Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, and Shawn Levy achieved the impossible with Deadpool & Wolverine. The hype and stakes couldn’t have been higher and the trio, along with the writers, exceeds every unthinkable expectation.
Deadpool & Wolverine is hitting theaters in the midst of Marvel’s desperate need for a course correction. Since Avengers: Endgame, with the exception of Spider-Man: No Way Home, the studio predominantly oversaturated it’s slate with less-than-desirable projects focusing on tertiary characters.
The MCU needed some big guns to right the ship with star power, flagship heroes, warm-hug nostalgia, and an epic edge-of-your-seat storyline. That’s exactly what Reynolds, Jackman, and co. delivered.
After the world met Hugh Jackman and fell in love with his portrayal of Wolverine nearly 25 years ago, fans have waited just as long to see him don a yellow suit. Many fans of both Wolverine and Deadpool have waited even longer for the pair to team-up onscreen together, and not in the preposterous mouth-sewn-shut way we saw in 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Toss in the close friendship Reynolds and Jackman developed since their original flick together for another element adding to the unrivaled anticipation for Deadpool & Wolverine.
From start to finish, the fourth wall isn’t broken, it’s obliterated. The Deadpool & Wolverine writing team consisting of Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick, Zeb Wells, Reynolds, and Levy, and presumably some Reynolds ad-libs, surpassed the humor in the previous Deadpool films and every MCU movie with innumerable laugh-out-loud lines and moments. Whether it was Disney and Fox’s business dealings or the actors in the films’ personal lives, nothing was off limits.
The movie was beautifully shot, which is to be expected with a Shawn Levy film, but perhaps not with an MCU project that heavily leans on humor and has a lot of gore. The first 35 minutes are action and cameo-packed but things slow down for a moment to introduce the villain, Cassandra Nova. Nova, played by The Crown’s Emma Corrin, is Professor X’s twin sister. Nova picks up steam as a worthy villain as the movie plays out.
Reynolds is perfect. His comedic chops and ability to execute the action and fight sequences, which were also superior to the other Deadpool and MCU films, was uncanny. His incorporation of vaudeville and clown theatrics to his performance is the cherry on top for his portrayal.
Jackman gets his flowers for being the only Wolverine we’ve wanted to see for the past 25 years. His patented Logan level fitness somehow looked in peak form for the 55-year-old Aussie actor. No wonder Reynolds told Jackman how much Hugh intimidated him while he was in character during the fight scenes in the pals’ interview for People.
Jackman’s unwavering commitment to the character gave us the best Logan yet in this project. The visceral heartbreak and savage nature of the character was palpable at all the big moments.
In addition to Jackman, as a whole, the Fox Marvel Cinematic Universe also gets the love it deserves, and in surprising fashion. The jokes are on-point and well-deserved, but the tributes are touching for the studio projects that paved the way.
The cameos. My god, the cameos. Some shocking appearances are merely fist-pumping, “wow” moments, others are more meaningful. Some surprise stars are around for much longer than you’d imagine, and it counts.
The film wasn’t perfect. Pumping the breaks to intro Nova may have cooled things off a bit temporarily. Wolverine’s exposition wasn’t especially strong, and although hilarious, the post-credits scene doesn’t tout a big cameo, nor does it set the table for things to come.
Even with those imperfections, Deadpool & Wolverine serves as Marvel’s biggest triumph. Above all, it rights the wrongs since Endgame with jokes and story, possessing next-level humor, giving us unbelievable action and fight scenes, and for giving us these two together the right way.
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