Directed by: Shawn Levy
Distributed by: Disney
Written by Anna Harrison
50/100
In 2016—simpler times—the first “Deadpool” roared onto screens at just the right time. Fox’s X-Men universe was stuttering as the Marvel Cinematic Universe was racing towards (though not quite at) its peak, and while whispers of comic book or superhero movie fatigue were only whispers, the tangled mythos of the MCU was still more than dense enough to poke holes in. So along comes Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds), the merc with a mouth, to serve us a dollop of irreverent, self-referential fun, making viewers laugh at both Deadpool’s then-owner Fox and obliquely making jabs at Disney’s MCU. Reynold’s megawatt charm and what was, at the time, novel fourth-wall breaks carried “Deadpool” to success.
“Deadpool & Wolverine” follows the same format as its two predecessors, albeit with the addition of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine. While he’s not the same Wolverine as the one that died in James Mangold’s wonderful “Logan” from 2017, that doesn’t matter. With the MCU’s new focus on the multiverse, any poetic sendoffs for their superheroes can be undone in mere seconds to appease the sweaty nerds in their mom’s basement who have decided that they want their toys back. Let’s inject the 55-year-old man full of steroids because wouldn’t it be so epic and awesome if they finally put Wolverine in a yellow and blue suit? Isn’t that cool? Don’t you care?
The logic for bringing Wolverine back is flimsy at best, but in short: Wolverine was the “anchor being” for Deadpool’s world, aka the world of the Fox “X-Men” movies, and with his death in “Logan,” Deadpool’s timeline is now at risk of termination. A pencil-pushing bureaucrat at the Time Variance Authority, which you may recall from “Loki” seasons one and two (or not, depending on how closely you follow the barrage of shows that Marvel put out on Disney+), named Mr. Paradox (Matthew Macfadyen) has decided to speed up this process for efficiency’s sake. Deadpool grabs a Wolverine from another world in an effort to fix his own, and off they go on a grand adventure to make sure all of Deadpool’s friends—who, despite featuring prominently in the first two films, appear for maybe three minutes in the entire movie—live to see another day.
On their journey, our foul-mouthed duo runs into Cassandra Nova (Emma Corrin), the twin sister of the X-Men’s leader, Professor Xavier. Any emotional substance here relies entirely on you remembering Logan’s relationship with Xavier from previous “X-Men” films, and what could have been an examination of Xavier’s hypocrisy instead is… nothing. Absolutely nothing. Cassandra only exists to be the bad guy, and while Corrin is delightfully insane, any emotional resonance is lost.
But the movie does not exist for Cassandra, or for a plot at all. It exists for cameos. “Deadpool & Wolverine” parades out throngs of past heroes, pausing each time to let the audience get their clapping in. Remember this? Remember that? Wasn’t it cool way back when? If you aren’t glued to superhero movie news, you’ll be lost, but if you are, hey! Congratulations. You are smart and important and you can get a pat on the back.
This approach worked in 2016 and 2018, but at this point, when the novelty has worn off, when the emotional stakes are gone, when Marvel trots out figures from its past rather than try anything new, what’s the point? There might be winks and nods to the MCU’s current struggles, but they still seem like self-importance rather than anything of substance. At least “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” also full of cameos and variants and all that MCU jargon, had Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Men serve an emotional purpose in the film. Not so with the surprises “Deadpool & Wolverine.” Even references to other films like the “Mad Max” saga only illustrate how hollow this one is. I mean, seriously—you’re going to do an extended “Mad Max” bit and make it look that damn ugly? Has Shawn Levy actually seen any of those films?
This is not to say that “Deadpool and Wolverine” is without its superficial charms. Some of the cameos I just ranted about made me laugh or smile, and Reynolds can be pretty good at delivering his quips. Some of the music choices had me in stitches, and, yes, I did get excited to see Wolverine in his stupid suit with his stupid cowl. Jackman, bless him, gives a performance so good that I almost forgot what movie I was watching for a few moments, and any emotion in the movie is almost entirely due to him. But much like “Free Guy,” Levy’s directorial effort from 2021, that enjoyment starts to dissipate the moment you think about it too hard. At one point, Deadpool jokes that Hugh Jackman will now be “doing this until he’s ninety.” Is it really that funny if it’s true? Can’t we just let the man tap dance to “Seventy-Six Trombones”?
Don’t forget… you’re here forever.
“Deadpool & Wolverine” Trailer
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