This weekend, Ryan Reynolds’ “Deadpool” breaks the typical superhero mold that audiences are used to and provides one of the most violent, over the top, comedy-driven and action-packed superhero movies you’ve ever seen. Staying true to the source material from Marvel Comics, this film provides a sort of shoot ‘em up presentation and feels like a mix between a movie like “Kickass” and an adult version of your traditional “X-Men” or other superhero adaptations.
Ex-Special Forces operative turned mercenary, Wade Wilson (Reynolds), finds out he has multiple-organ cancer and subjects himself to a mad scientist-like experiment, where he is injected with a special serum and tortured until a mutation finally kicks in. The procedure ultimately leaves him physically disfigured, but cures his cancer and gives him special abilities, including accelerated healing that makes him just about unstoppable. Seriously, like if you cut off his head, it will grow back.
After the operation, Wilson moves in with a blind lady named Al and becomes a vigilante, who is set on seeking revenge against the man that performed the experiment, and who has abilities of his own.
In the comics, Deadpool starts out as a villain but eventually becomes an antihero. In the film, Wade Wilson is a fairly normal guy who endures this unthinkable procedure to cure his illness, and in turn this creates a sort of super solider with one goal – to destroy the man who destroyed his life, who calls himself “Ajax” (Ed Skrein). You can sort of sympathize with Wilson as he has a life and a girlfriend, played by actress Morena Baccarin, and his life is turned upside down by the cancer and experiment.
Wilson has a sense of humor before the experiment, but if you know anything about the comic book character, Deadpool, it’s that he has an extremely twisted sense of humor. Deadpool is described in the comic world as a “Merc with a Mouth,” and it’s as if Ryan Reynolds and this character were made for each other. Anyone familiar with Reynolds knows he likes to joke around, and in this film, his style of humor fits perfectly with the character, providing one sarcastic, snarky, smart or obscene comment after another. Actor T.J. Miller also provides his usual brand of comic relief as a supporting character.
In terms of humor, the character of Deadpool is known to be very talkative and often breaks the “fourth wall,” which writers use to create a unique comedic effect. Breaking this means that the character will speak, acknowledge, or do something directly to the camera/audience in the middle of a scene. Perhaps Deadpool will be flipping through the air or cutting off a man’s head, and he finds time to pause and wink or make a remark to the camera. This creates a very different type of interaction between the character and the viewer and provides a unique type of amusement.
This film is fast-paced, humorous, gleefully profane, and above all else, very violent. It’s not your typical honorable, save-the-world superhero movie; it’s just a guy who gets superpowers and uses them to break bones and slice off limbs as he seeks revenge. Viewers beware as this film is rated R for strong violence, language throughout, sexual content and graphic nudity, but an R is really rating it mildly, as there’s blood and vulgar, offensive material everywhere to be found.
An “open letter from Deadpool” posted on Facebook Tuesday has been shared over 120,000 times, warning parents of the vulgar nature of the film.
Open letter from Deadpool. -RogueSong
Posted by Planet Of The Geeks on Tuesday, February 9, 2016
Even though this film is so vastly different than other films of this genre, it still resides in the Marvel Universe, and as a result, features other characters from this world. Actress Gina Carano plays Angel Dust, a mutant with superhuman strength and speed who has an alliance with Ajax, another mutant with enhanced strength and the inability to feel pain. There are several X-Men present, such as Colossus, played by Stefan Kapicic and Andre Tricoteux, and Negasonic Teenage Warhead, played by Brianna Hildebrand. Much like the other Marvel films, X-Men creator Stan Lee also makes a cameo appearance.
Overall, this film creates a fairly new formula for a different type of superhero movie, which is more of an all-out-hardcore-firefight and one man’s assault, than it is a group of noble heroes coming together to save the planet from alien extinction. It’s just a sarcastic dude in a red suit, kicking butt and voicing everything he’s thinking. The film has a weak revenge plot, but a unique design; it stays pretty faithful to the comics, and has more than a few laughs and mouth-dropping remarks. It’s dumb, but hilarious at the same time.
Credit to Reynolds for sticking with this film that has been in development for more than 10 years. The time has finally come to show the world (except for China, who has denied release due to the content) the wildly entertaining results.
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
“Deadpool” is rated R for strong violence and language throughout, sexual content and graphic nudity. Running time is 1 hour and 48 minutes.
