Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, Ed Skrein, T.J Miller, Gina Carano.
Release Date (UK): February 10
Unless you've been living under a rock, Fox's Deadpool is on everyone's radar due to the film's amazing marketing campaign (arguably the best and most effective ever). Thankfully, the film lives up to all of the hype and positive expectation as it is thoroughly entertaining from start to finish.
Deadpool sees mercenary Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds) meet and fall in love with Vanessa Carlysle (Morena Baccarin) at a local bar. However, after collapsing, he is diagnosed with terminal cancer and distances himself from Vanessa to protect her. Wade is approached by a recruiter from a top-secret program who offers him an experimental cure for his cancer; the results leave him with a scarred and disfigured physical appearance but with the ability to self-heal, and Wade goes off on a violence fueled search for the man (Ajax, played by Ed Skrein) who triggered the transformation.
The creative team behind Deadpool deliver exactly what they had promised plus much more and have truly made a film for the fans as many were left disappointed with the treatment of the Merc with the Mouth in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. The essence of Deadpool is captured perfectly within the film; it's rude, crude, hilarious, violent and packed with action - also, when you take into account the film's budget of $60 million (half of what most superhero flicks are given), the quality and high standard achieved is even more impressive.
Ryan Reynolds has discussed extensively the rocky road and 11 year process of getting Deadpool made and his abundant passion for the project is all there in his performance. Reynolds embodies the persona of Deadpool like a second skin and proves that he was born to play the role. Morena Baccarin is equally impressive as Vanessa, the girlfriend of Wade Wilson, and the chemistry between the two characters is palpable; Vanessa is the perfect match for the erratic and wise-cracking Wade. However, every character Reynolds as Deadpool interacts with on screen is the perfect enabler of comedy, particularly T.J Miller's Weasel, Wade's best friend, whose presence is guaranteed to make you laugh and his rapport with Wade is something special. Ed Skrein does a fine job as Ajax (AKA Francis), Deadpool's nemesis, although arguably he doesn't bring anything new or original to the landscape of villains produced by the superhero genre.
Due to the fierce commitment of each and every actor, the vast majority of jokes lands and therefore the film is funnier than most straight comedies. The references to other Marvel properties (primarily the X-Men franchise) are laced expertly throughout, allowing the audience to feel that Deadpool co-exists with other mutants (Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead feature within the narrative, who are fellow mutants residing at Professor X's mansion) but also beholds his own unique tone and story within the universe. Although the tone is predominantly comedic, the film maintains a lot of heart, as at its core, it is a love story masked by violence-fueled revenge and endless one liners.
The film particularly excels during its action sequences which are phenomenally handled and are extremely visceral and graphic. The stunts are incredible and Deadpool's flips and mid-air twists are hypnotic - you could watch them for hours on end. Although, because the action scenes are so thrilling, the flashbacks where Deadpool's origin is explored are less compelling in comparison, leaving you itching to return to the more exhilarating aspects the film has to offer.
Overall, Deadpool is one of the most unique superhero films to come along in years and its astounding success is sure to pave the way for other films of the genre and enable them to take greater risks and skew a slightly more mature audience.
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