‘Deadpool’ Theatrical Review

Warning: Adult Content

Our story begins with Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds) as a member of a super-powered attack team. Wolverine’s there. After a few quips and a quick action sequence, Wade disappears for a long time only to return at the end of the movie as a shirtless multi-powered mutant with his lips glued shut, making him the literal opposite of the “Merc with a Mouth”. Next Wad* AAAAAGGGGHHH!! *pant pant* whoa, sorry…I must have been having some insane nightmare…

Deadpool not only mocks every crappy superhero role Reynolds has ever played, it kicks in their teeth and erases them from memory. From the ridiculous jokes to the badass action, the style and tone of this movie adaptation is true to the irreverent spirit of its source material and ultimately redeems the lead actor’s past transgressions. It may not be for everyone, but the over-the-top violence and dark, childlike humor is every bit what someone should expect from a Deadpool movie.

Real synopsis: Wade Wilson, a former black ops agent, gets cancer. He then undergoes a torturous process that forces a mutation in his body that not only cures him, but makes him indestructible and ugly as burnt meatloaf. Thus, Wade takes on the moniker “Deadpool” and sets out to get a cure from (or murder) the guy who made him look like a week-old gas station hot dog. Along the way, Colossus (who works as an amusing heroic foil to the nihilistic Deadpool) and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (who?) from the X-men show up to interrupt his revenge and save the movie from being a lot shorter. There’s a love interest, a never-ending stream of jokes and few awesome fight scenes. There, all caught up.

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Deadpool wastes absolutely no time letting you know what ride you’re on. The satirical opening credits alone had the theater I was in cracking up, and from there it just keeps on coming. Relentlessly. While not every gag is laugh-out-loud hilarious (though there are many of those moments) this movie will keep a fiendish grin on your face until the final credits roll (then it gets you one last time in the post-credit scene).

Though almost all of Deadpool‘s humor is obviously dirty, most of the delivery is surprisingly clever. T.J. Miller is funny as always, if a bit low-energy at times (you know he apparently once had a stroke in real life?), and even Ed Skrein gets in some good lines as the film’s sadistic villain (good for him too because, seriously, who else thought two-episode Daarrio Naharis’ career was over when he starred in the Transporter reboot? Just me?).

But ultimately, finally doing justice to the character he was born to play, Ryan Reynolds and his witty, non-stop trash talking carry the show. Whoever enjoys the sarcastic Monty in Waiting, the skilled idiot Archer in Archer or the Deadpool-like character Deadpool in the Deadpool comics will have a lot of fun at Deadpool the movie.

Anyone who enjoys Christian-themed dictionary readings, sadness or singing along with the Teletubbies will probably want to skip it. Due to some naughty language, spirited fisticuffs and creative sexual positions, this one is rated PG-13 for a reason…hold on…it’s rated R? Then why are all these children in the theater right now? Oh right, superhero movie, got it.

Just a heads up parents: the bloody violence in Deadpool is a far cry from The Incredibles and sitting in a dark room with strangers watching adults do super-adult sex stuff to each other is awkward enough without children in the room. Just because there are colorful costumes doesn’t mean it’s for kids.

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That said, the appropriate adult audience not making the theater creepy will love it. I mean, you go into Deadpool expecting a certain level of delightful sleaziness, and this movie pulls no punches. Deadpool comics set a precedent for having no limits, not even the fourth wall, and this movie carries on the proud boundary-breaking tradition.

The dismembering fight scenes are brutal and fast-paced and are accompanied either by up-beat hip-hop, which goes well with the just-don’t-give-a-f*%# action, or inappropriate slow ballads that juxtapose the on-screen violence to hilarious effect. Those accustomed to the PG violence in X-Men and The Avengers might not be prepared for the gory head-rolling, torso-impaling, bullet-soaked spectacle of Deadpool, but anyone familiar with the origins of the character will be glad censors took the night off.

And the lack of censorship doesn’t stop at decapitations. Most of the best lines in the film are profanity-riddled insults, dick jokes and pop-culture references that frequently break the fourth wall. I expected a couple nods to the audience, but the lengths the creators went to make this film adaptation true to the comics is downright impressive; the movie could have been ripped directly from the pages of the source material and it wouldn’t be any more authentic.

But behind all the sex, drugs and rock & roll, Deadpool is a love story at its core. Besides the aforementioned torture stuff, Deadpool’s backstory is the tale of a budding relationship between two damaged young souls who bond over their shared dark sense of humor (and depraved sexual proclivities).

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It’s the age-old story: former government assassin falls in love with a cool prostitute he meets in an underground mercenary bar then becomes a hideous mutant to cure his cancer and kills a bunch of people in hopes he can be with her again without having to wear a paper bag over his face… Okay, it’s not exactly a Nicholas Sparks level romance, but it’s surprisingly deep enough to be more than just a superficial side-note.

The best part about the hero’s backstory (which itself is entertaining and more engaging than the plodding backstories in most superhero/action/horror/nearly-all movies) is how it is told in flashback segments. The story bounces from action to exposition and back again, which keeps the movie rushing along at a break-neck pace that never slows down. Like the chatty protagonist, the movie itself seems to have ADHD, never letting the experience lag or become boring. A poignant story of morals it isn’t, but damn does it hit all the right notes for a fun action/comedy.

Undoubtedly, there will be people who don’t like Deadpool. They’ll say it’s nothing more than gratuitous violence and immature humor mixed with some unnecessary nudity; an overhyped, preteen boy’s crass escapism fantasy. They’ll say Wade talks too much and his juvenile attempts at humor get annoying after an hour and a half. This is mostly true. But if you don’t like that kind of thing, you probably have no business watching Deadpool in the first place. For the fans who appreciate what makes Deadpool awesome, brace yourself for all the gratuitous violence and immature humor you could ask for.

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