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| Courtesy of 20th Century Fox |
After
years of misfires and false starts, Marvel Comics antihero and fan favorite Deadpool
has finally gotten his own movie. I honestly thought it would never happen,
particularly after 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine enraged comic book nerds
by casting the perfect actor for the role – Ryan Reynolds – but completely
misunderstanding (or just ignoring) what people loved about the character in
the first place.
Luckily,
Reynolds hated how Deadpool was treated too. He’s been pushing for a do-over
for a while, and he finally got his chance after the events of 2014’s X-Men:
Days of Future Past. That film essentially rebooted the franchise’s timeline,
meaning the ill-conceived version of the character (seriously, his nickname is
“the Merc with a Mouth” and they sewed his mouth shut) was erased from
existence.
Through
sheer force of will (along with test footage that someone “conveniently” leaked
to stoke fans’ interest), Reynolds, screenwriters Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick
(Zombieland), and director Tim Miller created a movie that genuinely
understands what makes Deadpool tick and why his fans love him so much. The
result is a raunchy, nonsensical satire of the modern superhero blockbuster.
Thumbing
its nose at a traditional narrative, Deadpool tells the title character’s
origin story by constantly jumping back and forth through time. First, during
one of the best opening credits sequences I’ve ever seen, we see the antihero
and his victims frozen in mid-fight. Then the plot rewinds two years, where we
meet former Special Forces operative-turned-mercenary Wade Wilson (Reynolds). He’s
a guy who has seen plenty of bad things and talks tough, but deep down he
possesses a need to watch out for the little guy.
His demeanor
improves when he meets the equally compassionate, just-as-twisted Vanessa
(Morena Baccarin), the proverbial “hooker with a heart of gold.” The two spend
a wonderful year together (in a hilarious montage of sex scenes that
contextualizes the characters while simultaneously fast-forwarding the story),
then fate hits him with terminal cancer.
In a
desperate effort to prolong his life, Wilson subjects himself to a series of
tortuous medical experiments that cure his cancer and grant him miraculous
healing powers. The downside is that he’s left hideously disfigured. (Well, the
movie tells us it’s “hideously.” He still looks like Ryan Reynolds with some moderate
facial scarring. A lot of guys would consider that an upgrade.) Vowing revenge
on the man (Ed Skrein) who deceived him, Wilson becomes Deadpool.
I
would imagine the film’s detractors might complain that there’s not much to the
story. It’s honestly two or three action sequences, a few flashbacks and some
connective tissue in between. But – to me, at least – that’s what’s so fun
about it. Even the cliché-riddled plot is a joke about the genre.
Because
most moviegoers are inherently familiar with the basic superhero movie template
by now, Deadpool doesn’t have to waste time with setup or over-explaining the
obvious. The character knows he’s in an origin story, so he constantly breaks
the fourth wall to speed through the basics of the plot. That way we can get
right to the action and laughs.
It’s
a big reason why those opening credits I mentioned earlier are worth the ticket
price by themselves. The film’s constant barrage of meta jokes start right
away, as familiar casting tropes are brilliantly mocked. Deadpool is
practically elbowing the viewers’ ribs hard enough to leave a bruise.
Sure,
I could gripe that the movie is nothing more than a live-action cartoon. Or
that the screenplay seems like it was written by a 12-year-old boy who just
learned about cursing and sex. But that’s kind of the entire point – it’s deliberately
crass and juvenile.
What
makes the ludicrous idea successful are the winning performances from Reynolds,
Baccarin and T.J. Miller (as Deadpool’s bartender buddy), who deftly translate
Reese and Wernick’s shrewd screenplay to the screen. In the wrong hands, this
movie could’ve been an unfunny, mean-spirited disaster. I genuinely can’t
believe it works as well as it does.
The
best part is that Reynolds finally found the perfect role to harness his unique
combination of smarminess and matinee idol looks. He gave it his all with that
first version of Deadpool, then he tried and failed once more to go the
superhero route with Green Lantern. In both cases, those movies were
disasters for reasons totally unrelated to him.
Moms
and dads, in case you read this far and couldn’t figure it out, please don’t
assume the words “Marvel” and “superhero” automatically mean kid-friendly. This
is a hard-R flick, packed with brutal violence (mostly played for comedic
effect), nonstop f-bombs and the above-mentioned hilarious but surprisingly
graphic sex scene. Your 12-year-old might think you’re the coolest parent in
the world, and he or she will probably emerge unscathed. But you might need
therapy afterward.
Deadpool is rated R for strong violence and language throughout, sexual content and
graphic nudity.
Grade:
B+
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