DEADPOOL REVIEWS, FULLY-LOADED!
DEADPOOL:
A VULGAR, VIOLENT, AND MEAN-SPIRITED MARVEL COMICS MOVIE IN THE BEST WAYS!
By Nico Beland
Movie Review: **** out of 4
20TH CENTURY FOX AND MARVEL ENTERTAINMENT
Ryan Reynolds as the Merc with a Mouth, Deadpool
Where do I start with this movie? After last year’s colossally disappointing Fantastic Four movie, 20th Century Fox gives one more shot at adapting a popular Marvel Comics superhero into a movie. In an age where the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Avengers films seem to be the big superhero moneymakers, sometimes you want something a little different in your comic book entertainment that doesn't have the Mickey Mouse ears on it and while there's been plenty of superhero movies for adults before this, very few of them were as well-regarded or successful as more family-friendly, PG-13 comic book movies we get now.
So, seeing how they “Supposedly” used Deadpool before in the 2009 X-Men prequel, X-Men Origins: Wolverine with Ryan Reynolds (National Lampoon's Van Wilder, The Proposal, Green Lantern) portraying the character, 20th Century Fox decided to give Deadpool his own movie with Reynolds reprising the role. And wow, talk about the complete opposite of the X-Men Origins Deadpool, this Deadpool is cocky, arrogant, violent, egocentric, vulgar, fourth-wall breaking, always cracking one-liners, should I keep going? To put it simply, I loved every minute of this film and might even be among my favorite comic book movies.
Parents and guardians of young children, I know a lot of you like to take your kids to see comic book movies but HEAR THESE WORDS COMING OUT OF MY GODDAMN MOUTH! Do Not, I repeat DO NOT take your kids to see this one (Actually, take the kids to this one, everyone should see this movie)! That’s right, this is the first R-rated Marvel movie since 2008’s Punisher: War Zone and the first R-rated X-Men movie for good reasons.
Unlike the child-friendly X-Men or Fantastic 4 movies, Deadpool makes gritty and darkly comical superhero entertainment popular again, it’s bloody, foul-mouthed, filled with lots of sex jokes, and of course those Fucking F-Bombs. On top of all that, it also has a strong story, surprisingly lovable characters, and even a few heartfelt moments woven into the ultra-violence and comedy.
The film follows Wade Wilson (Reynolds), who spends his time as a hired mercenary protecting teenage girls from stalkers. He soon meets the sexy, Vanessa Carlysle (Morena Baccarin-Firefly, Stargate SG-1,Gotham) and the two of them get together and have sex every Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and other holidays nobody really cares about.
They’re just living an awesome life, until they discover that Wade has a supposedly incurable cancer, so they try to make the best of what he has left. In comes The Recruiter (Jed Rees-The X-Files, Hawkeye, Galaxy Quest) of the secret Weapon X program enlists Wade into the program to possibly cure his cancer and make him not just better, but better than better.
So, after countless considerations and chats with his bartender friend, Weasel (T.J. Miller-How to Train Your Dragon 1 and 2, Transformers: Age of Extinction, Big Hero 6), Wade decides to go through the experiment being handled by Francis Freeman (Ed Skrein-Game of Thrones, The Transporter: Refueled) to remove his cancer and apparently become a superhero. At least that’s what The Recruiter tells Wade, but after the mutation serum is injected into Wade and several days of being tortured by Angel Dust (Gina Carano-Haywire, Fast & Furious 6, Extraction) to activate the mutation, Wade transforms into a hideous freak of nature that resembles Freddy Krueger’s face fucking a topographical map of Utah and an avocado having sex with an older, more disgusting avocado, as quoted by Miller.
Wade suits up and becomes the foul-mouthed superhero, Deadpool, armed with ninja swords, firepower, a bad mouth, and constant fourth wall breaks to hunt down the bastards that deformed his face and possibly his sex life. On a quest for vengeance against Francis, Deadpool teams up with X-Men mutants, Colossus (Stefan Kapicic-24, The Brothers Bloom, Big Miracle) and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand), a superfast mutant who makes Sonic the Hedgehog look like a snail, to slaughter the bad guys and hopefully get back together with Vanessa.
