Note: this review has minor spoilers and some of the quotes from the film has foul language.
As soon as the Deadpool movie was announced, the biggest concern for fans of the Marvel character was “will it suck?” Deadpool is a foul-mouthed, wise cracking, non-heroic, funny character, and for the movie to be true to its source it has to include all of the above plus tons of blood and gore. None of which are usual components of a comic based movie, and all of it was delivered wonderfully in the movie “Deadpool”
For those of you not familiar with the character, Deadpool used to be special forces operator Wade Wilson who is a cynical mercenary. When Wilson finds out he has terminal cancer he submits himself to a scientific experimentation to bring out the mutant in him. The experiment gives him a superhuman healing factor which allows him to regenerate damaged or destroyed areas of his cellular structure at a rate far greater than that of an ordinary human. The healing factor also gives him a disfigured face and body (which is friend Weasel describes as looking like Freddy Krueger face-fu**ed topographical map of Utah, or the offspring of an avocado that had sex with an older avocado, among other things).
Deadpool lampoons everything about super heroes. And Deadpool knows he is a fictional character, he talks about it all the time, straight to the audience.
There was an earlier Deadpool, starring Ryan Reynolds in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine.” For fans of superhero-actions movies, this version of the character was seen as a mortal sin by 20th Century Fox who owns the rights to the character because he is part of the X-Men universe. Instead a guy in a red-and-black costume, whose mouth never stops spewing sarcasm, the character shown in Origins was a shirtless guy who’s his mouth was permanently sealed so he cannot speak.
Halfway through the opening credits, the viewers knew the movie was going to deliver the “true” Deadpool not a typical superhero, but a wise-ass with super powers. Instead of the usual, “starring xyz,” “directed by…,” and so on. But Deadpool’s opening give’s credit to people such as “God’s perfect idiot,” “A hot chick,” “A gratuitous cameo, and “an entirely CGI character”, “A British Villain,” writers described as, “The Real Heroes Here, ” just to name a few.
The movie begins with our hero fighting in a cab, bored in the backseat. He slides up front to chat with the cabbie, Dopinder. Dopinder then takes Deadpool (Mr.Pool) to the middle of a bridge, where Mr. Pool waits for the man who conducted the experiment making him disfigured.
While waiting for the evil British villain, Ajax (whose real name is Francis) Deadpool addresses the audience and jokes, Whose balls did I have to fondle to get my own movie? Can’t tell ya — but it rhymes with Pulverine!” Actually within the first few moments after the credits, Deadpool spews so many hilariously funny insults that one may wonder if Don Rickles was part of the writing staff.
During the battle which ensues the audience sees Wade Wilson’s transformation story to Deadpool flashbacks, starting with his first meeting with the love of his live Vanessa, a hooker who can match Wilson smart-ass statement to smart-ass statement. When Vanessa makes a Yoda joke as she curls up in bed with her Wilson he says, “Star Wars joke… it’s like I made you in a lab!” Yes, the movie is a twisted love story.
When Wilson learns of his terminal cancer he leaves Vanessa not wanting her to go through seeing him wither and die. Eventually he submits to the mutant treatment which he was promised will cure his cancer and make him a superhero. What he doesn’t realize until it’s too late part of the process is to install a mind-control chip, which will enable him to be sold as an obedient mercenary.
He escapes but won’t let Vanessa know he is still alive because of his disfigurement.
Adding to the fun are two X-Men characters, Colossus a Russian-born mutant who joins the battles because he is trying to convince Deadpool to stop being a crazy wise ass start acting like a real superhero, and another mutant, Negasonic Teenage Warhead better known for being a sullen, gothic-looking, annoying teenager who doesn’t think Deadpool’s jokes are the least bit funny.
Deadpool however, works alone, and his only goal is getting his complexion fixed so he can reunite with Vanessa. And his only real friends are the aforementioned Weasel and his blind old lady roommate, Blind Al.
Deadpool is Ryan Reynolds’s fourth attempt at doing a comic book hero. There was Blade Trinity, the previous incarnation of Deadpool, and Green Lantern. Each of those rolls/movies are lampooned during the movie. For example, when Wade Wilson is on a hospital gurney being wheeled in to the lab where he will be converted to a “superhero,” in a reference to the Green Lantern movie he says, “Please don’t make the super-suit green. Or animated!” Or when Ajax (whose real name is Francis) grows tired of Deadpool’s wise cracks he threatens to sew his mouth shut, which refers to the previous movie incarnation of the “Merc with a Mouth,”
Deadpool also makes fun of nonRyan Reynolds roles such as Wolverine (a few times), Spider Man, the old Batman TV show, and even Ferris Bueller.
Whether you are familiar with the character and/or Ryan Reynold’s previous acting gigs or not, you will leave this movie with a sore stomach because you will be laughing so hard. Half of the fun is that Marvel’s brass, the same comic house that created the very straight-laced Captain America agreed to such an edgy, profane profane.
Deadpool/comics fans will realize they didn’t screw it up. The film checks all of the boxes one expects from a movie true to the character. The movie is so full of visual, sound, and verbal jokes you will want to see it a few times to catch everything. And don’t leave before the credits, the after credits scenes are funny also.
Important note: This movie is rated R for a reason, it includes naked breasts, foul language, gratuitous violence and many sexual related jokes. Do not bring a young child to this movie. But do see it yourself–a few times and drag some of your adult friends.
