Before I get into it, I think I should make it clear that I’m a very avid follower of Marvel’s trash-talking anti-hero, Deadpool. But even as a huge fan of Deadpool, I entered this film with low expectations and cautious optimism. 20th Century Fox has a spotty track record regarding their treatment of Marvel superheroes — Fantastic Four, anyone?
Now, for those of you who are aware of Deadpool in name and merchandise only, Wade Wilson is Marvel’s token anti-hero. Think The Punisher – if the Punisher were a character from Looney Toons and still brutally murdered his enemies. The merc with a mouth has the healing powers of Wolverine, the combat prowess of Captain America, and the killer puns of Spider-Man — earning him his nickname.
In the months leading up to the movie’s release, chatter speculated if Fox would incorporate one of Deadpool’s defining traits: his ability to break the fourth wall and his self-awareness of being a fictitious character. The film does not disappoint. The intro is immediately followed with an upbeat tune, backing the opening credits so self-referential that it seemed the character had wrote them himself.
From that moment onwards, I was in tears from laughing so hard, only letting up in moments to let me cringe at an over-the-top decapitation and other such mutilations. I can say with absolute sincerity, as a fan of the character, that the production company has finally done this character justice in a movie. What’s more, justice is done without stooping to the tropes found in the films made by Marvel Studios and Disney. The cinematography wasn’t too dull, nor did Fox try to castrate Deadpool with a meek PG rating.
In fact, I would go as far to say that Deadpool is perhaps the first R-rated superhero movie that succeeded at being a decent adaptation without going too dark and gritty — a la The Punisher or Spawn. (Remember, that was a thing, in 1997?) At the risk of alienating a much larger, younger demographic, Ryan Reynolds gave the fans a portrayal worthy of the anti-hero; one that is equal parts violent gore and tongue-in-cheek self-awareness.
Unfortunately, though, apart from the fact that Wade Wilson is a horribly scarred, immortal psychopath, the film is a by-the-numbers revenge plot. It seems that the writers and Reynolds had a detailed idea of Deadpool, and then built the story around his character.
However, the basic plot is veiled by the use of flashbacks and fourth wall-breaking to jumble up the timeline. The audience doesn’t sit through a straight-forward look at Wade Wilson’s transformation from cancer-ridden mercenary, to crisped, spandex-wearing assassin. Instead, it begins with Deadpool massacring a troop of (hopefully) bad guys, and then the narrative explains how he got there — all within a fairly compact runtime.
Though marred by its simple plot and excessive cost-saving CGI, Deadpool exceeded my expectations of what could be done in a superhero blockbuster. Ryan Reynolds has gleefully brought life to a character of pure lunacy and bloody fun. The jokes, while crude, happily don’t overstay their welcome, and Deadpool ends up as a surprisingly endearing character despite all of his flaws.