Overall, Deadpool knows exactly what it wants to be, a different type of superhero movie that doesn’t rely on any of the traditional comic book movie clichés and delivers a fun, energetic movie that’s worth multiple viewings, at least that’s what I got out of it.
The movie did not disappoint, especially for a February comic book movie release, because this is usually the time where mediocre or just plain bad comic book movies are released. Remember the Ben Affleck Daredevil movie or the Nicolas Cage Ghost Rider movies? Yeah, those came out around this time, but fortunately for us, Deadpool shoots those motherfuckers down and gives us a thoroughly enjoyable February comic book movie release that doesn't fall victim to its predecessors' trappings.
I'll admit it is a little strange to see the R-rated Deadpool take place in the more PG-13 X-Men universe especially with how different the tones are. The X-Men movies are more serious and tackles heavy themes like prejudice and here we have Deadpool slicing bad guys up and making wise cracks in the same universe.
I don't know what else to say, I had such a great time with Deadpool and it gave me exactly what I wanted to see in a film based on this character. If you’re a fan of over-the-top action doused in blood and other adult-oriented comic book movies like The Crow, Sin City, Watchmen, or Kick-Ass, you’ll definitely enjoy this film, I loved it and I look forward to more viewings of it in the future.
See it or I’ll cut your fucking head off, stab your friends with swords and make a kabob out of them!
Take it away Pool!
DEADPOOL 2:
RYAN REYNOLDS KEEPS THE LAUGHS AND GORE COMING IN SUPER FUN SEQUEL!
By Nico Beland
Movie Review: *** ½ out of 4
20TH CENTURY FOX AND MARVEL ENTERTAINMENT
(From left to right) Domino, Deadpool, and Cable showing the Avengers how it’s done in Deadpool 2
The Merc with a Mouth from Marvel Comics returns in the highly anticipated sequel to the 2016 blockbuster hit that breathed new life into the R-rated superhero movie genre, Deadpool. The film broke numerous box-office records upon its release, earned positive reviews from critics (Becoming the first February superhero movie release to do so…as far as I know), unintentionally became the highest-grossing X-Men movie of all time, and saved the superhero movie career of Ryan Reynolds (National Lampoon’s Van Wilder, The Proposal, The Hitman’s Bodyguard).
Naturally a sequel was in the works, which had a lot to live up to after the huge success of the first film. I was both excited to see Reynolds portray Wade Wilson/Deadpool again and to see some humorously over-the-top manslaughter, but also worried that it would be much of the same with little variety.
Well, the studio that killed Wolverine (Yeah, little spoiler from Logan), the comic book company that killed almost everyone (I’ll stop now!), and Tim Miller, the director of the first film passing over the directing task to David Leitch (John Wick, Atomic Blonde) managed to deliver a very enjoyable follow-up with Deadpool 2. It delivers all the gory, over-the-top, 4th wall breaking goodness that the first film offered and introduces some new characters without it ever feeling like a retread of the first movie though there are a few familiar jokes put in, but they put a new spin to them.
After a successful two years of working as the mercenary, Deadpool, Wade Wilson finds himself being roped into becoming an X-Men trainee by Colossus (voiced by Stefan Kapičić-Larin izbor, The Brothers Bloom, Big Miracle) in hopes of turning him from a vulgar, wise-cracking, killing machine (You know, everything that made him cool) to a real hero (And by that I mean a spandex wearing tool, what’s next, are you gonna give Deadpool a fucking shield or something?). Unfortunately, Wade’s first day as a trainee doesn’t quite go over well as he must protect a mysterious young mutant named Russell/Firefist (Julian Dennison-Paper Planes, Hunt for the Wilderpeople) from the time-traveling mutant soldier, Thanos, er, I mean Cable (Josh Brolin-True Grit (2010), Men in Black 3, Marvel Cinematic Universe) (Fuck, it’s so confusing when he’s in 2 big superhero movies this summer!) who is out to eliminate him for murdering his family.
