Deadpool 2 at its core is fun and more action packed than ever before; Ryan Reynolds returns to embody the role of the Merc with the Mouth in the follow-up sequel to the 2016 film. But does it provide a story that walks hand in hand with its slapstick comedy?
As mentioned, the Deadpool films are hardcore comedies at heart, more-so than almost any superhero film I’ve seen to date. Ryan Reynolds grasp on the character feels natural and he’s more comfortable than ever squeezing into that suit as Deadpool. With the Deadpool films it’s hard to tell just how much was improvised from Reynolds and how much was written, but the wild humour certainly feels more written. Josh Brolin as Cable was a near great casting choice – his older and more worn personality felt like an appropriate representation of the battle torn cyborg from the future. However actor Julian Dennison had trouble delivering a convincing performance as the confused young mutant and showed that he is still a bit too inexperienced to handle a role as emotional as this.
Naturally not every joke hits but with a character like Deadpool (where every other sentence is a reference or crude joke) it would be nigh impossible for more than a few not to land. Humour is one of Deadpool’s entire source of originality (save his fourth wall breaking nature); naturally almost every spare moment had a joke or reference to the point in which a lot of interesting dialogue to develop the supporting cast felt missed. What was nice however was that it makes a concerted effort at trying to find some emotional strings to veer to, though this emotion never quite takes itself to the next level. This sequel takes a hand at looking under the mask of Deadpool, more specifically at Wade Wilson’s human core – the mistakes, regrets, and to some degree his own self hatred, this microscope is almost entirely focused on Wade. Whether you believe that Deadpool should be humanised or left more as a walking talking pisstake of the superhero genre is debatable. The emotion that is explored, while admirable, simply isn’t enough to distract from the bland story provided.
‘Deadpool2 takes advantage of its budget increase and doubles down on those delicious special effects – more specifically the action sequences, and while the overall visual quality of CGI character’s is okay. It shines when the fights break out with its clean stunts and sleek shots. Costume design is strong as usual as is the impeccable makeup for Wade’s face. I have mixed feelings on the music used, it could never quite tell what it wanted to be and while this does offer a degree of surprise for each passing song, the lack of solid theme felt unfocused.
Deadpool 2 is fun and exciting, though it faces some hurdles with all the competition out there, director David Leitch does his job but hasn’t taken audiences to a level that spells “now THAT was a sequel“. Deadpool 2 may not exceed its first film in story quality, but it maintains the character’s identity at all costs and stashes just as much crude humour and pop culture references as its predecessor – and maybe that’s all someone would want out of it. But for me, while no doubt funny and entertaining, the ripeness of its humour has difficulty providing the same juicy kick as it once did.
6.4/10
