REVIEW: Deadpool 2
As the subject line says, there will be SPOILERS in this blog about Deadpool 2.
So, if you haven't seen the film and don't want to be spoiled (and I always think people should watch without spoilers), please come back after you've watched it.
This is your last warning. SPOILERS IN...
3
2
1
Okay, you've been properly warned.
So, if this is a Disney blog, why am I writing about Deadpool 2? Well, for a couple of reasons...1) while the film rights to the characters is owned by Fox, the actual character is owned by Marvel Entertainment which, as you know, is owned by Disney; and 2) Given Disney's currently going through the regulatory process to buy Fox, the film rights will hopefully revert to Disney.
Overall, I really had a good time watching the film and it just had me in stitches. I do think the first film had a tighter story. Deadpool 2 is a little uneven at times. Whereas the first film was a love story, this film is supposed to be about family. In this story, Deadpool has to save a powerful mutant boy (Julian Dennison) from being killed by Cable (Josh Brolin) who comes from the future to prevent the boy from killing his family. I think part of the uneveness comes from the fact that the first film played beautifully as a love story while this one is a little clunky as a family film. The first film seemed to fly by, but there were parts of this film that felt a little over bloated. Its that classic sequel thing where they try to do more than the first just to do more.
Reynolds, though, is always perfect as the "Merc With A Mouth." His delivery is always spot on and his love and passion for this character is really what makes this film the most fun.
I'm going to be honest. While I like the X-Men, I haven't really followed them regularly since the 1980s. I've read stories here and there and I know generally who most of the characters are, but, admittedly, I'm not as familiar with Cable, Domino or X-Force. That said, this film made me want to know more about them and that can only be a good thing.
I really want a Domino (Zazie Beetz) solo movie now. I absolutely loved her and thought she stole the show. I've always found the power to affect probability fields (or luck powers) a cool power. And, I completely disagree with Deadpool - the power is totally cinematic! Beetz looks like she's having just as fun a time as Reynolds is with Deadpool. I definitely want to see more of her in the future.
What a summer for Josh Brolin! First, he played one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's best villains to date as Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War, and now here he is playing a mutant anti-hero from the future. And to think he almost gave up doing comic book movies after 2010's Jonah Hex. While Brolin may not be as physically huge as Cable's comic counterpart, his intensity makes up for it. I wondered how they were going to play Cable's darkness over Deadpool's lightheartedness (for an assassin), but I felt they did it quite well.
I was disappointed with all the promotion for X-Force that they were literally on screen for 5 minutes. None of those scenes featuring the characters using their powers were not really in the movie. Their demise was hilarious, but I was looking forward to seeing these characters at work. I loved the idea that they were going to use a character like Shatterstar, which was a character with one of the more bizarre origin stories from the 1990s. I was just glad Domino survived the plane jump.
As with the first film, there are pop culture jokes a plenty. Disney, Logan, the X-Men, the MCU, the DC Extended Universe, Deadpool co-creator Rob Liefeld and Ryan Reynolds himself are all targets of Deadpool's barbs. They came so fast and furious that I have to watch it again just to catch them all. I think the one joke that went over everybody's head in the audience was Deadpool's making fun of Liefeld's inability to draw feet in his comics. I, however, laughed hysterically.
Seeing Juggernaut in the film was amazing and a huge redemption from his horrible depiction in X-Men: The Last Stand. I loved the fight between him and Colossus (Stefan Kapicic). It was like his fight with Angel Dust in the first movie on steroids. I just love the way Colossus is depicted in the Deadpool movies, period. I love how exaggerated he is, from his metallic look to his thick Russian accent which is the way I've always heard his voice when reading the comics.
I just wish there was more Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand) because I loved her so much in the first movie. This is one of those areas where I felt she suffered from the over bloating. But, I loved her girlfriend Yukio (Shiori Kutsuna) and how Deadpool compared her to Pinkie Pie. My Little Pony references are always a-okay in my book. LOL!
The mid-credit scenes are hilarious. I love that Ryan Reynolds is such a good sport as to constantly make fun of his role as Green Lantern. And that X-Men Origins: Wolverine scene came as a complete surprise to me. I had to look up, though, whether Hugh Jackman actually shot footage for this, but it looks like it is archival footage with his permission.
And, speaking of cameos, I loved that several of the current X-Men reprised their roles for about 10 seconds of the film. I need to watch it again because I couldn't catch everybody that was in that room. I just remember seeing Beast. But, it looks like Nicholas Holt (Beast), James McAvoy (Professor X), Evan Peters (Quicksilver) and Tye Sheridan (Cyclops) all reprised their roles. I thought it was a great way to also acknowledge that there aren't a lot of X-Men in the film on a whole.
So, there you have it. Although I think I liked the first one better, I still think Deadpool 2 is a blast and I'll go see it again for sure (even if just to catch jokes I missed). In the end, you gotta love a movie that ends in a Cher song. LOL.