As the saying goes, absence makes the heart grow fonder. Discounting 2020, you have to go all the way back 2012 for the last time only one MCU movie was released. Again, not counting 2020, every year from 2017 onward had three releases – except for 2021, which had four. That puts a lot of pressure on Deadpool & Wolverine. Granted, there’s always a certain level of hype and pressure just for being an MCU movie. But this one feels a bit different, and not just because it’s the only MCU entry.
Depending on who you talk to, a certain level of superhero fatigue might be setting it, and that’s not without merit. But rather than fatigue, it might be due to the increasingly convoluted multiverse storyline for the series at large. There’s a certain expectation that Deadpool & Wolverine is going to serve as some sort of “reset,” clean things up a bit. Without going into any real spoilers, it’s not a hard reset (that’s all I’ll say on that matter), but it does lay some groundwork for where the MCU could (key word there) go from here.
But more than that, it’s simply a fun movie. A level of fun that’s been sorely missed in the MCU as of late. Yes, there have been flashes here and there. But nothing quite like Deadpool & Wolverine in several years. And that level of fun (among other things) helps prop it up against a pretty weak story.
Deadpool & Wolverine finds the Merc with a Mouth Wade Wilson drifting listlessly through life. He’s resigned himself to selling cars alongside his good buddy Peter Wisdom (Rob Delaney). But all that is upended when’s apprehended by the Time Variance Authority (TVA). Wade’s time travel meddling at the end of Deadpool 2 did not go unnoticed. Wilson is faced with a grim reality. His universe’s “anchor being,” Logan aka Wolverine died (spoilers for 2017’s Logan), setting their world on a path to disappearing, ceasing to exist. Wilson sets off to find a new Wolverine, hoping bringing a new one to his universe will be enough to save it.
Often, a weak and poorly explained plot would be too much for a movie to overcome. But that’s not the case here. Directory Shawn Levy, and his bevy of credited screenwriters: Ryan Reynolds, Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick, and Zeb Wells, imbue the story with a surprising level of heart and emotion to go along with the expected over the top comedy and gore. Deadpool & Wolverine focuses less on what the larger story actually is, and more on what it means to the titular characters.
Since the events of Deadpool 2, Wilson has been searching for meaning in his life. He wants to matter, prove that he’s more than simply a crude, fast-talking killing machine. And Wolverine is searching for redemption. He’s struggling with a tragedy back in his home universe, something he feels personally responsible for.
The Wolverine we’ve seen throughout the Fox run of X-Men movies, and the solo Wolverine ventures, has always been a deeper character. But this is new territory for Deadpool. There were glimpses throughout the first two movies, but nothing like this. And it works great. It could have felt very forced and unnatural, but the team of screenwriters founds a great balance between the emotional depth and the expected – and needed – hard-R humor that comes with the character.
But of course that doesn’t work without Reynolds and Hugh Jackman turning in great performances. Logan is still Jackman’s best work as Wolverine, but this is a (closer than you’d think) second place. He hits all the emotional beats while adding in some of the character’s signature gruff humor. The two work wonders together, forming one of the best on-screen superhero duos to date, and not just in the MCU.
This could also be Reynolds’ best work yet. He’s not exactly an actor known for having range; he more or less does some version of the same wisecracking guy in every role he takes. He knows his lane and he’s good at it. The extra emotional components allow him to show he might have more to him. I don’t know that he’s going to get a flurry of leading dramatic roles anytime soon. But it’s nice to see that there’s something more to him.
But there’s still plenty of the vulgar, hilarious Deadpool we’ve all come to know and love. This is the funniest of the three Deadpool movies, and might be the funniest MCU movie. And it’s legitimately a funny movie, not just “funny for a superhero movie.” It’s every bit a comedy as it is a comic book movie. The meta humor might be a bit much for some, and a good chunk of those jokes feel like they’re going to age like milk. But there are plenty of evergreen jokes that should hold up strong on future rewatches.
While those two are the true stars, there are absolutely other character highlights. However…I can’t say too much more than that. So many of those highlights are cameos. Rumors have run rampant for months on who will be appearing. And I won’t confirm or deny any of those. Suffice to say that there are…A LOT. Some feel more fan-servicey than others. But a handful have a true purpose within the story and are fitting continuations or conclusions to those characters.
But of those characters we can discuss, the two big ones are Matthew Macfadyen as TVA agent Mr. Paradox and Emma Corrin as mutant Cassandra Nova. Macfadyen is terrific, though fans of Succession may see a British version of Tom Wambsgans. Your mileage might vary on that, but it made his Mr. Paradox even funnier for me. Cassandra Nova, on the other hand, was less of a success. It’s nothing to do with Corrin; they’re good in the role. But unfortunately it’s yet another case of the much-maligned MCU villain problem.
Neither is all that well developed. Both their motivations are pretty generic and surface level. Mr. Paradox at least has some humor to fall back on. Nova, though, is just kind of there. Neither one is necessarily a bad character. But there’s no real effort to make them all that interesting. With two good performances from Macfadyen and Corrin, they’re both salvaged a bit, but I can’t say it wasn’t disappointing to see some of the same villain problems we’ve seen since the earliest days of the MCU.
As soon as Disney acquired 21st Century Fox, it was only a matter of time before mutants made their way into the MCU. Like the most anticipated MCU entries, the hype was through the roof before any official projects were even announced. You can consider Deadpool & Wolverine a soft introduction for the mutants, but it should give fans hope for how the studio will handle their inclusion going forward.
Deadpool & Wolverine may not be the hard reset some fans were hoping for, but it’s still a shot of energy the MCU needed. With the same gratuitous violence (a compliment in this case), gross-out humor (another compliment; and it’s between this and Real Bros of Simi Valley for funniest movie so far this year), and unexpected emotional depth, you’ve got not just a great superhero movie, but a great movie. We’ll see how it holds up down the road, but for now, let’s all sit back and enjoy what we’ve got.
(As a sidenote, my own “post credit scene,” if you will, Deadpool & Wolverine has what might be my favorite opening credits sequence ever).
Grade: A-
