Buckle up boys and girls, this ain’t no #@&$%! Disney film.
The year is 2009. The movie is X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Fan favorite character Deadpool is set to make an appearance, played by the talented Ryan Reynolds. Much to the chagrin of the audience who knew better, however, the studio totally #@&$%! up the unorthodox anti-hero. It’s not really worth getting into details, but it should be enough to say that a character who is known for being foul mouthed wisecracking #@&$%! is presented as a mute mind controlled Frankenstein creation whose mouth has been sewn shut. People were #@&$%! pissed, including Reynolds who was a fan of the original character.
Fast forward seven years later. Somehow, this movie has been made, and made right. A hard R rated comic book movie that subverts the very franchise it is a part of and goes against the lucrative trend of family friendly superhero fare. Fox has taken a calculated risk here, and it looks like it’s going to pay off. With #@&$%! Ryan Reynolds not only reprising the #@&$%! out of this very different version of “The Merc with the Mouth,” but #@&$%! producing as well, Deadpool is about to crash the #@&$%! out of your local movie theater.
Wade Wilson (Reynolds) is an ex-special forces guy with a wickedly cynical sense of humor and a fairly loose moral code. He fills his time with doing bad things to #@&$%! who are worse than he is. There’s not much else occupying his life until he stumbles across (and by that I mean #@&$%! #@&$%! #@&$%! #@&$%!#@&$%!) Vanessa (Morena Baccarin) and trips into love. #@&$%! hard. Ah, but then life goes to #@&$%! for poor Wade who finds himself stricken with cancer in pretty much every #@&$%! part of his body.
A desperate decision or two later, Wade is alive, and pretty much immortal with mutant powers, but more #@&$%! up than any human should be. Taking on the alter ego of “Deadpool” he’s out for the blood of the #@&$%! #@&$%! (Ed Skrein) who made him into the monster he sees in the mirror.
If you’re still reading this and haven’t gotten the #@&$%! clue that this is not a movie for children despite the Marvel affiliation, Deadpool would have a few choice words for your dense skull. And he might just separate that skull from the rest of your #@&$%! body if you look at him wrong. Gore galore, creatively colorful language constantly, and graphic sex/nudity pervade this comic book flick for adults. Subersive and dirty don’t even begin to describe this #@&$%! of depraved #@&$%!. And, surprisingly, it’s wonderful.
Absolutely hilarious, the film is completely self aware. Not only of itself, as the titular (heh heh) character often breaks the fourth (and sixteenth?) wall to address the audience, but the X-men franchise it is loosely part of, and the comic book/super hero film genre in general. It’s cleverly offensive in a way that manages to not feel in poor taste. Vacation, for example, felt far more offensive to me despite not being as “bad.” This has it’s own distinct flavor, and it’s pretty #@&$%! tasty. The jokes fly at frantically breakneck pace and a second viewing is pretty much mandatory to catch them all. The action, also, is kinetic and packs a real #@&$%! punch.
It’s not all dirty jokes and splattered brains though. There is a real poignancy to Wade’s plight and life, and the movie has honest to goodness #@&$%! #@&$%! heart. It’s also not just one big joke – some parts of this movie are truly brutal and almost difficult to watch – it’s no wonder he turns into the person he is. And that’s a big part of what makes this really work. In the same way that I have heard those in the profession call Scrubs the most realistic hospital show, this, despite not being “gritty” or “grounded,” feels like one of the most realistic depictions of what would happen in the real world should people find themselves with mutant superpowers and #@&$%! happens. The dirty jokes and offensive attitude, while already part of who Wade was, become a coping mechanism and reaction to a really #@&$%! up reality, shaping him into the red suited scumbag we can’t help but root for.
This film spins comic book movies on their head in a nearly perfect manner. This movie knows exactly what it wants to be and it is 99% perfect at being that. My one complaint is that the inclusion of a couple of X-Men characters feels a bit shoehorned in, forcing Deadpool into the already established movie canon Fox has created (though even that is delightfully made fun of). It feels a little #@&$%! forced and I think Deadpool would have been better left to run completely solo, at least for this first outing. Speaking of first outings, if I may digress for a moment, this movie drops us right in the middle of the action, while still being an origin story, and doesn’t feel annoying. That is a #@&$%! accomplishment right there. #@&$%!.
Unsure if you should see this movie? Here’s a #@&$%! litmus test – would you want to see one of the best made superhero movies if the first line of dialogue involves discussing ball fondling of someone who’s name rhymes with pulverine? And are you at least old enough to vote? There’s your #@&$%! answer.
P.S. Stay to the bitter end for an added treat.
Mrs. Hamster did not screen this film
My rating: Four out of five hats
Trailer:
Deadpool impales 3,558 #@&$%! theaters, including IMAX, February 12
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