To even stand a chance against Cable, Wade must put together a team (and I ain’t talking about those Avengers douchebags!) of people with extraordinary gifts…and the ability to hold a franchise. I am of course talking…about the X-Force consisting of luck manipulating, Domino (Zazie Beetz-Atlanta, Easy, Wolves), brain scrambling, Bedlam (Terry Crews-Starsky & Hutch, The Boondocks, Sorry to Bother You), alien from Mojoworld (I would make a Powerpuff Girls joke there but…I don’t want to!), Shatterstar (Lewis Tan-NCIS: Los Angeles, Mortal Kombat: Legacy, Iron Fist), acidic vomit spitting, Zeitgeist (Bill Skarsgård-The Divergent Series: Allegiant, Atomic Blonde, It), The Invisible…Vanisher (Brad Pitt-Fight Club, Inglourious Basterds, Moneyball), and...some guy named Peter (Rob Delaney-The Smoking Gun Presents: World’s Dumbest, Key & Peele, Catastrophe), and with the help of Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand-First Girl I Loved, Tragedy Girls, The Exorcist (TV series)) Deadpool will be ready to face Cable and give him a good T-bag though maybe Cable might not be as bad as he initially thought as Wade attempts to rehabilitate Russell so he doesn't have to be killed...or some shit like that!
The film also stars Morena Baccarin (Firefly, Gotham, Stargate SG-1, V) as Vanessa, T.J. Miller (Silicon Valley, How to Train Your Dragon 1 and 2, Big Hero 6) as Weasel, singer, Leslie Uggams as Blind Al, Karan Soni (Safety Not Guaranteed, Other Space, Ghostbusters (2016)) as Dopinder, Shiori Kutsuna (Unforgiven (2013), Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV, The Outsider) as Yukio, and Reynolds as the voice of the Juggernaut, bitch!
Overall, Deadpool 2, like its predecessor is a zany, fast-paced, and outrageous departure from the traditional superhero movie genre, while still maintaining some of the genre’s elements that make comic book movies popular in the first place. Luckily the flashy superhero movie tropes don’t overshadow the gory and relentlessly violent action and irreverent humor that Deadpool is known for, and you certainly get plenty of that in the sequel (After all, some of the best family films start with murders).
Even with all the violence and insanity going on, Deadpool still remains a likable character, despite his comedically over-the-top and at times annoying antics and attitude. He enjoys what he does but he’s never made out to be a bad guy and he has moments of humanity and heart especially with him trying to set Russell on a better path, though not quite as much as someone like Iron Man or Thor.
The humor is…I mean, come on, it’s Deadpool of course it hits in all the right places, literally from the opening credits parodying the James Bond franchise set to a Celine Dion song to the mid-credits sequences I was laughing and having a great time all the way through. Sadly, there is no Ferris Bueller ending this time around, so don’t bother waiting for the credits to end here except for the Omen-inspired Holy Shitballs operatic Juggernaut theme that plays at the very end.
I'm not sure if I'd say Deadpool 2 is better than the first movie, but I will say it’s as good as its predecessor. I felt the first one had more of an impact because it was new and superhero movies for adults were sort of losing popularity so it was refreshing to see an R-rated comic book movie that ended up being a huge critical and commercial success.
Deadpool 2 is a return to feel-good superhero movies after Avengers: Infinity War depressed us all to death a few weeks prior. If you loved the first one (Like I did), then you’re sure to enjoy the sequel just as much…but make sure you don’t bring the kids with you, just saying (Bring them!).
ONCE UPON A DEADPOOL:
PG-13 RE-EDIT OF DEADPOOL 2 IS SURPRISINGLY FUNNY!
