Entertaining and Funny, but Not Perfect.

Rating: 7/10 (17 February 2016)

One of the best aspects of the movie is how it is able to poke fun at the tropes and stereotypes of current superhero movies, while still being an incredibly enjoyable superhero movie. It is delightfully self aware, and packs in more laughs per minute than most comedies.
It is also refreshing to have a superhero movie focus on a morally grey antihero who puts his wants and needs above the greater good, or what is morally right, and have the audience still be able to relate to his motivations.
That being said, it is far from a perfect movie. While it makes some great decisions, such as making it a "Hard R", and telling the story in a non-linear fashion, there are definitely some flaws that take away from the uniqueness of the film, listed below.
1. Despite the unique concepts, and the satire of superhero movies, the film still suffers from the flaws of many comic book movies, such as:
a) An uninteresting, one dimensional villain. Very generic, bland motivations. He is just evil, and not really much else.
b) A cookie cutter plot. While the non-linear narrative compensates for this, it is still a very traditional super hero origin movie (Guy gets superpowers, girl gets kidnapped, guy saves girl). While it is told in a unique fashion that keeps the attention and interest of the viewer, when reflecting back after the movie, you realize that not a whole lot happened. This relates to the second flaw, namely:
2. The film is not as re-watchable as most superhero movies. The trailers spoil many of the best jokes of the film, and the first 10 or so minutes of the film are essentially just an extended version of one of the trailers. Many of the jokes hit as hard as they do on the first viewing because they are unique and unexpected for the genre, but after the shock wears off, they don't hold up quite as much upon repeated viewings.
All of that being said though, those are a couple of gripes that are essentially unrelated to the first viewing of the movie. The first time watching the movie these flaws are noticeable, but you don't care about them because of just how funny and unique the film is. While it is not a perfect film, it is a very important film, as it is a breath of fresh air for the superhero genre, and shows the viability of R-rated superhero movies, or R-rated blockbusters in general.
This film is a must see for anyone of the appropriate age with even a passing interest in comedies, action movies, or superhero movies.