Deadpool 2 (movie review)

"This may be one of those rare occasions where the sequel is as good as the first"

[Warning: This post contains major spoilers for Deadpool 2.]

For those who never watched the first instalment of this Marvel "juggernaut", where have you been the last 2 years? I was tempted to watch it again before going to the cinema but didn't get around to it. The fantastic thing is, to enjoy Deadpool 2; you don't need to be up-to-date with the ever changing Marvel universe. This movie is a standalone extravaganza of comedy, violence, parodies from other movies (just wait for the Basic Instinct moment, it will be seared into your frontal lobe for ever) and more comedy. Grannypool (Leslie Uggams), aka Blind Al makes a return and is also hilarious.

So the basic story goes like this, Deadpool is ridding the World of evil, one gang at a time. The first part of the movie shows in graphic detail these bloody and gruesome fight scenes. Yes, this movie is a 16's cert and should be. I've blogged before how I hate movies being disneyfied and sanitised whilst reviewing Logan (HERE ) so to see the story as it should be is fantastic. When he goes too far whilst on a training mission with the X-Men (headed up by Colossus) he ends up being jailed with a fire wielding kid called Russell, aka Firefist played by Julian Dennison. 

Drum roll...Josh Brolin arrives. Not playing Thanos, but instead Cable, who has come back in time to kill Firefist before he starts down the road of killing and mayhem, eventually making charred remains of Cable's wife and daughter. X-force is created to stop Cable but by the end of the movie there is an uneasy alliance between them to try and peacefully stop Firefist who has teamed up with The Juggernaut. I was a bit disappointed that Juggernaut wasn't played by Vinnie Jones; the new Juggernaut was mostly CGI with a face capture and voice done by Ryan Reynolds himself. 

So, let’s get down to the nitty-gritty. The story is great and Marvel has introduced just enough characters, but unlike Avengers Infinity Wars they haven't gone mad altogether, keeping the storyline condensed with a good, albeit, and slightly predictable ending. Don't forget to watch the mid-credits extras. These are brilliant. There is no credit at the end but rumours suggest it was Deadpool killing baby Hitler by stealing Cable's time travelling device. 

The special effects, fight scenes and general mayhem are brilliant. Our expectations are really high these days and Marvel, yet again, out performs DC in producing a seamless masterpiece. AND the soundtrack, it's just amazing. Songs like Celine Dion's "Ashes", Dolly Parton's "9 to 5," and even "Tomorrow" from Annie accompany some of the movie's most violent scenes, making for a delightfully weird playlist. Weird yes, perfect also yes. Much has already been written about the soundtrack so I'm not going to repeat, find the whole playlist HERE.  

My favourite characters are Deadpool (obvs), Domino & Cable.  

Ryan Reynolds just loves playing the role of Deadpool. I can only imagine what the set is like; when actors and directors clearly love what they are creating it shows through. The offhand violence, adult humour and general capers are a perfect balance with the trailers for the movie not over selling the production. So many times you see a trailer & then when actually see the movie the only good parts were actually in the trailer. So hate when that happens. Some people might be fed-up of Deadpool's advertising antics but I just love them.

Zazie Beetz playing the role of Domino is fabulous. Another example of Marvel far out doing DC in providing us with an amazingly strong and sexy female character. Her superpower, simply put, she is really lucky. I loved the scene where the prison truck is being destroyed and she lands on the giant inflatable. Her scenes help the comedy element of the movie flow without having to rely only on Reynolds.

Josh Brolin plays Cable, the time travelling, crazy weapon wielding superhero. His fight scenes are superb (no pun intended) and the interaction between himself and Reynolds is also brilliant. Both characters, (Deadpool & Cable) are the anti-heroes of the Marvel universe, breaking all the rules of the X-men, which unfortunately mean they will never be full members of the Marvel Universe (or what is left after Infinity Wars). But, ironically the violence and immoral attitude of both is part of what elevates this movie above most of the other superhero offerings of the last decade. 

Another example of Marvel far out doing DC is the introduction of Marvel’s first onscreen lesbian couple. In fact, it is...

The first ever same-sex relationship in a superhero movie.

Now before you get your knickers in a knot, don't go bitching about my love of seeing LGBT characters in mainstream movies and stand-alone movies. As Jim Parson's says "“Let me get sick of too many gay romcoms thank you very much. Bring it on and we will see.” (See his interview HERE)

We see mutants Negasonic Teenage Warhead and Yukio, played by Brianna Hildebrand and Shioli Kutsuna respectively, whilst the pair don’t have a great deal of screen time, they are seen holding hands; and Yukio is outright referred to as Warhead’s girlfriend.

From the very first X-Men iteration in 2000 (Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellan), the X-Men movies have always been a commentary on the discrimination the LGBT community endures. "Straights" and "Gays" in the X-Men universe are translated into the "normal" versus the "mutants". Professor X's peaceful approach versus Magneto's militant approach brings to mind the struggle for LGBT equality all around the World. And then "heaven forbid" a cure for all mutants is found. Hell ya, let's just pray that GAY away. Halleluiah.

Anyway, to get down to a rating. This one is easy. This may be one of those rare occasions where the sequel is as good as the first. Special effects are awesome. The story is brilliant. The characters and actors are sublime. The comedy (Basic Instinct scene alone) is unforgettable. A ten out of 10 planets for me ALL DAY LONG.

John "The Captain" Ryan.

Check out this blog review by another Wexworlds Team member Billie Jean HERE