DEADPOOL: Full-Tilt Review

“You're probably thinking, 'My boyfriend said this was a superhero movie but that guy in the suit just turned that other guy into a fucking kabab!' Well, I may be super, but I'm no hero. And yeah, technically, this is a murder...”

Wade Wilson

Deadpool plays out like Punisher by way of Southpark, which is no bad thing...

Synopsis:

Wade Wilson is a down-on-is-luck ex-mercenary who finds love with the equally plucky prostitute Vanessa. But a 'happy ever after' seems off the cards when Wade is diagnosed with untreatable Cancer. However, when Wade is approached by a shady organisation that agrees to 'cure' his condition in return for him becoming a 'super hero' he reluctantly agrees... However, all is not as it seems, and Wade soon releases his saviors are actually using him and others like him as test-rats under torturous conditions. He escapes the confines of his prison, now hideously scarred but almost indestructible, and dedicates his life to hunting the man responsible and watching over Vanessa.

Script: 1/2

There can be no disguising the by-the-numbers plot format.

Pace: 2/2

The film starts off at a run (with the jokes as well as the violence) and doesn't let up.

Acting: 1/2

There's good, there's bad, and then there's Ryan Reynolds...

Aesthetic: 2/2

A good-looking film all round, cast and production.

Intention: 1/2

While it does feel like a cynical production, there's no denying it's a fun ride.

Final Word: 7/10

So, the first thing that struck me was just how many jokes the films throws at the audience. They literally start with the credits and come thick-and-fast till the film closes. While some of these may fall a little flat, the sheer number of them means you're never far from another chuckle. It has to be said though, some of the gags are much smarter than others; for every one genuinely intelligent joke there's probably another 4 or 5 that, how best to put it, are slightly more juvenile. That said, somehow even the bluer and more swear-tastic moments of the film still managed to retain some charm, including but not exclusive to a debauched “my God, can they say that?” verbal sparring of astonishing perversity when Wade and Vanessa first meet. I laughed despite myself... Which leads me onto Ryan Reynolds. Now, I say this as someone who can't exactly claim to be Reynold's biggest fan, but, this is truly the role he was born for; the jokes simply wouldn't work without his boyish blue-eyes and cheeky smile, and his willingness to send himself up at any given opportunity is second to none. Put simply, without Reynolds nothing in the film would hold together- the film owes it's success to him and him alone. Sure, he may not have written the jokes, put together the screen play, or directed the film, but actually, when considered separately, most of the jokes aren't all that great, while the screenplay, while it has the odd little flourish here and there (covered later) it's nothing all that special, and the directing in the film is so unobtrusive as to be missing entirely. And while I can't necessarily fault Reynolds here, I can't exactly call it a master class in acting either, since regardless of how fun he is, you feel he's pretty much just playing a more high-octane version of himself. Morena Baccarin on the other hand (who some eagle-eyed viewers may have spotted from Serenity / Firefly) as Vanessa, the love interest, is equal parts sweet and sultry in a nothing-but-by-God-I'm-gonn'-make-something-of-it type role, while T. J. Miller gets some decidedly snarky deadpan moments as Wade's sort-of-not friend. What let's the side down here in fairly spectacular fashion is the “English villain” of the piece, Ed Skrein, here playing a character named Ajax, possibly the most unlikely mad-scientist to have ever graced the silver screen. Even when Ed loses the science shtick and reveals himself as a muscular assassin, he's never fearsome (or memorable) enough to be truly frightening or hate-worthy, and it's not like the character didn't have enough chances to make something of himself. All in all, a poorly played part, and poorly written- it's not like that character didn't have enough opportunities to do something memorably nasty- considering he passes up an opportunity to torture Wade's captive friend in retaliation for the hero's continued disobedience, or obliterate a bar-full of his mercenary chums... On the subject of writing, while the plot is fairly standard, the film was at it's most dementedly creative through the first half, with narrative skipping gamely between the past (setting up the back-story) and the present (an action scene seeing Wilson/Deadpool battling Ajax and his cronies)- such a shame that the film ditches the format too soon. And while I appreciate the film makes it's fair share of jokes at the expense of the by-numbers plot, it's not simply enough to point out the contrivances and cliches, the real skill is in doing so while subverting them- a trick Deadpool never fully manages to realise. What you're left with is a film that wants to be Kickass, but couldn't quite make itself quite as subversive, anarchic, witty or heartfelt. Perhaps a better comparison would be South Park, especially in relation to the tone of most of the jokes, which are certainly more vulgar than anything in Kickass. Still, a ballsy attempt at greatness at any rate, especially when you consider how safe big-name studios like 20^th Century Fox usually like to play things. In fact, by pure association with 20th Century Fox, some of the jokes at the expense of the X-Men franchise come across as more cynical rather than sincere, trying too hard to play off past failures; “hey kids, we know we screwed up Wolverine Origins, but we can joke about it because we're, like, totally rock and roll!”. So, Kickass this may not be, but it's still diverting fun wile it lasts. Perhaps Colossus sums the tone of the film up the most astutely;

“I've given Deadpool every chance to join us but he'd rather act like a child. A heavily armed child.”

Colossus