Review: Deadpool
From its opening moments - a snarkily self-aware credit sequence that lists Ryan Reynolds as "God's Perfect Idiot," Morena Baccarin as "A Hot Chick." writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick as "The Real Heroes Here," and director Tim Miller as "An Overpaid Tool" - to its closing seconds, Deadpool works hard to set itself apart from the usual procession of comic book heroes that have dominated the big screen for the past two decades.
It bears its "R" rating as a badge of honour - look, Deadpool seems to boast, not only do I have strong language and violence, I've got sex and nudity too! Deadpool wants to be different, to be the game changer, but the fact of the matter is it disguises its desperate need for audiences to love it with an endless barrage of mayhem and one-liners. Yes, it makes for occasionally satisfying entertainment but Deadpool is also a hot mess of a film.
Reynolds plays Wade Wilson, a former Special Forces operative now mercenary-for-hire who, when not wisecracking his way through a series of dirty and menial jobs, smart-asses his time at Sister Margaret's Home for Wayward Girls, a dive owned by best friend Weasel (T.J. Miller). Love comes calling in the smoking form of Vanessa (Baccarin), a prostitute with a heart of gold whose level of crazy more than matches his. In one of the film's clever touches, the usual falling in love montage is replaced with an extended sex scene sequence that has the lovers kinking their way a year's worth of holidays. Yes, not only does our hero enjoy sex, he is also willing to be on the receiving end of his girl's strap-on (a cheeky nod to Deadpool's pansexuality, though whether this is explored or ever mentioned again in the inevitable sequels remains to be seen).
Wade's happiness is short-lived for not only is he diagnosed with cancer, but he decides to subject himself to an experimental treatment conducted by Ajax (Ed Skrein), who doesn't exactly warm to Wade's irreverent ways. Needless to say, it all goes horribly wrong - Ajax puts Wade through enough stress to trigger his mutant genes, which allow Wade to self-heal like Wolverine but which also disfigure his outward appearance. Ashamed by his resembling a "testicle with teeth" or a long-lost relative of Freddy Krueger's, Wade is determined to track Ajax, whom he believes has the power to restore his glorious looks so he can return to Vanessa and sexy-time happily ever after.
It's tremendously clear that the filmmakers and Reynolds have nothing but love for their chimichanga-loving protagonist, and that enthusiasm generates an infectious goodwill. The screenwriters do a fine job of retaining Deadpool's penchant for breaking the fourth wall. Additionally, they structure the narrative in a non-linear manner, which goes a long way in masking a very slight story. One does not have to look too closely to realise that one scene is basically repeated about three or four times but with different jokes. Even the violence becomes repetitive - how many angles does one need to see a head burst open? The film may have benefited from a bit more budget, something not so subtly alluded to by Wade at the number of X-Men on hand to assist him.
Reynolds has never been better. He famously portrayed Deadpool in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, but that was Wolverine's film more than anything else. Plus, it doesn't matter how tall, muscled and goodlooking you are - if Hugh Jackman is starring as Wolverine, then no one else exists in the frame. Deadpool is the star vehicle Reynolds has been waiting for, and he runs away with it. Reynolds has long had the impudence, but it's often undercut by a blandness that pervades his personality. Here, the blandness is held at bay as Reynolds lets his freak flag fly, though it's no doubt that Reynolds does his best work with the mask on.
Deadpool
Directed by: Tim Miller
Written by: Rhett Rheese, Paul Wernick
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, T.J. Miller, Ed Skrein, Gina Carano, Brianna Hildebrand, Stefan Kapičić, Leslie Uggams
