Deadpool is not the most well-known comic book superhero, nor does he even class himself as a superhero; in fact, most people may only know the character from the film X-Men Origins: Wolverine in which comic book fans were, on the most part, appalled by his representation in it. The best way to describe this character would be to point out that, in the comic books, he passed out through a food coma at Chimichanga, and slept through a zombie apocalypse. Who is best to play this arrogant and comedic superhero that doesn’t class himself as a hero? The guy that has already played a failed version of this character, as well as a failed version of a DC superhero named Green Lantern, of course - Ryan Reynolds!
The casting choice could be seen as a risky one, with some people loving Reynolds, and others simply hating the guy. Perhaps no other Hollywood actor could have taken on this role and made it their own in the way Ryan managed it. Not only did he capture the personality of Deadpool/Wade Wilson, but he has brought a fictional character to life in such a way that keeps you glued to the big screen, even up until the post-credits scene. However, the help from the supporting cast cannot be missed, with Morena Baccarin playing Wade Wilson’s romantic partner, Vanessa; Ed Skrein playing Ajax, the British villain; and T.J. Miller as the very comical best friend, Weasel. Giving Wilson a handful of well-portrayed characters to bounce off, simply added to the growing likability of this character.
The connection to the X-Men universe must also be mentioned, with Negasonic Teenage Warhead, played by Brianna Hildebrand, and the full CGI Colossus, voiced by Stefan Kapicic. Although it would have been even more exciting to see cameo’s from the more well-known X-Men characters, these two brought humour and also some incredible fight scenes. There were more than a few mentions of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine as well, which added to the tantalising teasers that Deadpool will be joining up with more X-Men characters in the future.
Although one character in the film was made purely from CGI, the film used less of the stuff than many other comic book films of recent years; it felt rather refreshing to watch a comic book film with a more realistic feel. That being said, the slow motion fight scenes, mixed with the extremely impressive choreography and stunts from the actors and stuntmen, made for some astonishing action.
Compared to other comic book films from Marvel, this had a much more adult feel to the movie. With swearing, full frontal nudity, sex scenes, and more gruesome fight scenes, it is certainly not a children’s film. It is good to know that film production companies are beginning to acknowledge the adult fan base for comic books, and the darker and more brutal theme around the movie helped the story feel more realistic.
But it ain’t all just doom and gloom; the love story that holds the whole film together adds that little bit of happiness needed as a light relief. Although, due to the film being more realistic and adult, it would have been interesting to see how the story developed if the character of Vanessa was killed off – or maybe that would have been a little bit too Game of Thrones.
The accurate representation of all characters, in particular Deadpool, added to the incredible acting, explosive fight scenes, and perfect amount of humour right from the start, makes Deadpool a must-see. Not only has Tim Miller managed to direct a film that will appeal to all comic book fans, but also to a more adult audience and even to both genders. Oh, and make sure you stay until after the credits.
Deadpool is on general release now.
Deadpool Trailer
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