose family was killed by Ronan, and Gamora, who is an ally of Ronan, but is secretly working to thwart his plans of intergalactic domination.The film is overflowing with memorable characters and equally memorable scenes.

One of my favorite scenes in particular is the prison break scene, where we find our heroes incarcerated by the intergalactic law enforcement Nova Core.

This is the scene where they really find their footing and learn to work together as one, as the Guardians of the Galaxy. It really is just an awesome scene that uses CGI to the best of its ability.

I wish I could give equal love to some of the smaller characters. Marvel has a tendency to give big name stars small roles in order to set the table for future films. Although it worked for “The Avengers,” it is almost tiresome to see how many A-list actors had less than 10 minutes of screen time.

What made “Guardians” such a special film was that the producers had a lot riding on them. After they brilliantly set the table for “Avengers” in 2012, audiences weren’t going to settle for anything less, and the creative minds at Marvel weren’t going to deliver anything less.

Watching this film reminded me of a few things. The first being, never underestimate the creative minds at Marvel; the second being, never underestimate the depth of their pockets.

“Guardians” is a funny, non-stop action sci-fi romp, with a lot of heart, and great performances to top it off. I loved every minute of it and I highly recommend it.

Grade: B+