In 2016, Deadpool put a fresh spin on the superhero origin tale. The film indulged in its snarkiness and audacity and rejected the traditional tropes of the genre. There was no real precedent that the film would actually work. While the character has had a healthy run in the comics, it’s a tone that could’ve crashed and burned on screen. The studio behind the film, 20th Century Fox, didn’t seem to have total faith in the project since they gave the film a modest $58 million budget and simply hoped for the best.
No one would blame the studio for their apprehension. The character of Wade Wilson and his alter ego Deadpool were introduced in X-Men Origins: Wolverine in 2009 and the film, along with the character’s portrayal was ripped by fanboys everywhere. The fault wasn’t with Ryan Reynolds who showed that his infectious comedic timing would be spot on for the character if it was done justice. The real culprit was with the writing and a forced attempt to shoehorn the character into an already crowded film.
Being the runt of the Marvel litter actually worked in Deadpool’s favor when the film was released in 2016. Fully embracing its position as a lower tier Marvel film, Deadpool was able to bring self-referential humor to its origin story and provided audiences with something unique during a time when superhero fatigue was beginning to creep in. The film was also allowed to standout because it went after a hard R-rating and definitely didn’t sway from utilizing it. The general idea is that an R-rated comic book movie wouldn’t sell but Deadpool proved that fact wrong in a big way. The film owns the record for the biggest R-rated opening weekend of all-time ($132.4 million) and went on to gross a staggering $783.1 million worldwide.
With a success like this, a sequel is inevitable and while I found Deadpool to be a refreshing break from the norm, most of the pre-release marketing material for Deadpool 2 never really elevated my excitement. In my opinion, we received trailers there were merely adequate but not outstanding and it made my overall excitement for the film wane as it approached its release. I was starting to suspect that maybe this was an idea that could only be fresh once and that the second attempt at it would fall short.
I’m happy to report that my concern about Deadpool 2 was unwarranted. Despite some of the promotional material not living up to expectations, the sequel, for my money, is just as good as the original. It never really excels over its predecessor because the element of surprise with the material is gone but it doesn’t full short either because it provides the same in your face humor and irreverence that made the original so much fun to watch. Sometimes the “more of the same” approach can be a detriment, in this case, it’s an asset. The film knows exactly what the audience wants and throws everything but the kitchen sink at them in order to make sure the film lands in a big way. Every wisecrack and display of over the top violence may not hit 100% of the time, but so much is hurled your way that you’re happy to settle with a solid 95%.
Wade Wilson a.k.a. Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds), after bemoaning a few things about Wolverine’s character arc in Logan, tries to blow himself to bits without much success. We see his reasons in a flashback which leads to a deliciously on-target lampoon of a James Bond opening musical number (song courtesy of Celine Dion) complete with Deadpool-inspired fake credits that act as a commentary on the prologue. The story that evolves from there pits Deadpool against Cable (Josh Brolin), throws in some other Marvel characters, and gives our self-deprecating hero an existential character arc.
Once again, the tone is everything, and credit has to be given to the directing and writing team for making this all work. Deadpool’s director, Tim Miller, departed the sequel due to “creative differences” and in his place is David Leitch, the man behind John Wick and Atomic Blonde. The shift in directors is pretty seamless and Leitch clearly grasps the style and nuance necessary to make the film succeed. This isn’t someone stepping in and feeling daunted by the task of living up to the original. He directs with a sure hand and does a good job of balancing the humor, action, violence and even moments of seriousness (despite the comical tone, Deadpool 2 does a bit of emotional connection in a few surprising ways). Additional credit goes to writers Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick & Deadpool himself, Ryan Reynolds who clearly understand the world they have created. They approach the film knowing its voice and always maintain the right beats to make the Mad Magazine approach to comic book filmmaking a thing of art.
In general, the action sequences are what you would expect from a film with a large scale budget such as this (The production cost on this one surged to $110 million which is still “modest” for a film like this). What’s different about Deadpool 2 is the soundtrack. When was the last time you saw a fight scene choreographed to Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5”? The film also finds unusual uses for the likes of “(The Sun’ll Come Out) Tomorrow”, “If I Could Turn Back Time”, “In Your Eyes”, and “All Out of Love.” After being exposed to these type of movies for so long, it would be easy to become bored by a lot of the action but utilizing tunes like this give the ones in Deadpool 2 a unique flavor. Once again, the film is doing things that really haven’t been done before and if they already have been attempted on some level, they’re not done as well as this.
Ryan Reynolds is completely committed to the role and his commitment is one Deadpool 2’s top selling points. A lot of his performance is through a mask or under burn makeup so he has to rely mostly on his attitude and natural charisma to make the role work and he has those in spades. There are some returning favorites such as Morena Baccarin as Vanessa, the love of Deadpool’s life; the X-Men pair of Colossus (Stefan Kapicic) and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand); Blind Al (Leslie Uggams) and “sidekicks” Weasel (T.J. Miller) and Dopinder (Karan Soni). They all get to make some kind of impression and provide the audience with more familiarity beyond Deadpool.
There are some new faces on deck and two of them leave a lasting impression. This is the second summer release for Josh Brolin this year after his turn as Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War and his portrayal of Cable shows how diverse this guy can be. The role isn’t as nuanced as Thanos but Brolin has the difficult task of playing things mostly straight in a film that is otherwise a cartoon and that is no easy task. His reaction to circumstances do provide humor but he’s clearly used here in a much different capacity when compared to the other characters. Lastly, there is Zazie Beetz as Domino. She comes in a little late in the game but gives a performance that makes Domino leave a lasting impression. You definitely want more of her and that’s a testament to what she brings to the role. I’m confident that a Deadpool 3 or that rumored X-Force spinoff will definitely utilize her more.
Speaking of Deadpool 3, despite my praise for what the sequel has accomplished, a part of me wonders if this idea can sustain more entries. Will the humor get old? Will we get tired of the schtick? They manage to make it work again but a part of me wonders if an even different approach needs to be taken to avoid making this all stale. The post-credit scene suggests that the franchise has more laughs to deliver (it’s honestly a stroke of genius and probably the best gag in the film) but I hope that this doesn’t get old anytime soon. In the case of Deadpool 2, all involved have made a worthy sequel that doesn’t embarrass itself and stands proudly in irreverence with its predecessor.
