Summer fun in February!

Rating: 9/10 (17 February 2016)

Hooo boy! The year has barely started and already we have shots fired. In the battle to earn your comic book movie love (And dollars) Marvel has come charging out of the gate. After a dearth of comic book films last year Deadpool comes out swinging giving us a reason to love the summer again and it ain't even March. The film begins with an ambitious opening scene, the credits of which, perfectly set the tone of the movie from the get-go: funny, irreverent and self-aware. Marvel appears to have adopted a doctrine of making their films be entertaining (Imagine that!) above any other concerns and Deadpool seems to be a culmination of that philosophy. It is a testament to the skill and commitment of Marvel and the makers that they can get so much mileage out of one second tier character, and half the budget, than other companies can with four first rate ones, fantastic or otherwise. (Way to redeem yourself 20th Century Fox!) Not bad for a character that was a created as a joke. (For the non-initiated, Deadpool started life as a blatant clone of Deathstroke, a character from DC Comics, Marvel's main competitor.)
In all this the film is aided in great part by a crackling script that never lets up. Whereas too many action movies treat the scenes between set pieces as filler packed with exposition and the occasional comic relief, Deadpool deftly weaves between wise- cracking slapstick, violent acrobatics and scenes of serious peril with effortless ease. The result of all of this is a movie that is engaging throughout whether featuring profane, brilliant banter or graphical, bloody shootouts. For the film wears that R rating proudly with enough sex and violent to make Paul Verhoeven get all misty-eyed. It is not surprise there is already a sequel in the works.
Another revelation here is Reynolds himself who in Deadpool seems to have found his Iron Man, a character so indelibly linked to the actor that plays him that you cannot imagine anyone else playing him. And his work here acts as vindication of that whole Wolverine debacle which we won't mention ever again. But the secret ingredient in the Deadpool stew is geek heroine Morena Baccarin, who, besides being cute as a button brings the acting chops honed in fan favorites like Gotham and Firefly or even as the darnest adorable reptilian alien ever in the short-lived "V" reboot. Baccarin has the perfect easy-going confidence to match Reynold's sardonic bravado and their superb and convincing on-screen chemistry provides the impetus for Deadpool's heroic arc.
For despite all the foul language, gore and masturbation jokes, this is a story that is surprisingly tender. It turns out it wasn't just a marketing gimmick and, Deadpool, really is a love story. To be sure, one with more severed body parts than your average love yarn but a love story nonetheless. Starting a new franchise is always risky and studios hate taking risks. Whatever your stance on comic books is, the fact remains this movie should not have been this good. The writers and director have shown what can be achieved with bold writing and an unapologetic attitude, and, more importantly, that comic book movies need not be made for kids to be enjoyable or, indeed, successful. Here's to hoping that trend will continue. Hopefully Hollywood will take notice.
Parent's Brief
Rated: R Running Time: 108 minutes On Sex and Violence: Plenty of both. There is graphic violence of the gratuitous kind. People get shot in all kinds of places and I mean their bodies not exotic locations. Limbs get bloodily cut off. A lot of foul language which I don't mind but I'm not here to judge. Deadpool and his love interest get into some vigorous love making and elsewhere there is some brief frontal nudity. Boobies. Boobies are shown. So yeah. Don't take the kids.