DEADPOOL 2 – Review

So despite their breaking all sorts of box office records, are you feeling the slightest twinge of Superhero fatigue? Well, what’s the perfect cure for that ailment? Why another superhero flick, of course. And a Marvel one at that. But there’s a big difference, a twist that sets this flick apart. You see, it’s not a Marvel Studios production, like BLACK PANTHER and his Avengers pals. This movie’s part of the licensing deal between Marvel and Fox that began with 2000’s X-MEN, which “spun-off” three solo Wolverine features, along with the 2016 surprise smash that showcased this hero (mmm, maybe anti-hero, or quasi-hero is more apt). That entry also broke new ground, by taking its comics-based subject out of “family friendly” PG-13 territory (sure the BLADE went there first, but they’re closer to the horror genre), and going full “R” for raunch and racy, which may have inspired last year’s reported final Wolverine flick, LOGAN, to do the same. With this character the “R” could stand for “rib-tickling”, raucous, and ribald since he mocks all in sight, deflating and denouncing all the overused clichés of big budget “super spectacles”. That “merc with a mouth” makes a most welcome return to the multiplexes in DEADPOOL 2.

Hmmm, when we revisit Deadpool AKA Wade Williams (Ryan Reynolds), he’s in anything but a jovial mood. Down right dour and depressed is more like it. The film then flashes back to happier times, just after we left him at the end of his first flick. Wade’s still a killer for hire, though he seems to be going after evil arms dealers and drug kingpins in the Far East. When his red and black suit is stitched and his wounds healed, he returns to the dingy but cozy flat in NYC he shares with his adored girlfriend Vanessa (Morena Baccarin), Actually they want to kick the relationship up a couple of notches, but God (and screenwriters) laugh at future plans, which are uttered just as Wade’s work follows him home. Flash forward as he’s rescued from his funk by old pal, the steel-covered X-Man Collossus (Stefan Kapicic). After Wade heals up at the Xavier School, he decides that this loner should join the group and thus he becomes an “X-Man in-training”. They’re called into action when a teenage mutant named Russell AKA Firefist (Julian Dennison) is threatening to destroy an orphanage for gifted kids called the Essex School. Of course, Wade makes a seriously “bad call” which prompts the feds to ship him and the kid off to an arctic detention center nicknamed “the Icebox” (think of that prison where the GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY met, but on this planet). That place becomes more dangerous when a heavily armed soldier from the future named Cable (Josh Brolin) arrives, hellbent on killing the lad. When Wade comes to Russell’s aid, he and Cable make it out of the center just as the warden decides to transport Firefist and several other dangerous mutants to another locale via a truck convoy. To stop Cable, Wade enlists the help of other mutants, forming the “X-Force” team. But can they save the kid before the time traveling super soldier changes the future? And more importantly, what will become of Deadpool’s ceramic unicorn collection?

Once again Reynolds confirms that Deadpool was the role he was born to play. His leading man looks obscured by the full face mask and further hidden by the disease ravaged make-up, Mr. R bounces from the corners of the big screen, blasting the baddies with bullets and “burns”, wielding wisecracks as razor-sharp as his pair of swords. he not only breaks that fourth wall, he vaporizes it with riotous remarks on action thrillers, superheroes, and just general movie clichés and conventions. Reynolds is an expert in motor-mouthed joke delivery, but he also shows us that this mad maniac mix of Bugs Bunny, Groucho Marx, and the genie from Disney’s ALADDIN has a heart that can be broken, despite his mutant healing abilities. Silly slapstick, and whipsmart witticisms make this role the perfect showcase for Ryan’s considerable talents. His opposite may be Brolin as the humorless “man on a mission”, a terrific parody of the standard action hero straight from a toy developer (a holdover from that 20-year-old Joe Dante gem SMALL SOLDIERS). He’s a superb straight man who smoulders with agitation over Wade’s antics. Another sparring partner is the compelling Zazie Beetz as the “wild card ” member of X-Force, Domino. Brimming with confidence, she delights getting under Wade’s skin (or jumpsuit) with her belief that having good luck is indeed a super power. Kudos to Dennison, so wonderful in the recent HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE, who brings out the nurturing almost parental side of Wade, as the (really) hotheaded Russell, full of swagger and snark. Once again Baccarin is a slinky, sultry muse for our hero. And great laughs are provided by returning cast mates T.J. Miller as the unreliable Weasel, Karan Soni as the eager, energetic “wheel man” Dopinder, Leslie Uggams as the no-nonsense Blind Al, and newcomer Rob Delaney (of Amazon’s “Catastrophe”) as Peter, a really schlubby  average Joe who thinks X-Force is a good career choice, despite having no enhanced skills.

Fresh from last year’s surprise hit ATOMIC BLONDE, director David Leitch effortlessly slips into the “driver’s seat’, for this frenetic follow-up (guess we can safely label this a “franchise”). He keeps the story barreling down the road, navigating the big action stunts with more gags than several recent comedies, and never slows down (I might have missed some of the jokes, since the audience laughter was longer than the film makers anticipated). Of course Leitch had a wonderful map to guide him in a script supplied by returning writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, now joined by a most promising newcomer…Ryan Reynolds. Once again, there’s a fantastic opening title sequence, this time zeroing in on the “sexy” Bond titles, along with inspired cameos, and some hysterical mid-end credits scenes (truly worth delaying the rest room run). I don’t want to spoil the many unexpected moments, so I’ll simply say that if you liked the first one, you’ll like this one, too. The laughs are truly “superhero-sized” in the enormously entertaining DEADPOOL 2. Way to go Wade, you ‘wascal!

4.5 Out of 5