Directed By Shawn Levy

Starring – Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Morena Baccarin

The Plot – A listless Wade Wilson (Reynolds) toils away in civilian life with his days as the morally flexible mercenary, Deadpool, behind him. But when his home world faces an existential threat, Wade must reluctantly suit-up again with an even more reluctant Wolverine (Jackman).

Rated R for strong bloody violence and adult language throughout, gore and sexual references.

Deadpool & Wolverine | Official Trailer | In Theaters July 26 (youtube.com)

POSITIVES

It took six years for a Deadpool and Wolverine team-up to come to fruition, and while it comes at a time where the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is in turmoil from both on-screen inconsistency and off-screen controversy, ‘Deadpool and Wolverine” might just be the step to put it all back in the right direction. This is one romping good time, benefited greatly by clever and effective humor, but also a siesta of surprises in fan service that, while pandering to audience fandom, is justified in the ways that each jaw-dropping cameo and unapologetic reference is utilized in the confines of the script. In this regard, the film can be serviced not only as a giant middle finger to 20th Century Fox, which the movie takes ample time mocking and spoofing, but also a fitting ending to the Wolverine saga, which we felt was perfectly sealed shut in ‘Logan’, but here finds a way to resurrect the character in ways that are respectful and celebratory to his undeniable impact to superhero films. While I did accurately predict a couple of the familiar faces and characters, I didn’t even crack the surface for how widely expansive this film goes, as with two particular appearances, I clapped aloud at two people I never thought I would see again in this universe, and that same elicited excitement that made ‘Infinity War’ such a dream team fantasy for geekdom, continuously finds ways to permanently imbed a smile to the audience in this film. On the subject of smiles, the comedy is once again nearly as consistently effective as the lightning in a bottle that was 2018’s ‘Deadpool’, with pacing that allows each punchline to properly register in the ears of its audience, but also a refreshing commentary on Marvel’s own cinematic mistakes, which proves growth for this company, while also putting to bed the notion that their signing of the Deadpool character would soften his personality to family audiences. If anything, Wade Wilson feels as crudely unapologetic and caustic as ever, with razor sharp timing in quips that continuously cut at the imposition of a ruthless enemy, while also serving Reynolds and Levy’s brands of humor tremendously, which they haven’t been able to find in the history of their PG-13 team-ups with one another. The action is exciting and full of brutal impact, with the exception of one key sequence, with Deadpool’s typical slow motion panning inspiring all of the gore and humility that we’ve come to expect and appreciate from him. As expected, we get ample time for the two titular protagonists to tear each other apart, which continuously comes across as exciting and endearing, despite the fact that both of them are essentially immortal towards one another, but for my money it’s the slew of armies left in their wake of devastation that present the greatest sense of capability to what these two forces can do together, especially in that each are essentially lone losers to their respective universes, which gives their sense of kinship a nourishing quality to the characterization of both that audiences will effortlessly get behind. This is where the film occasionally sheds its comedic dominance for an underlining layer of much-needed and much-appreciated heart, where for Logan the chance at redemption is too appealing to pass up, while Wade looks for a sense of belonging after striking out in applying for the Avengers. So together, they build a bond that subtly materializes the off-screen friendship of Reynolds and Jackman on-screen for their dangerous mercenaries, without the aid of on-the-nose dialogue or long-winded scenes being paid to tell the audience what they can feel in the way each character compliments the other. This also leaves the performances enamored with all kinds of personality that we would expect from a dream team collaboration, with Reynolds and Jackman obviously dominating the showcase, while also leaving enough room for Emma Corrin as Cassandra Nova, who is a legendary antagonist in the comics, whose connection to Logan I’ll leave unspoiled for unsuspecting audiences. Reynolds once again has limitless charisma within a mind that thinks a mile a second, and while his comedy has always been his backbone to stardom, it’s the heart and humanity he supplants to Wilson that means the most to his character, resulting in ambition and drive for the Merc with a Mouth that we haven’t quite seen to this point. As for Jackman, it’s a risky rope to tread after the Oscar-worthy perfection that was his turn in ‘Logan’, but this is definitely my second favorite representation of Wolverine, if just for the weight of the world on the shoulders of Logan that Jackman frequently enacts, but equally balanced with a menacing ferocity that we haven’t seen in quite sometime, all to show us that even with ten film appearances and 56 years of age, the man still clearly has it. As for where this film fits into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it’s ambitious for the Deadpool franchise without expanding on the lore and scope of the universe in ways that feel permanent to other characters and franchises. This is perhaps the safest route that this film could’ve taken, as uncertainty and ambiguity still feel like the best ways to cater to troops of comic book faithful fans, and in the case of Wilson, if this is unfortunately the last time we ever seen him, or the first of his biggest step forward, a fitting closure on both directions, which currently closes the book on one of the greatest comic book trilogies of all-time.

NEGATIVES

As expected with a titanic team-up like Deadpool and Wolverine, the surrounding characters take a noticeable backseat to them steering the story, which while certainly warranted with where the story quite literally takes them, does feel unfortunate for anyone like me who has grown to love Vanessa, Peter, Blind Al, or Dopinder, from the previous films. As a result of them essentially only being in a couple of scenes throughout the movie, the stakes that Deadpool fight for constantly feel a bit underwhelming for the emotional pull that the script continuously pulls towards, with another forgettable antagonist for the franchise undercutting the momentum and magnitude of what this team is fighting against. To be fair, as previously heralded, Corrin hands in a mesmerizing turn as said antagonist, it’s just that between the film’s desire to have two varying antagonists, as well as a lack of committed focus to her and her world, the script undercuts her impact in ways that left me virtually forgetting about her until she pops up for the film’s climax, with artistic language that states that she’s not important enough to us, so why should she be for the audience? The script is also surprisingly bare in its plot and storytelling, which can certainly be expected for a Deadpool movie, but problematic for a film that spends 90% of its direction in the opening hour, leaving the second hour feeling every bit of its run time, before the climax eventually transitions to the big showdown. It isn’t enough that Reynolds sarcastically scoffs to the audience at one point, looking to the screen and stating “I Promise, we’re in the home stretch guys”, but even worse when the storytelling remains idle for 30 to 40 minutes, where it essentially just plays the cameo game, all in hopes of fooling the audience into thinking this was some long distance journey with the characters, which can only be realized literally and not emotionally. Finally, while I praised much of the action sequences in the way it’s shot and orchestrated, one sequence at the beginning of the third act feels like Levy and cinematographer George Richmond stepped out for lunch, while a director from a random 2000’s superhero film stepped in to shoot it. I make this assumption because instead of the smoothly slow-motion and detailed visuality of fight choreography being effortlessly detectable for audiences, this sequence chooses shaking camera and choppy editing of the worst variety, which not only undercuts this opportunity to see some dream engagements, but also makes it a chore to stay firmly invested in the dynamics of the sequence, with dizziness dominating the rarity of the opportunity. It does thankfully settle back into sedation during the final fight sequence of the movie, but this one instance stood out like a sore thumb compared to the others, made worse by the magnitude of who is involved, and how we will never get that chance back.

OVERALL
‘Deadpool and Wolverine’ is Marvel’s best since ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’, as a result of its charismatic team-up eliciting all of the clever quips and bludgeoning brutality that we expect from two R-rated supes. While the script’s journey is thinly written, cutting into the screen time of supporting characters, and the arc its meaningful antagonist, the audience will be effortlessly enamored by the abundance of laughs and littered fan service distributed from this blossoming bromance, conjuring what might not be the best, but certainly the most important film to the next phase of Marvel projects.

My Grade: 8/10 or B+