Comic book and Deadpool fans alike have been waiting near on eleven years for a Deadpool film to be made.
That is according to star and producer Ryan Reynolds anyway who recently spoke about the developmental hell the film had been in, until pressure from fans forced the studios hand.
It’s a good job they did then as Deadpool does not disappoint. It’s everything you might hope from a Deadpool film, it’s crude, filthy humoured, gory, graphic, filled with tons of Easter eggs, action and of course tons of fourth wall breaks by the man himself.
What Reynolds really pushed for when getting this film made was the high certificate rating, ensuring the film stays as close to the character as possible. It would have been very easy for Fox to reject this, wanting to capitalise on the character’s now more varied fan base but luckily, they didn’t and we received a film that was true to the character.
Right from the opening credits, you’re given a taste of what the film will be about as nicknames and rude alternatives pop up instead of the credits, with a classic pop song to boot.
The film also abandoned the classic chronological origin story, choosing instead to switch between past and present, in a risky move but one that eventually paid off with a smooth finesse which kept the film from becoming stagnant and slow, like some origin films can do.
The story itself offered something to admire in a world full of superhero films that always end with the possibility of the end of the world. It was refreshing to see a superhero film that was solely personal for the protagonist without any other worldly consequences and what was even better was at the heart of the whole story, was a love story.
Though most superhero films contain this now, the aforementioned end of the world scenarios usually play out first so this was a nice alternative in that this love story was the driving force of the film, making Deadpool who he was.
Ryan Reynolds shows that he is the perfect actor to play Deadpool with an hilarious and at times, emotionally brilliant performance. Ed Skrein shines as the films main villain, Ajax, with Gina Carano playing his sidekick, Angel Dust, in a cool but limited role. Morena Baccarin plays an important role as the love interest, Vanessa whilst T.J. Miller provides the sidekick comedy as best friend Weasel.
Stefan Kapičić and Brianna Hildebrand also step in as our super powered sidekicks, Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead, whilst also letting audiences know that Deadpool does exist within the X-Men Universe but their appearances aren’t just reduced to cameos, they instead play some important roles and give the film some hilarious scenes between Deadpool and themselves, with plenty of jokes about studio rights being given out by the Merc.
There is also a Stan Lee cameo too which is quite possibly the funniest he’s ever done with a spot also for Deadpool co-creator, Rob Liefeld.
Deadpool then is everything you would hope for from a Deadpool film. It didn’t avoid any risks or even make it family friendly, it absolutely knew what it wanted to be and who it was for.
It was funny, filthy, surprisingly emotional and overall, an excellent adaption of the silly, sarcastic, and downright rude Merc with the Mouth we all love.
P.S. Make sure to stay for the post-credit scene. It’s a good one.