“SKumm’s Thoughts”
DEADPOOL 2 82016, R,
119 minutes, MARVEL STUDIOS/20th CENTURY FOX)
There came a moment during DEADPOOL 2 when I longed for a “pause”
button. The reason for this was because
I needed to stop laughing, and needed to wipe my eyes.
It is one of those times when you know you are missing half of the jokes
onscreen, when your own reaction is so overwhelming that you experience
Laughter Overload. You miss dialogue
because your own laughter is too loud, your vision blurred by the tears which
seem mystically connected to that part of your brain that produces the
endorphins necessary to push you into hysterics.
That isn’t to say that the sequel to the highest-grossing R-rated super
hero movie of all time is without its flaws.
It isn’t nearly as funny as the first, some jokes get overused so much
that the punchlines become predictably droll, and the serious take on the
character seems out of place and stereotypical of the genre which the film
skewers. But I’ll be a unicorn’s
blowhole if I don’t admit the genuine hilarity of that couch scene…
The story this time around involves “Cable”, played with scenery chewing
panache by the stoic Josh Brolin (Thanos from AVENGERS, for those
uninitiated). Cable has traveled back in
time to kill a mutant kid that destroys his family in the future, and Deadpool
(Reynolds) decides that the kid should be given a chance to NOT turn into a
family slaying criminal. This pits the
two super powers against each other, and also gives our intrepid hero the
opportunity to form his own mutant group, “X-Force”, to help battle the
futuristic man on a mission.
It is moments like The Couch Scene (no spoilers here) when Ryan Reynolds
and fellow writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick (who both worked on the first
installment) capture the character and storyline in such a way that you leave
all criticism behind and just enjoy the dang movie. Until someone cracks yet another joke (okay,
I can’t help it: SPOILER ALERT!!) about pedophiles. The first few times it’s funny, but after a
while, you start to wonder if it isn’t a wee bit much. While I appreciate the unabashed and severely
politically incorrect humor the series and comic are known for, repeatedly
cracking wise on a subject which affects so many seems so un-empathetic as to
be borderline insulting.
There is still the trademark violence, the fifth wall breaks, the deadpan
humor, and the industry in-jokes, all of which work to the betterment of the
film—and characters. If anything,
Reynolds & Company up the ante this time around. Seriously—when is the last time you heard a
joke about YENTL, for crying out loud?!?
Some sequences are masterfully paced by ATOMIC BLONDE director David
Leitch, and showcase the bloody violence that was part of the first film’s
success. And then there are other
moments (one in particular, but, hey, no freaking spoilers) that drag on a bit
too long. Five minutes worth of fat
could have been trimmed from the film, and the end result would have been
better for it.
Despite my negativity towards some aspects of the film, it is still a
worthy successor. Every character is
perfectly cast (okay, screw it, SPOILER ALERT!: look for Brad Pitt, Matt Damon,
and “Firefly” alum Alan Tudyk cameos), every fight scene has just enough action
to it, and 85% of the jokes land well enough to at least elicit a smile. Next up will be an X-Force movie, and
possibly a third Deadpool film. For now,
DEADPOOL 2 should be enough to get you through the day. I’m just waiting for it to come out on
Blu-ray so I can re-watch the dang Couch Scene however many times it takes me
to catch all the dang jokes.
Film Grade: B+
T.S. Kummelman
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