By Nico Beland
Movie Review: *** out of 4
20TH CENTURY FOX AND MARVEL ENTERTAINMENT
Deadpool and Fred Savage bringing some family-friendly superhero magic this holiday in Once Upon a Deadpool
The Merc with a Mouth loses his hysterically foul mouth as well as his over-the-top violent edge in the superhero movie event for the entire family, Once Upon a Deadpool (and that’s not at all a joke). The film is actually a re-edited version of Deadpool 2 with zero “F’s” to give, no gore, and brand-new footage shot featuring former child actor, Fred Savage (The Princess Bride, The Wizard, The Wonder Years) as himself.
Obviously, Deadpool and PG-13 should never be in the same sentence and had this been a completely original movie, it would have crashed and burned. Most of the fun of Deadpool comes from the fact that it is R rated and intended for mature audiences, with extreme violence, raunchy humor, and a gleefully profane parody of superhero conventions, so I was very concerned about this re-release, would it still have sparks of Deadpool’s cynical edge or would he be eating shawarma with Mickey and the Avengers?
I’m happy to say Once Upon a Deadpool manages to embrace its PG-13 rating and has fun with it in classic Deadpool fashion, but it’s far from being a replacement for its much superior R-rated predecessors. It’s an interesting experiment but not how I would want viewers under 17 to be introduced to the character.
The film follows Wade Wilson/Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds-National Lampoon’s Van Wilder, The Hitman’s Bodyguard, Pokémon: Detective Pikachu) as he kidnaps former child star, Fred Savage, recreates the bedroom set from The Princess Bride, and tells him the story of a family-friendly version of Deadpool 2 against his will. You know what? Because I’m a lazy fudge, I’ll just go ahead and slap on the plot synopsis from my original Deadpool 2 review except comedically censored for the PG-13 audience!
Anyway, after a successful two years of working as the mercenary, Deadpool, Wade Wilson finds himself being roped into becoming an X-Men trainee by Colossus (voiced by Stefan Kapičić-Larin izbor, The Brothers Bloom, Big Miracle) in hopes of turning him from a vulgar, wise-cracking, killing machine (You know, everything that made him cool) to a real hero (And by that I mean a spandex wearing idiot, what’s next, are you gonna give Deadpool a frickin' shield or something?). Unfortunately, Wade’s first day as a trainee doesn’t quite go over well as he must protect a mysterious young mutant named Russell/Firefist (Julian Dennison-Paper Planes, Hunt for the Wilderpeople) from the time-traveling mutant soldier, Thanos er, I mean Cable (Josh Brolin-True Grit (2010), Men in Black 3, Marvel Cinematic Universe) who is out to eliminate him for murdering his family.
To even stand a chance against Cable, Wade must put together a team (and I ain’t talking about those Avengers folks!) of people with extraordinary gifts…and the ability to hold a franchise. I am of course talking…about the X-Force consisting of luck manipulating, Domino (Zazie Beetz-Atlanta, Easy, Wolves), brain scrambling, Bedlam (Terry Crews-Starsky & Hutch, The Boondocks, Sorry to Bother You), alien from Mojoworld (I would make a Powerpuff Girls joke there but…I don’t want to!), Shatterstar (Lewis Tan-NCIS: Los Angeles, Mortal Kombat: Legacy, Iron Fist), acidic vomit spitting, Zeitgeist (Bill Skarsgård-The Divergent Series: Allegiant, Atomic Blonde, It), The Invisible…Vanisher (Brad Pitt-Fight Club, Inglourious Basterds, Moneyball), and...some guy named Peter (Rob Delaney-The Smoking Gun Presents: World’s Dumbest, Key & Peele, Catastrophe), and with the help of Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand-First Girl I Loved, Tragedy Girls, The Exorcist (TV series)) Deadpool will be ready to face Cable and give him a good butt kicking though maybe Cable might not be as bad as he initially thought as Wade attempts to rehabilitate Russell so he doesn't have to be killed...or some crap like that!
