Directed by Tim Miller
Starring Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarain, and Ed Skrein
Like most of the general film-going population, I know that X-Men Origins: Wolverine was not a good movie. Back in 2009 though, I was not as Marvel savvy as I am now, and that was my first taste of the character of Deadpool. As time went on, I learned that iteration of the character was not the Deadpool fans know, love, and wanted to see. The more I learned about the character, the more I saw the idea of film adaptation really working. My reservations towards Ryan Reynolds notwithstanding of course, and the fact that Fox was refusing to green light production.
Then in August 2014 someone leaked the test footage, and I went, "Yes. I like that. Give me more of that!" Fox gave into the fans and a year or so later, after some really stellar trailers and one of the best marketing campaigns for a film I've ever seen, Deadpool is now in theaters. Folks, I can confidently say this is probably the best Marvel movie that-wasn't-made-by-Marvel yet.
Just as mercenary Wade Wilson (Reynolds) prepares to take the next step with his girlfriend Vanessa (Baccarain), he is diagnosed with terminal cancer. Shortly after that, he is offered a chance to be a part of a shady but experimental program that could cure him. Wilson agrees after some hesitation, only to find the program is not what it seems. He is injected with a serum and put through a series of excrutiating tests to trigger his mutant genes. He soon develops the ability to heal from everything ("They didn't just give me the cure to el cancer. They give me the cure to el everything!") but his body is also left horribly scarred.
After escaping a fierce confrontation at the program headquarters, Wilson dons his infamous red suit and sets out for revenge against the program director Francis/Ajax (Skerin), despite the interjection of two X-Men, Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Stefan Kapicic and Brianna Hidlebrand).
What sounds like a fairly simple origin story is brought to a whole new level with heaping amounts of crude, laugh-out-loud humor and non-stop action. The filmmakers were really given the chance to make a proper adaptation of Deadpool, packed with pop-culture references and fourth-wall breaking. There is real heart to this film too. The relationship between Wade and Vanessa is at its core, and makes it more than just a raunchy superhero comedy.
I've said before that Ryan Reynolds can be a great actor but he wastes his time making the wrong films. I'm not saying that right now. He was born to play Deadpool, and naturally, is the highlight of the film. Everything he says, everything he does, is pure gold. Morena Baccarain brings a lot of spice to the role of Vanessa, a role that could very well have been just a bland love interest, if not for the combination of her and the screenwriter's talents. She's given plenty of jokes to crack as well, and has great chemistry with Reynolds. Skerin is perfectly despicable as Francis/Ajax. Kapicic and Hidelbrand are given some juicy material in their X-Men supporting roles, while never overshadowing our hero, and finally TJ Miller gets some laugh's as Wade's buddy Weasel.
If I did have to pick one flaw with the film, it would be that some of the origin story flashbacks tend to be a little slow, as is expected with most of these superhero films. Thankfully, this problem is minuscule compared to the rest of this awesome film.
Deadpool has definitely met expectations after all the years of anticipation and hype. In a world where the films of the Marvel Cinematic Universe stand tall and proud, this outside-the-house production leaves a real lasting mark on the superhero genre. A truly faithful adaptation, and a real work of passion by its creative team, I feel as though we already have one of the best films of the 2016. I know it's only February! How crazy is that??
Oh yeah, and I'm still going to do a Top Films of 2015. Still got some more to see….Oh and just so we're clear they're my top films of 2015….Mine. Not yours…
...chikka chikkahhh.
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