“Deadpool & Wolverine” Review
Ryan Reynolds (Left) and Hugh Jackman reprise their long-running roles as Deadpool and the Wolverine in" “Deadpool & Wolverine”, the latest film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
When Disney bought 20th Century Fox, it was truly the end of an era. Not only had this studio been a strong player in the Hollywood system since 1935 but, on the side of films based on comic books, Fox had the rights to some of the most popular Marvel superheroes of all time which yielded both some of the best and worst offerings of the genre in the 21st Century. But out of all the highs and lows, the “X-Men” film franchise had a wide range of films that, in many regards, helped get the ball rolling for the onslaught of comic book films that we see today. Before the Marvel Cinematic Universe was even an entity, there were three X-Men films released with more on the way. Alongside “Blade”, the Sam Raimi “Spider-Man trilogy and “Batman Begins”, Fox proved with these films that comic books could be seriously translated to the big screen.
But after Disney bought Fox, it seemed that it was the end of an era in both a positive and negative sense. On the one hand, it meant that certain characters who had been botched numerous times, like The Fantastic Four, might receive the treatment they deserved. But it also meant saying goodbye to the “X-Men” series which I had grown up with and had pushed the limits of the genre while also being wildly unpredictable. You had no idea what an “X-Men” film would be like. Sometimes you’d get a groundbreaker like “X-Men: Days of Future Past” or “Logan”. Other times you’d see a truly terrible film like “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”. One of the biggest risks the studio ever took was with the 2016 smash hit “Deadpool”. Not only was it rated R, fitting for the character but definitely a financial risk, but the character had previously been done dirty with a portrayal in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” that was beyond unfaithful. Fortunately, this film and its 2018 sequel were faithful, funny, heartwarming and brimming with clever writing and plenty of well-executed violence.
While I could see Disney completely rebooting all of the X-Men characters now that they had acquired the rights to them, Ryan Reynolds and his portrayal of the “Merc with the Moth” are irreplaceable and, given the character’s penchant for meta-humor and breaking the fourth wall, I felt would translate well to the MCU without a ton of painful universe rehashing. I was right. Whether you look at this film as the unofficial final Fox film to be based on a Marvel character or a new step in the MCU, “Deadpool & Wolverine” injects a new level of energy into the franchise not seen in quite some time. It’s the kind of summer blockbuster that you’d want from seeing these characters together with enough action, strong stakes and lucrative fan-service to keep even the most stuffy, toxic Marvel fanboy satisfied in their mom’s basement (I know it’s a harsh stereotype but I just really can’t stand these kinds of unsatisfied tools who live entirely online and are so insensitive to any change).
A sequel to the “Deadpool” films, “Deadpool & Wolverine” sees Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds) living a civilian life, having given up being a superhero, and trying to spend quality time with his dear friends. But when the existence of his entire universe is threatened with destruction, Wilson must become Deadpool again and needs the services of the mighty Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) which is tricky since the character died in the events of “Logan”. Fortunately, thanks to the Time Variance Agency (as seen in “Loki” or in Deadpool’s joke-fueled exposition dump to the audience), Deadpool is able to find an alternate Wolverine who let down his entire world. With a short amount of time, Deadpool and Wolverine jump around the universe to save everything the red-clad antihero holds dear which leads them into doing battle with the nefarious telekinetic, telepathic Nova (Emma Corrin) and a whole gaggle of cameos, in-jokes and mighty heroes to save the day.
While I was certainly relieved to see that “Deadpool & Wolverine” would still have the R-rating of the previous “Deadpool” films (a first for the PG-13 MCU), I was still curious as to how Deadpool would translate into the MCU. These are films that people take their young children to, so how do you put such a foul-mouthed, bloody, irreverent individual in such a place? The answer is pretty simple. You do it without giving a flying fuck.
As I envisioned, due to the nature of Deadpool and previous MCU films and series that dealt with other dimensions and variants of characters, the integration of this character into such a well-developed series felt natural with the strong sense of humor that Ryan Rynolds has delighted us with for a trilogy of films. After six years and much anticipation, seeing Reynolds back in that red spandex is a special experience that I cherished with every fiber of my being. While I liked Ryan Reynolds prior to his performance in the first “Deadpool” film (in films like “Definitely, Maybe” and “The Croods”), it was his turn in the 2016 hit that made me truly realize how special of an actor and comedic force he is. I think that for the longest time, Hollywood just saw him as a generic handsome guy and didn’t realize the treasure-trove of humor and charisma they had on their hands. In his third turn as the Merc with the Mouth (fourth if you count the abomination from 2009 that we don’t speak of), Reynolds continues to show why he’s so good at playing this character.
Despite “Logan” being billed as Hugh Jackman’s final bout as Wolverine and even Jackman claiming many times that it was his last time with the adamantium claws, he’s returned and this time he’s actually wearing a comic-accurate yellow costume. By playing a variant from a different universe, Jackman and the filmmakers are able to respect the sacrifice the character made in “Logan” while still having these two insanely popular characters interact. It was especially gratifying to me because I never thought that I would see this crossover happen. But the MCU continues to surprise and delight me. While he plays the straight man to the wild antics of Deadpool, Jackman has his comedic timing perfectly nailed and balances it with the massive weight that he’s built by playing this character for 24 years.
In terms of overall impact within the MCU, “Deadpool & Wolverine” could be viewed as inconsequential but that’s because it isn’t trying to set up the next “Avengers” film or even teasing its own sequel. This film is trying to be its own narrative while referencing certain events of the MCU and succeeds as an action-packed thrill ride that rewards us nerds for being so dedicated. With the film representing the end of an era (the official passing of the torch of these characters from Fox to Disney), “Deadpool & Wolverine” contains many references to the long history of Fox films based on Marvel characters, even the bad ones. I certainly don’t want to spoil the fun so I’ll just say that these cameos and jokes not only gave me a massive jolt of energy as a man who grew up with those films but also reworked many characters and ideas that weren’t handled well in the past. In this film, they’re done justice and teaming them up with the badass energy of Reynolds and Jackman was a joy to experience.
As an R-rated film, “Deadpool & Wolverine” pretty much has no rules (except no cocaine use) and director Shawn Levy takes full advantage of this with a strong sense of action that permeates the entire film. This story knows that the driving force is its two leads and they are more than enough to carry this film. All that is needed is to place Deadpool and Wolverine in a room and the rest of the film writes itself. It moves with a terrific pace and every fight sequence stands out with more exciting ways to move the story forward, build the relationship between the main characters and show fans what they want to see and so much more.
As far as recent films in the MCU go, not since “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” have I felt such a strong connection to a story in this series. I have no idea how these characters will move forward within the franchise but I see “Deadpool & Wolverine” as a necessary deterrent for the MCU from becoming too self-serious. While plenty of stories within the franchise feel grounded and can resonate powerful emotions within the audience, the MCU is still meant to be fun. What better way to showcase this than having Deadpool use his talents of breaking the fourth wall to tell people both the strengths and problems of this long running franchise.
Being the new film in this trilogy, I was satisfied to see that all three films have their own unique identities. The first is a love story. The second is a family film. This film is a story of unconventional brotherhood carried through by the chemistry of its leads and truly stellar comic writing (both in a humorous sense and in reference to the source material). The story may be light but with such entertainment value and so many laughs that almost had me roll out of my seat, who cares? It’s the kind of comic book film that feels forward thinking while also containing the familiar elements of a kind of superhero film we haven’t seen in quite some time.
