Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman first met on screen as Deadpool and Wolverine 15 years ago in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Their short meet cute planted a seed and fifteen years later the duo released the film Deadpool & Wolverine, the first-ever Marvel film with an R rating.
It’s bold, bloody, hilarious, and surprisingly sincere. In other words, Deadpool & Wolverine is a much-needed boost for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Audiences have waited six years for the Merc with a Mouth to return to the big screen. The sale of Twentieth Century Fox to Disney was the biggest hurdle to the film’s realization. However, that merger with the studios brought Deadpool, Wolverine and the X-Men into the MCU, setting the stage for a new era of Marvel cinema.
It was worth the wait.
Read more: R-rated ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ trailer is packed with Easter eggs
Warning: Be careful if you don’t want any details about Deadpool & Wolverine revealed to you before you go to the theater to see the film for yourself. Spoilers follow.
Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman reprise their iconic comic book roles in Deadpool & Wolverine.
As the trailers suggested, the film’s main plot follows Wade Wilson on a journey to save his world from destruction. In order to set things right, he must track down a worthy Wolverine from an alternate timeline in order to thwart the Time Variance Authority’s (TVA) destructive plan. Legacy and self-worth are big themes that permeate the film, with Wade and Logan both struggling with midlife crises that leave the duo questioning their worth in the multiverse and beyond.
Their world-saving mission evolves into a kind of road-trip action comedy. In a sense, Deadpool & Wolverine is a buddy-cop movie told through an ultra-violent and super-profane Marvel comics lens. From the opening sequence to the visual clips that roll through the end credits, Deadpool & Wolverine delivers.
Read more: Now There’s a Wolverine Rounded Butt Xbox Controller to Match Deadpool
Undoubtedly a major reason for its success (it is on track to dethrone Deadpool) biggest R-rated movie opening of all time) are the performances of the two leads. Jackman, who retired from his Wolverine role with 2017’s Logan, returns in a way that honors the character’s past while also allowing Jackman to bring a refreshing bit of brutality to the screen.
His chemistry with off-screen bestie Reynolds is palpable, adding an extra layer of enjoyment to the film. It’s safe to say that Wolverine is Hugh Jackman, and his return alone is worth the price of admission. Add to that the delicious chemistry between him and Reynolds, and it’s an absolute winning formula.
Emmy nominee Emma Corrin plays the villain Cassandra Nova in Deadpool & Wolverine.
Deadpool & Wolverine boasts a talented cast that holds its own against the superstar power of its title duo. Succession alum Matthew Macfayden shines as TVA’s self-absorbed, bumbling Mr. Paradox. Emma Corrin, who wowed audiences with her roles as Princess Diana in The Crown and Darby Hart in FX’s A Murder at the End of the World, is delightful as Cassandra Nova, the film’s big bad. Everyone on screen is having a great time in these roles, and it shows.
While fan favorites Blind Al, Vanessa, Negasonic Teenage Warrior, Yuko, Dopinder, Peter, and Colossus make appearances, they take a back seat to the film’s overall narrative. Their presence here adds to the episode’s heightened stakes, but they appear sparingly, allowing the film’s main story to take center stage.
One of the hallmarks of the Deadpool films is their humor, which is often filled with pop culture references, comic book Easter eggs, and deep cut jokes. Deadpool & Wolverine continues this tradition, but in some unexpected ways.
First, most of the jokes in the film are inspired by real-world events that occurred during the film’s development and production. Personal jokes are sprinkled throughout the film, touching on the lives of some of the actors. It’s all for laughs, you can tell, but it’s a surprising twist for the franchise and may be off-putting to some viewers.
And then there are the cameos.
Look, I’m not going to spoil who exactly shows up in this film, but for viewers of a certain age (me, a nearly 50-year-old man), these casting surprises are going to yield some huge, satisfying reactions. To say they’re unexpected would be an understatement. Fan service or not, these cameos are yet another way Deadpool & Wolverine pays homage to Twentieth Century Fox’s Marvel franchise — by giving proper endings to a selection of characters who’ve been missing from the story for a while.
Deadpool and Dogpool kiss lovingly in Deadpool & Wolverine.
While Deadpool & Wolverine has a nice story, it does have its flaws. The deluge of industry jokes and celebrity cameos, while entertaining, may go over the heads of younger viewers. For viewers under 30, be prepared to take notes and do some post-movie Googling to fully understand the details of the story.
A few plot details point specifically to Loki season 1. Audiences don’t necessarily need to be familiar with the Disney Plus series. However, it may be helpful to brush up on the events of the Marvel TV show if you want to be prepared for whatever the film throws at you.
Then there are the fight scenes. Deadpool & Wolverine is filled with a selection of fight scenes — either between the title characters or their mutual enemies — and while there are a few notable flashes between Reynolds and Jackman, many of these scenes are overloaded with VFX that can become overwhelming to the eye.
Director Shawn Levy has shown his talent for capturing satisfying comedy and engaging dramatic sequences on film, but action is not his strong suit. Still, these are minor quibbles and audiences will likely forgive them.
All in all, Deadpool & Wolverine checks every box office demand a fan could ask for in a Marvel film. It’s the best installment in the franchise, the best Marvel film since Avengers: Endgame , and it charts a bold new path for the MCU.
