You will certainly get your money’s worth!
There is no denying anymore that the Marvel Cinematic Universe is in deep trouble. Excluding Spider-Man: No Way Home, their output has been poor, and audiences are gradually turning away. Given the series’ grand impact on the entertainment industry, this is not a small problem. Now that Disney owns 20th Century Fox, it also owns the rights to the X-Men, including their delightful black-sheep character, Deadpool. It is only obvious to make another Deadpool film to win back their audiences, and here we are.
Picking up from the ending of 2, Wade Wilson has retired “Deadpool” and is searching for purpose in life. For better or worse, he gets his wish when members of the Time Variance Authority abduct him from his timeline. Learning that his universe is on the verge of destruction, Wade dons the red suit again and accepts this mission. Not able to do this alone, he recruits the only hero who can help him, Wolverine. Reluctantly, they set to band together and try to restore balance to the Universe.
There are, already, many concerns regarding the existence of Deadpool and Wolverine outside of the current MCU problems. How will Deadpool, himself, act under child-friendly Disney banner? Will Disney honor Deadpool’s tone and properly mock itself? Will anyone not completely invested in the MCU be lost? Most of all, how can Marvel possibly bring back Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine after his emotional sendoff in 2017’s Logan? All these worries and more combined put much pressure on this film to succeed. If it fails, the character will be tarnished, and might also add to the MCU’s decline.
Well, I am personally here to tell you that all these worries disappear within in the first five minutes. Seeing Deadpool infiltrate the ending of Logan and annihilate an army, blood and all, is telling enough. This is a film that does not care about tact, about logic, or even about the concept of multiverses. Sometimes people go to the cinemas just to have a fun time, and this film provides just that. Good, gory, and edgy fun. Not only does that keep in line with Deadpool, but also the summer movie-going experience.
Ryan Reynolds, as many already know, is perfect as Deadpool. Despite his rocky first attempt in X-Men Origins Wolverine, his official introduction in the first official Deadpool film is one of Hollywood’s biggest surprise success stories. Ever since, Reynolds has been typecast in almost every film appearance he makes. Along with his business endeavors, this makes him feel more like a brand than an actor: a more comedic Dwayne Johnson, if you will. Point being, it is refreshing to see him back in this role, where this performance style works. Reynolds feels completely at home in this role, and it nice that it has not been neutered much.
Praise also goes to the film’s director, Shawn Levy. His hiring could have been a problem, given his previous films are bland. This includes the ones he makes with Ryan Reynolds, including Free Guy and The Adam Project. Like Reynolds, he seems to like playing it safe with his projects. Gladly, he seems to understand why audiences like Deadpool so much and manages to provide everything the movie needs. It might be, arguably, his most ambitious film to date.
What many people want to know is how Deadpool is paired up with Wolverine. For the fans, this is what many have dreamed of brought to the big screen. Their chemistry and dynamic together is near-perfect, and one can tell two actors are having a blast. The environments and situations they find themselves in lead to some hilarious reactions and provide some true escapism. Not only that, but the dramatic scenes between them are surprisingly effective, too. This should not be possible, but these two characters are so well-defined, and both Reynolds and Hugh Jackman play them so wonderfully. This is a collaboration that was truly worth the wait.
Of course, having the benefits of the previous Deadpool films, this one also has the negatives. While full of good jokes, there are some that do not land, not even a superhero land. Ironically enough, many of these jokes are in the trailers, particularly the “Marvel Jesus” line. It did not work in the trailer, and it truly does not work in the final film. This is typical of Deadpool films, but regarding how bad of shape Marvel and Disney are in, the trailers should be better.
All it takes is a bad trailer to make a good movie look rather unappealing, and some of the best jokes are not in these. For such an enterprising project like this, audience members should know what they are potentially missing out on.
In addition, the film had no reason to be over two hours long. Some scenes and jokes can be trimmed, and it will benefit the overall runtime. While Deadpool himself does mock the long runtime, it can’t help but feel like even more padding. Some may like this style of comedy, but acknowledging how annoying something is does not make it any less so. This is a Marvel movie, after all, and the mid- and post-credits scene will make it feel even longer. Time is the one thing that people do not have enough of, and Hollywood should re-evaluate as well. It is worth noting to use the bathroom ahead of sitting down. You will truly regret it if you don’t.
A lot happens in this film, and much of it is full of spoilers. All I can say is that audiences will cheer what feels like every five minutes. Like No Way Home, this film is a rewarding experience for those who invested themselves in the Marvel movies over the decades. Cameos and references may be pandering when done wrong, but when done right, it can feel worthwhile. If this is truly the last Deadpool film, the filmmakers went all out.
In the end, Deadpool and Wolverine is the breath of fresh air everyone needs. Deadpool fans get the R-rated, edgy, and energetic sequel they could easily get from 20th Century Fox. Marvel fans finally get a great MCU film after many duds (excluding Spider-Man: No Way Home.) General audiences get an entertaining popcorn film in a summer season that feels mostly empty. Could Deadpool and Wolverine have gone more over the edge with its content? Of course! Given what this film could have been, how it is currently is a miracle. Whether or not this saves the Marvel Cinematic Universe does not matter. The only thing that matters is that Deadpool delivers a good time. Take that as you will, but he certainly does here.
