If there is an institution whose name evokes saturation among film (and now television) viewers, then it is Marvel Comics. Its comics, most often tied into a self-contained universe that allows for countless crossovers of popular heroes, have served as a template not just for one, but even two rather successful film franchises that bring in a fortune for the parent studios, and, most tragically of all, eliminate the need for any particular creativity on the part of filmmakers. This means that all these films and superheroes will eventually start to resemble one another and mean nothing beyond the most die-hard fans or the children whom parents drag to multiplexes to watch CGI explosions and men in bizarre costumes for just under three hours. Conversely, this also means that any film from this franchise that deviates even slightly from this formula will be something truly special—either a financial cataclysm after which established critics and Hollywood watchers will ask, “What were the studio bosses smoking in the office before they gave the green light?” or, far more rarely, something that resonates so strongly with an audience hungry for change that it generates enthusiasm the film might objectively not deserve. Deadpool, which appeared in cinemas in the first half of 2016 and became one of the biggest sleeper hits in recent times, falls into the latter category.
The film belongs to the X-Men, the second Marvel franchise, based on a series of comics about superhuman mutants, which, unlike the Marvel Cinematic Universe, is still held by 20th Century Fox rather than Disney. This franchise, launched way back in 2000, is much older but also less successful than Disney’s, and after the third film, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, it nearly got canned due to commercial underperformance. In that ill-fated film, the mutant-mercenary Wade Wilson, better known by the alias Deadpool, appeared as one of the supporting characters, portrayed by Ryan Reynolds. The Canadian actor, despite his character in Origins being a villain who ultimately dies, fell in love with the role, particularly its original comic book incarnation where his trademark was sarcastic commentary and direct address to readers. Reynolds began aggressively lobbying 20th Century Fox to give Deadpool his own film, in which he would play the lead, and after numerous hurdles, he succeeded—largely thanks to the “leak” of test footage online, which triggered an avalanche of enthusiasm among comic book geeks, whose opinions nowadays often carry significant weight in Hollywood studios. Deadpool, however, did not have Fox’s full confidence—which was understandable given Reynolds’ involvement in the superhero disaster that was Green Lantern. This resulted in a relatively modest budget of just tens of millions of dollars but also greater creative freedom, making Deadpool one of the rare superhero films to receive the stricter “R” rating.
That Deadpool is definitively not a typical superhero film is evident right from the start, which throws us in medias res into a spectacular action sequence where the titular masked protagonist, armed with katanas, wakizashis, and similar cold weapons, bloodily dispatches hordes of heavily armed villains on an overpass. Beyond the rivers of blood spilled and the stream of profanities uttered, Deadpool’s atypicality lies in his direct address to the audience, as he begins explaining how he got to this point. This is followed by a flashback introducing Wade Wilson as a former elite special forces operative working as a mercenary in New York. On one occasion, he meets the prostitute Vanessa (Morena Baccarin), with whom he begins a passionate romance and eventually proposes. His marital bliss is disrupted by a medical diagnosis informing him he will soon die; unwilling to traumatise Vanessa with this, he abandons her. When offered participation in a secret experimental programme that could extend his life, Wilson agrees and enters a clandestine laboratory run by Francis Freeman, alias Ajax (Ed Skrein), whose goal is to create an army of mutants through an extremely complex, lengthy, and excruciatingly painful mutation-inducing process. Wilson, subjected to constant torture by Ajax, eventually escapes the laboratory but realises that alongside his extended life and new superhuman abilities, he has acquired a grotesquely disfigured appearance, leading him to don a mask and dub himself “Deadpool”. Finding refuge with the blind elderly black woman Al (Leslie Uggams), he begins planning his revenge against Ajax, though complications arise with the intervention of the “official” X-Men, represented by Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Briana Hildebrand) and Colossus (Stefan Kapičić).
Deadpool cannot be classified among films remembered for fascinating characters, intriguing plots, or significant themes, yet it cannot be denied that it delivers its content to audiences in an exceptionally entertaining and often clever manner. It is clear that Reynolds revels endlessly in the role, knowing it will wash off all the stigma of Green Lantern, and part of this enjoyment is contagious for viewers, who rarely get the chance to witness a veritable antithesis and parody of the typical Hollywood superhero. The film’s parodic and unserious character is evident in scenes whose explicitness regarding “inappropriate” activities recalls the raunchy comedies of Judd Apatow (including one after which male viewers will celebrate Wives’ Day with entirely different eyes). Its contribution is also bolstered by numerous pop culture references and an iconoclastic approach to the Marvel universe, best exemplified by the inclusion of two “conventional” superheroes—Negasonic Teenage Warhead, so obscure that even the most die-hard comic book geeks must turn to search engines to identify her, and who mostly remains silent and inactive in the film; and Colossus, representing the “normal” and “socially responsible” superhero who, largely unsuccessfully, tries to “set Deadpool on the right path”. What prevents everything in Deadpool from being perfect is the combination of a structurally unpolished script and budgetary constraints, most evident in the anticlimactic final showdown, and the main villain, portrayed by Ed Skrein, is not a character that will linger in memory. Because of all this, Deadpool is a very good film, but one that rose, thankfully unfounded concerns that the inevitable sequels, starting with Deadpool 2 in 2018, would, in true Hollywood fashion, ruin everything.
RATING: 7/10 (+++)
(Note: The text in the original Croatian version is available here.)
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