Sequel equals tons of fun
The original Iron Man proved humor could work in comic books movies. The first Deadpool proved it could carry one, even humor of the raunchy variety. Deadpool 2 carries on this tradition with more of everything that made the first one a surprise success.
Once again, this is very much Ryan Reynolds’s movie. He delivers the majority of the laughs and does so with the signature charm that has been his hallmark since Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place. His Deadpool is self-deprecating and aggressive, kind and violent. A true mish-mash.
The introduction of Cable brings one of Marvel’s biggest hits of the 90’s onto the big screen. Josh Brolin’s portrayal is all cigar-chomping badassery and comes off as a stark contrast to Deadpool’s sillyassery. It’s almost like two disparate films were spliced together for juxtapositional whiplash.
The film, unsurprisingly, sets up a franchise, X-Force, a less-serious version of the X-Men that will be gracing summer screens going forward. The breakout newcomer of this crew is Domino (Zazie Beetz), a woman who’s superpower is being lucky. While that sounds strange, it is fascinating to watch in action, especially during fight scenes.
Deadpool 2 is meta to the max. Fourth walls are broken, other franchises are constantly referenced, and even the act of making the movie makes its way into the movie. (“Big CGI fight coming up!”)
While none of that is a shock, there is one surprising element of this big-budget blockbuster. The sweetness of the relationship between Deadpool and Vanessa (Morena Baccarin) is developed beyond its kinky beginnings in the original. This is a true love story that feels like anything but a cheap tack-on.
The R-rated nature of Deadpool 2 might limit its potential audience, but those of age will have a swell time over its two hours. The jokes are often crude, with plenty of slapstick homoeroticism and butt humor, and more often than not, they land. Deadpool 2 is definitely going to scratch an itch.
