Deadpool & Wolverine is empty, delightfully dumb trash. That’s exactly what it wanted to be.
Deadpool & Wolverine. // Courtesy Walt Disney
The first two entries in the Deadpool franchise were among my favorite releases of 2016/2018 respectively. They were laugh out loud funny, moved a mile-a-minute, and offered a fourth wall breaking, madcap rampage amid the height of “they’re taking this all too seriously” comic book films. Each of these presented a breath of fresh air in an overrun genre—sharing a unique voice that even the film’s haters would have to admit presented an individual, undeniably singular bit of nonsense that treated nothing as too precious to shit on. That a third entry would allow that most holy of cinematic superheroes—Hugh Jackman as Wolverine—to have the piss taken out of him… well, how could you fail to deliver on the joy of that?
It gives me no pleasure to report you can, in fact, fail to deliver on the joy of that. Deadpool & Wolverine is a fine piece of fanfic that never really lands its jokes and seems almost uncertain of what it wants to be. That’s difficult to stomach because, well, no film has ever had such a clear map for exactly what it should be and exactly what an audience should expect for it. It’s truly a puzzle for the ages of where in the production process this went off the mark.
In the six years since Deadpool 2, the Disney/Marvel empire acquired the remaining IPs under 20th Century Fox, opening the floodgates for whatever cross-dimensional narrative asides the industry might wish to dabble in. Does it matter that Wolverine has had more than one tremendous cinematic send-off, including the wildly acclaimed Logan? Nope. We can keep reheating this—dragging Hugh Jackman back to set. And dragging Hugh Jackman back to set is excellent business! Over the weekend, D&W broke all the records for R-rated comedy opening box office numbers, domestic and international. It single-handedly seems to have beaten back the idea of comic book movie fatigue—in the same week that Robert Downey Jr.’s return to the Marvel Universe was also announced.
The money machine goes brr! and honestly, it’s good for everyone involved who’s getting a fat paycheck. But for audiences, will this be remembered as something worth their time?
In the latest outing for the red, chimichangas-chugging hitman Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) he has given up on life, after being rejected as an Avenger, and is working as a used car salesman. His girlfriend, Vanessa (Morena Baccarin) left him for being such a sad sack. During his birthday party, he is captured by the Time Variance Authority from Loki. [If you haven’t seen Loki, you’ll be fine.] Brought to their headquarters in another universe, Deadpool meets Mr. Paradox (Matthew Macfadyen). Paradox explains that Wade’s timeline is deteriorating because the death of Wolverine has destabilized existence itself. Deadpool travels time and space to find an alternate universe’s Logan to join him in a series of high-stakes hi-jinks—including an unending action setpiece built around a Honda Odyssey.
Look, I didn’t come to the film for the plot. I’m sure no one else did either. It’s fun to see Wolverine wear the silly yellow suit and for Ryan Reynolds to say raunchy asides and quip unceasingly while chewing the scenery. That they bothered to smother it under this much narrative is certainly a strike against the whole experience.
Deadpool & Wolverine. // Courtesy Walt Disney
So what did they actually do with these two hours and seven minutes? Well, it makes continued use of the fact this was simply the role Reynolds was born to play. Seeing him up on the screen in this role always feels like a gift, perhaps from a better universe or a better timeline where more of his feature film work lives up to the quality and joy of what he brings to this series. There’s also an unending series of cameos and enough random references to fill a Dennis Miller comedy special; if you want an ADHD set of synapses firing, this is the film for you.
The action on the screen remains fine. Shawn Levy is no James Cameron, and he continues to turn in perfectly servicable blockbusters. Unfortunately, there’s simply too much blockbuster here. The bloated runtime means that you’re still watching this flick long after the charm and novelty has worn off. For a film built entirely on novelty, that’s a painful drag at the end. Deadpool & Wolverine ends up being a pile of pithy content. No one expected high art here, but for a series whose creative leads had proven they knew how to nail a formula, this is a regrettable misfire.
