Deadpool

You can tell a lot about the tone of a film by the intro montage. And the music. When the opening credits use terms such as "the Hot Chick" and "British Villain" instead of names, you know you're in for an experience where the filmmakers have absolutely no illusions about their own self-importance. Especially when it is directed by "Overpaid douche bag" or something of that nature. Juice Newton's "Angel of the Morning" kicks us off with a pretty impressive stop-motion CGI, taking us through a car wreck with some sprinkles of pop culture homage (Ryan Reynolds' Sexiest Man Alive on People Magazine). We know right away that the film is going to be tongue-in-cheek with gratuitous language, violence, and humor. Okay, some of the humor isn't too gratuitous.

The Marvel universe is expanding faster than... well, the Universe? The addition of a new franchise to the X-Men side of the company (and it will be a franchise after making somewhere in the $250 million ballpark in its first weekend) increases the potential for an even larger collision than the Infinity War. This new brand of superhero (or anti-hero) opens a whole new market. R-rated, no-holds-barred violence and action. Sure, Deadpool used his trademark wisecracks to soften the feel, but the adult demographic targeting heroes and villains are coming, and they are coming soon. Captain America: Civil War threatens to be darker than the previous, as does X-Men: Apocalypse. Rumors cropped up this morning that the next (and last Jackman vehicle) Wolverine will have an R rating, which means his demise is not just inevitable, it's almost certain that he will be the first major superhero killed on screen (I did say major). DC Comics follow suit with Suicide Squad, which promises its own brand of darkness and just might spawn a new direction for the WB comics who have been playing pretty close to the Batman and Superman franchises for the past 25 years. Bravo for trying something new. I think it will pay off.

I digress. Back to Deadpool. Aside from Juice Newton, we get tastes of Wham!, Chicago, and Salt n' Peppa. Great musical accompaniment to what is to superheroes what gore porn was to the horror genre. Deadpool was born Wade Wilson. He's a potty-mouthed ex-special forces mercenary who trades cancer for mutant healing abilities in order to be with the one he loves. Played by Ryan Reynolds, he is revising (not reprising) his role in the abomination that was X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009). Duped into a sideshow medical experiment, he is now hunting the man who tricked him whilst figuring out how to get back into his lady's life, sans pretty face.

That pretty much sums up the film, although there are two lesser known X-Men (Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead) thrown in as the connective tissue to the franchise, so we are constantly reminded how badly they want him to be one of the good guys and play in their back yard. It's all in good fun as it's really about the slicing and dicing, and the non-stop vulgarities spewing out of Wade's mouth (behind the mask).

The film is directed by Tim Miller. An odd choice as you're probably saying, "Who?" I know, me too. Tim Miller is an Academy Award nominated short film director, and Deadpool is his first full length feature. Marvel has really been branching out with their directorial choices, and I commend them for sending out tendrils in all directions, capturing veterans and novices, broadening their reach into the industry as a whole. He takes a new approach (besides the R rating and humor) by breaking the fourth wall. Quite often in fact. Deadpool frequently speaks to the audience, which again, softens the tone and mood. TJ Miller as the comedic bartender BFF adds unnecessary comic relief

Ryan Reynolds must have had fun with this. He had been pining for this role and project for years, and was one of the major reasons it got green-lit in the first place. His performance in the Green Lantern back in 2011 was basically this character, censored and in a green suit. Deadpool doesn't have a filter. He doesn't need range to play Wade, as all of the fight scenes could truly be anyone under the red mask, and it's so chock full of CGI that it's entirely possible that he didn't have to do anything physical. Not a bad gig if you can get it.

The bad guy, Francis/Ajax is played by Brit Ed Skrein. He was in the last Transporter movie and had a stint on Game of Thrones. Not a bad job, but I was kind of hoping for a better villain. I don't follow the comics, but I know Deadpool has been around and partaken in some epic fights. That would have been nice, but maybe they're saving the real action for the sequel. Don't second guess Marvel. Writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick (Zombieland, GI Joe 2) shoot par for the course, but clearly had some fun with the insults and dialogue. Who wouldn't? Notably uncomfortable is a sequence where Wade has met the love of his life, and they are one-upping each other, bantering about how bad their childhoods were and who was subjected to more sheer disgust. It's the one scene I wished would have just gone on and on despite its devolving content. For a film like this, there is no line to cross; just making it crosses the line in many ways. They could have benefited from some stronger commitment to the inappropriateness that made this clever and original.

I liked Deadpool for its creativity and brazen approach to the genre. Reynolds has been better, but what do you expect from Ryan Reynolds? I mean seriously. Abs and jokes. Well, you get it here. I expect to see more of him in the coming years especially as the pool of characters gets deeper and more intertwined (Infinity War will be epic to say the least). See Deadpool if you like superheroes, just remember that it is rated R. 7/10.