. The film also stars Morena Baccarin (Firefly, Gotham, Stargate SG-1, V) as Vanessa, T.J. Miller (Silicon Valley, How to Train Your Dragon, Big Hero 6) as Weasel, singer, Leslie Uggams as Blind Al, Karan Soni (Safety Not Guaranteed, Other Space, Ghostbusters (2016)) as Dopinder, Shiori Kutsuna (Unforgiven (2013), Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV, The Outsider) as Yukio, and Reynolds as the voice of the Juggernaut, female dog!
Overall, Once Upon a Deadpool is funny for those who have seen the previous two Deadpool movies and are able to run along with the joke. It’s intentionally played safe and some of the profanity replacements do get a few good laughs, but other times they don’t quite land, which is why I consider this more as an interesting experiment rather than a movie you rush out to see in the theater.
In my opinion, the highlights are the homages to The Princess Bride with Deadpool telling the story to a grown Fred Savage in bed. These scenes lead to some of the best jokes in the entire film with a bizarre but surprisingly amusing team-up.
When it’s just edited scenes from Deadpool 2, they range from being funny to almost like you’re watching a butchered version of it on cable TV (and I’m sure nobody else has ever made a joke about cable TV and Cable). I probably would be more onboard with the idea if it was something like a special version of the movie for its Blu-Ray release, kind of like the Unrated Super Duper Cut of the movie rather than something I need to buy a ticket to see.
Imagine if they re-edited South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut to a PG-13 and re-released it in theaters. You had to purchase a ticket to watch an edited version of South Park in a movie theater when you can get that exact same result on TV for free, and it probably won’t be as funny.
If you’re really curious to see how a PG-13 version of Deadpool would play out, then I’d say Once Upon a Deadpool is worth at least a viewing. However, if you’re looking to introduce the character to people under 17, I guarantee you’ll have a much better time just showing them the original R-rated movies or sneak-watch them when your parents aren't around.
DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE:
FUCK DARK PHOENIX, THIS IS THE SENDOFF TO FOX’S MARVEL MOVIES WE DESERVE!
By Nico Beland
Movie Review: **** out of 4
MARVEL STUDIOS
Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman in Deadpool & Wolverine
Everyone’s favorite foul-mouthed, relentlessly violent, and 4th wall breaking superhero is back and so is the mutant with adamantium claws who got impaled by a fucking tree in Deadpool & Wolverine, the latest installment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and third installment of the Deadpool trilogy. If you read my reviews for the previous films, you know I loved the hell out of the Deadpool movies with the first film from 2016 being such a damn good introduction to the character as someone who had never read his comics prior to the movie.
I love the attitude, humor, graphic violence, and most importantly the character himself and Ryan Reynolds’ performance who pretty much made the movie. Despite his relentless methods of taking out bad guys and his reliance on irreverent humor, I found Deadpool to be an endearing character and does have his share of heartfelt moments especially with Morena Baccarin’s Vanessa who are absolutely adorable together even with Wade’s fucked up looking face.
The 2018 sequel, Deadpool 2 is also an enjoyable time though it didn’t quite have the same impact on me as the first, but I always have a blast whenever I put it on. The violence and humor are still great as well as the introductions of fan-favorite characters like Domino, Cable, and Peter (Peter is an essential part of this franchise staying afloat!), and the chemistry between Deadpool and this troubled mutant kid he befriends is very strong.
Now, we have the third installment directed by Shawn Levy (Night at the Museum trilogy, Real Steel, Free Guy) with Ryan Reynolds (National Lampoon’s Van Wilder, The Proposal, Free Guy) reprising his role as Wade Wilson/Deadpool and this time he’s bringing along Hugh Jackman (The Prestige, Prisoners, Eddie the Eagle) in his first appearance as Wolverine since 2017’s Logan and they’re now invading the MCU. Well, I have to say Deadpool & Wolverine is the best MCU movie I’ve seen since Spider-Man: No Way Home in 2021 and helped bring back my excitement for the franchise after a slew of goods, duds, and what the fuck was MODOK?
