‘Deadpool 2’ Movie Review: An Iffy But Good-Enough Raunchy Sequel With a Heart

Some might argue that Deadpool 2 makes zero sense. Well, it does, and it doesn’t. The sequel to 2016’s highest-rated and highest grossing R-Rated film, Deadpool 2 makes for a decent follow-up to Ryan Reynolds’ antics as the Merc with a Mouth. Despite the hype and fanfare surrounding the film, however, there are a couple of things that genuinely don’t make sense in this movie. Then again, since when did Wade Wilson ever make sense, right?

That said, let’s talk about the strengths of Deadpool 2 in this review, and I’ll get to the weird parts later. Oh, there are a couple of spoilers ahead, so close this tab now if you don’t want to blow your brains out.

No, seriously. There are some spoilers here, so don’t blame me. Oh, and some f-bombs and a little bit of bitching out too.

The Best Things in ‘Deadpool 2’ That Sat Well

Of course, Deadpool 2 can’t start without breaking the fourth wall from the get-go. The movie opens with Deadpool himself, playing with a Logan musical toy. It’s a massive nod to how FOX killed off Hugh Jackman’s iconic character in 2017’s Logan. It then fleshes out to a series of great action sequences that echoes the stuntman in director David Leitch. Every fight scene is choreographed in a way that would make you wonder how the hell the actors were able to do that in the first place.

20th Century Fox

One of the strengths of Deadpool 2 is that the fight scenes are significantly better than its predecessor. True, the first Deadpool flick featured good action, but Leitch exceeds expectations by bringing in more kicks and punches and more blood splatters that one could ever imagine seeing in a superhero film. Deadpool moves in a pitter-patter manner but executes his stunts so that you’d see every arch of his body. That in itself makes Deadpool 2 a perfect action film.

As for the writing, more quips are given, and it also bests the first movie. One of the best gag sequences in Deadpool 2 would probably be the X-Mansion scene where Colossus (Stefan Kapicic) invites Deadpool to join the X-Men. After failing in the first movie, it didn’t hurt for him to try again. Just as Wade moves through the entire mansion (with him riding in Professor X’s wheelchair), a brief shot of the X-Men appears in the midst of Wade’s litany of rants about how the FOX still couldn’t afford to put in one more X-Men—even going as far as referencing Archangel’s wings.

20th Century Fox

Reynolds delivers ever joke and gag expertly, but oddly enough, it’s Josh Brolin’s Cable that breaks it down to a hilarious punch. His deadpan humor makes for a good comedian, and even though we know that Cable doesn’t always make jokes, the writing by scribes Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick allows a decent amount of funny lines spewing out of Cable’s mouth. Even the rest of the X-Men—Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand) and newcomer Yukio (Shioli Kutsuna)—got to give their punchlines, too.

As for the main plot, Deadpool 2 surprisingly delves deeper into the heart of Wade Wilson. This is the first time we saw the hero soften up a bit, and to take up the mantle of a legitimate superhero that embodies the hopeful ideal. After Vanessa (Morena Baccarin) dies from the crossfire between Deadpool and some gangsters, Wade receives some kind of an enlightening from the spiritual plane. It’s odd, but it works out into the story that makes us see that Deadpool is more than the violent motherf****r that we all know him to be.

Joe Lederer/20th Century Fox

Vanessa tells Wade that he needs to belong and that a family is out there waiting for him. It’s funny to think that for someone as carefree and bloodthirsty as Deadpool, one wouldn’t even imagine that the last thing he needs is family and belongingness. And yet, with everything that’s happening around Deadpool, it turns out that it’s the only thing he needs to be whole again. So Deadpool sets out to save mutant kid Russel (Julian Dennison) from turning into the very menace that Cable wants to kill in the future. Although Deadpool was victorious in the end, I couldn’t help but see the noble intentions that Deadpool had just to prevent one kid from going ballistic and killing every single f***er that comes his way. He’s not only the “Merc with a Mouth” but the “Merc with a Heart” too.

Joe Lederer/20th Century Fox

Here’s one that I wouldn’t spoil though—the mid-credits. It’s arguably the best end-credits that you’ll ever see.

But with all the right things that the action and writing had, there are a few things that don’t make sense.

Some Bummer WTF Points

First off, who in the fiery pits of hell would ever think of introducing an iconic X-Men group only to kill them off three minutes after their introduction? Yep, that’s how short-lived the hype surrounding the X-Force got squashed. Any dreams of us seeing Shatterstar (Lewis Tan) slicing the s**t out of the prison guards and having Bedlam (Terry Crews) blast every electrical system in existence to kingdom come were shat on by the dumb, misleading marketing for Deadpool 2. Even Peter (Rob Delaney), the only human being that Deadpool made a part of the X-Force died a foolish way.

So after the heroes jumped off the army carrier, each of the X-Force got sidetracked by the wind, ending up horrifically for all of them except for Deadpool and Domino (Zazie Beetz). Shatterstar got caught up in a helicopter’s blades and ended up being cut up into pieces. Vanisher gets tangled up in an electric pole and is roasted to death (then later revealed to be Brad Pitt when his mask melts off). Bedlam lands safely but gets hit by a bus. Zeitgeist (Bill Skarsgård) gets stuck in a trash compactor and is shredded to bits, spewing off his acidic saliva to Peter, who also dies instantly.

It’s a pretty messed-up way to go, but what’s even more infuriating is that the X-Force was never really meant to last until the end of the movie anyway.

Joe Lederer/20th Century Fox

Secondly, there’s an awful lot of underwhelming use of its secondary characters. In the first movie, Negasonic Teenage Warhead was a breakout star, but in Deadpool 2, her character was only used as a poster throughout the film. It’s almost as if she was only there to give Deadpool the finger. Juggernaut, on the other hand, was a welcome addition and an accurate reboot of the original (remember that line from Vinnie Jones in X-Men: The Last Stand? Jesus Christ on crocs that did not sit well). But despite that, Juggernaut’s character wasn’t fully utilized. But then again, he was only there for the second half of Deadpool 2, so it kind of makes a little bit of sense.

I can only imagine how the story would turn out had the tables turned for the X-Force. But hey, at least we got to see Deadpool in his iconic grey suit.

‘Deadpool 2’ Overall Verdict

But as with any Deadpool film or piece of media, the good things outweigh the f***ed-up, messy aspects. The first Deadpool film was the best way to introduce (or, more appropriately, re-introduce) the character into the big screen. Deadpool 2, on the other hand, makes things more fun and a bit meatier when it comes to the narrative. It’s not exactly the kind of movie that you’d want to break down and analyze the artistic and creative themes because it’s just a two-hour long raunchy, no-brainer film guaranteed to make audiences have a good time. I recommend seeing this with crazy friends. I went in alone, and I had no one to punch or break the neck because it’s downright funny and pseudo-pissant.

That said, Deadpool 2 succeeds in ways that the X-Men movies never could—it fixes the timeline (sort of), pulls the right punches, and makes for a genuine portrayal of a character so widely loved and hated that one couldn’t help but bask in the glorious pool of fun that Wade Wilson forces into our brains.