Dead pool: A Review (Spoiler-Free!)

Deadpool is a comic book movie made by comic book fans for comic book fans. It’s probably the purest comic book film in that it retains what made it popular among fans and doesn’t "soften" the character as he transitions from page to screen. In other words Wade Wilson is as rude, crude and irreverent in the film as he is in the comic.

But none of this would work if the film didn’t have a beating heart because if you don’t care about the characters then the film devolves into Deadpool breaking the fourth wall with his smart ass remarks. (Which, truthfully, I was worried it would become, because let’s face it this is a Fox film and Fox doesn’t have the greatest track record when it comes to its comic book properties.)

Fortunately, Fox left Deadpool alone to do its own thing – perhaps because its a fairly low budget, in terms of superhero films, or because of another R rated comic book property – Kinsgman – that went on to earn a lot of filthy moola at the box office. And, more importantly, Deadpool has characters you root for. Wilson is, under all that snark and sarcasm, a hero. Even if he will never admit it. Reynolds and Baccarin have real chemistry together and when Wilson makes the choices he makes you believe his love for Vanessa is what propels him forward.

Perhaps the most pleasant surprise comes in the hulking form of Colossus. It’s amazing just how far CGI characters have come because Colossus isn’t treated like a joke. He, like Cap, is the purest form of hero. (And in the big guy we have a character who is more of a square than Cap. Colossus isn’t just a square, he’s a cube.) The relationship between Colossus and Deadpool is like that of older brother trying to guide his rebellious little brother onto the right path.

As for Wilson and Weasel, I would watch two hours of Reynolds and Miller trading insults.

Finally, there is the matter of villains which is an area Marvel has had its share of problems. While Ajax and his lieutenant Angel Dust aren’t top tier villains they aren’t bottom shelf ones either. Skrein makes his Ajax a sadistic SOB who you want to see get it in the neck and Carano, while she doesn’t have much dialogue, makes her actions speak loudly.

Bottom line, Deadpool is a lot of fun and mostly gets everything right. Hopefully, it will pave the way to more well done R Rated superhero films.

P.S. There is a post credit stinger so stick around for that.