Sometime after the events of Deadpool 2, Wade Wilson (Reynolds) has hung up the red suit and given up being the masked mercenary Deadpool. Wade now works as a used car salesman alongside his friend and former X-Force member Peter (Rob Delaney-Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, Bombshell, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One) after breaking up with his girlfriend, Vanessa (Morena Baccarin-Firefly, Stargate SG-1, Gotham).
But Wade is soon taken by the Time Variance Authority (TVA) under command by Mr. Paradox (Matthew Macfadyen-Pride & Prejudice, Frost/Nixon, Anna Karenina) who offers Wade a chance to become a hero in the Sacred Universe (In other words, the Avengers universe) at the cost of his own world. Tempting offer, but Mr. Paradox is gonna have to fuck off as Wade suits up as Deadpool once again and travels the multiverse to find the one thing that could save his world, or person…or mutant fuck it! That being Logan/Wolverine (Jackman) or rather a Wolverine from a different universe because the Wolverine from his universe (The Fox X-Men universe) was killed at the end of Logan.
Wolverine reluctantly decides to help Deadpool save his universe while also learning how to be a hero to Wade’s universe after letting down his own. However, a threat comes in the form of Cassandra Nova (Emma Corrin-The Crown, My Policeman, Nosferatu) who commands the mysterious realm known as the Void with a plot to destroy all universes and Deadpool, Wolverine (and a few others) must suit up and kick some ass to save not just Wade’s world but the entire multiverse.
The film also stars Leslie Uggams (Roots, All My Children, American Fiction) reprising her role as Blind Al, Aaron Stanford (The Hills Have Eyes (2006), Nikita, 12 Monkeys) reprising his role from X2: X-Men United and X-Men 3: The Last Stand as John Allerdyce/Pyro, Karan Soni (Safety Not Guaranteed, Ghostbusters (2016), Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse) reprising his role as Dopinder, Brianna Hildebrand (First Girl I Loved, Trinkets, Runt) reprising her role as Negasonic Teenage Warhead, and Stefan Kapičić (Big Miracle, Better Call Saul, The Last Voyage of the Demeter) reprising his role as the voice of Colossus.
Overall, Deadpool & Wolverine is a blood-drenched good time throughout and a long overdue return to great MCU films. Who would have thought all it took for Disney to make an awesome Marvel movie again was an R rating and two characters that weren’t originally from that universe? But I’ll gladly take that over Quantumania and Love and Fucking Thunder any day!
What really makes the movie work is the chemistry between Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman, they are so much fun to watch and listen to together whether they’re bantering, kicking ass (Sometimes kicking each other’s asses), or just simply talking about each other’s problems and failures. It’s a perfect team-up and a large part of that is the charm of Reynolds and Jackman whether comedic or serious.
Big surprise, the movie is also quite funny and not in that bullshit MCU Comedy way with jabs at the MCU, 20th Century Fox’s Marvel movies, Disney, etc., the funniest opening to a Marvel movie since Chris Pratt dancing in the cave in the first Guardians of the Galaxy, and they somehow managed to work in a Will Smith slap joke involving Canada (Which is hilarious for me because I saw the trailer for this in front of the newest Bad Boys movie this year).
The action is a lot of fun and retains the gore of the previous Deadpool films and Logan and it’s just awesome to see Deadpool and Wolverine come up with creative ways to take enemies down together. From a great action sequence during the opening credits (That are sadly not self-aware like the earlier films) to a phenomenal scene with Deadpool and Logan fighting each other inside a car.
There’s also a lot of fan-service with a ton of characters from various universes appearing and references to other Marvel and superhero movies. I won’t be giving any away, but I was delighted by the familiar faces that showed up including one portrayed by an actor who would eventually be in the MCU.
Deadpool & Wolverine is the film the MCU desperately needed and a satisfying sendoff to Fox’s Marvel movies. If you enjoyed the previous Deadpools, you’ll have a blast with this one, grab your red mask, sharpen your claws, and LFG…and by that I mean Let’s Fucking Go!
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