Movie Review: ‘Deadpool’

Valentine’s Day is a time for tenderness and love, when couples often go to the movies to enjoy a cheesy rom-com and make out in the dark.

Despite its ironic advertisement campaign, “Deadpool” is not conducive to this.

Marvel’s newest movie opened this weekend, broke box office records, received a ringing endorsement from actress Betty White and got certified fresh on the popular film review site Rotten Tomatoes. It’s a violent, profane romp infused with pop culture Easter eggs that lives up to its considerable hype.

“Deadpool” tells the origin story of Special Forces agent Wade Wilson, turned mercenary, turned super-powered antihero. After undergoing experimental procedures in an attempt to cure himself of cancer, Wade uses his fighting skills and newfound powers to take revenge on some “bad guys” and save his girlfriend.

Well aware of its comedic, adult focus, the film supplies a continuous stream of laughs. Opening credits are never fun, but director Tim Miller uses them as a parody, introducing the main actor as “God’s perfect idiot” rather than Ryan Reynolds. From there, the film delivers penis jokes and pop culture galore, including multiple references to Reynolds’ previous role in the “Green Lantern” film.

One of Deadpool’s defining characteristics is his meta-awareness; his knowledge that he is a fictional character causes him to constantly break the fourth wall. Reynolds does this satisfyingly, engaging the audience and almost blurring the line between the real world and his. At one point, Deadpool even turns the camera away to spare the audience’s eyes from a particularly brutal killing. Unless you count the narration, Deadpool doesn’t directly talk to the audience that frequently, but when he does, the dialogue is hilarious, making me wish he had done it more often.

“Deadpool” is the second time the character has appeared in a movie, the first being in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine.” After the first disappointing portrayal, Reynolds wanted to do right by the character and his dedication shows. His voice is saturated in sarcasm as he delivers his cheeky one-liners and flings vulgar insults with abandon. The audience can feel just how excited Reynolds is to put on the red spandex and a childlike exuberance carries throughout the movie.

While Reynolds nailed the antihero’s persona, the film’s villains suffered from a disappointing blandness. Angel Dust (Gina Carano) serves as the evil henchwoman with super strength to Ed Skrein’s lead baddie Ajax, who is infused with a sinister charisma. But neither Angel Dust nor Ajax is given much backstory or motivation. The only definition the villains get is that they’re evil and they want to make an army of super-powered slaves they can sell on the black market. While the film understandably focuses on its title character, a little more development of the antagonists would have made it even more satisfying to see Deadpool violently muck up their plans.

While the film clearly advertised its adult content, I was not expecting how graphic it would be. Early in the film’s first act we are treated to a holiday-themed sex montage and a naked fight scene. The gore and gross-out scenes are over the top and very in-your-face, at once off-putting and engrossing. The high saturation of innuendo and adult humor makes it very clearly an R rated movie. This is not a film to take children to, unless you’re comfortable showing them what the inside of a strip club looks like. Just don’t do it.

The film shines brightest during its action sequences, which are spectacularly bloody and over the top. Nothing is held back as Deadpool indiscriminately beheads and dismembers henchmen left and right. The fights are fluidly choreographed and visually stunning, fast-paced with a little slow motion thrown in for emphasis. Unfortunately, most of the film’s main fights were showcased in the trailer, which detracted from the excitement, but it was still dazzling on a big screen.

There is never a dull moment in “Deadpool” and the film moves at such a breakneck pace that if you blink, you’ll miss the whole thing. Ryan Reynolds and director Tim Miller have successfully redeemed the character and created a raunchy, self-indulgent monster of a film that redefines the potential of superhero flicks.

– Matthew Fernandez