There’s no other way to say it, Deadpool & Wolverine is exactly what you’d expect from a team-up featuring the R-rated heroes in this new era for the MCU. It’s an excuse to get Ryan Reynolds’ and Hugh Jackman’s burgeoning bromance on the big screen for two hours and change. Go in expecting the usual tirade of dick jokes, excellent chemistry between the leads, and visually stunning choreography, and Deadpool & Wolverine won’t disappoint.
That’s not to say the film doesn’t have a personality beyond the usual Deadpool gimmicks we’ve become so familiar with in his last two solo outings. Mixed in with the self-deprecating commentary, are some real glimpses into our hero’s minds – one in particular – providing some much-needed gravity we weren’t expecting.
Unfortunately, the breakneck pace means those moments are few and far between… even for a Deadpool film.
Are we the baddies?
At its heart, Deadpool & Wolverine is still a Fox film, parading around in the dead skin of the ever-sinking MCU that Wade Wilson so badly wants to join to finally be considered one of the cool kids. Right from the word go, we’re introduced again to Deadpool and series-staples Negasonic Teenage Warhead, Colossus, and Blind Al, before he’s whisked away by the Time Variance Authority to join the ‘Sacred Timeline’. Meta much?
We learn, through some TVA shenanigans (we’d advise watching Loki first if you’re not sure what that’s all about) that Wade’s timeline is dying and that he’s being summoned to the coolest of universes. But first, Mr Paradox (Matthew Macfadyen) explains that Wade must leave his friends and universe behind before jumping ship.
And such is the film’s plot, set up in all of fifteen minutes, with Deadpool on a mission to save his world before it withers away entirely. This all serves to simply get us to the good stuff ASAP. You know exactly what we’re talking about.
How will this affect Logan’s legacy?
Wolverine is back, baby. But you already knew that. How he gets there – and how he ends up… where he does for most of the movie, we’ll leave you to discover for yourselves in theatres. The film’s plot, as it constantly reminds us through its tone and desire to have Deadpool and Wolverine swearing and sticking swords into each other, doesn’t really matter. It’s simply the medium necessary to get the ball rolling.
And that’s probably where we take most issue with Deadpool & Wolverine (aside from an egregiously middling performance from Macfadyen). The plot, which sees Deadpool and Wolverine taking on one Cassandra Nova, despite regularly painting the MCU as the true villain, feels thin and rushed all to give viewers more of what they came for – Wolverine, an endless stream of cameos, and even more inside jokes.
On the surface, it’s not all that big a deal. Deadpool has always been a fourth-wall-breaking character that would rather spend time on jokes and exquisite action sequences, but Deadpool & Wolverine is different. It emphasizes the jokes and cameos which are seemingly only there to say “Look! We’re swearing in a Disney film!” or “We own Fox now”. All that means is that even less time is spent on developing the leads – something the previous Deadpool films managed well enough, especially the first one.
The (very) few occasions where the movie takes a quiet moment for itself, is where it shines brightest. The writers – of which there are five, Reynolds included – heavily lean on Jackman to deliver a performance to truly sell the horrors of Logan’s past and his current state of mind. Cherish those moments. It won’t be long before the writers conjure up some new character to spend all of five minutes on before hopping to the next big set piece.
Immaculate vibes (and some pretty good acting too)
That’s not to say we didn’t at least enjoy ourselves through the two-hour runtime. We have our issues with the story and at times odd pacing, but it’s the charisma of Ryan Reynolds and the loveable yet stern face of Hugh Jackman that really carry this movie through to the end. We may not have laughed at each of Deadpool’s crude comments, but Reynold’s magnetic delivery and Jackman’s reactions continued to get chuckles out of us.
Reynolds has quite literally embodied the character ever since he got his first true crack at the character in 2016, and Jackman has been pulling off spectacular performances ever since the early days of the original X-Men films and ultimately, Logan. Don’t let Jackman’s 55 years of age convince you otherwise. He’s just as much Wolverine now as he was twenty years ago, even if a little more light-hearted, and for that we’re grateful.
As for the rest, The Crown’s Emma Corrin and Succession’s Matthew Macfadyen prominent among them, who fill the roles of Cassandra Nova and Mr Paradox respectively, are only given small moments to state their case. Here, Corrin manages to excel as an evil Charles Xavier doppelganger, despite suffering from the usual Marvel-y, MacGuffin-chasing, evil-for-the-sake-of-it writing that bogs her down during her brief screen time.
When the claws come out
Deadpool & Wolverine still manages to be a whole lot of fun. There’s no doubt about that. That all comes down to Shawn Levy’s distinct directing style that so perfectly suits someone like Ryan Reynolds, who appeared in both Free Guy and The Adam Project under Levy’s helm. From the over-the-top action sequences complete with Madonna singles and silly cameos, there’s always something to dig your claws into. Except the story, of course.
It’d be a crime if Levy didn’t at least include the almost obligatory Deadpool vs. Wolverine showdown, and he doesn’t disappoint. Letting two characters who simply cannot die go at it for a couple of minutes was never not going to work. It’s all elevated beyond the usual “Avengers Assemble” sequences to some excellent creative cinematography and more colour than we’ve become used to of late.
If you’ve done your homework, and not just on the MCU but the wider Marvel Universe (and even beyond that at times), you won’t miss out on the humour and callbacks in Deadpool & Wolverine. From age-old cameos that pay tribute to the Fox universe, to the plot essentially hinging on Loki’s TVA, it all feels designed to keep the audience focused on references, rather than the plot.
Deadpool & Wolverine verdict
Look, we desperately wanted to love Deadpool & Wolverine, and instead walked out of the theatre only liking it thanks to the enigmatic characters, superb action and hit-or-miss humour. Compare it to something like the poster child for Phase 5 – Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania – and you’ll have us praising Deadpool & Wolverine until the cows come home. But place it next to James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3…
Deadpool & Wolverine begins its local theatrical release this Friday, 26 July.
