North Texas Daily

“You’re so dark. Are you sure you’re not from the DC universe?”

“Deadpool” was lightning in a bottle for the Marvel branch of Fox Studios — and one they desperately needed, too. After all the countless X-Men movies, Fox needed something to amp up excitement again for the property. 

Thanks to star Ryan Reynold’s passion for the project, the first Deadpool movie was an unbridled success on every front. But, we all know how this goes. It is extremely hard to capture lightning in a bottle a second time around. Thankfully, I can say the second go-round with the “Merc with a Mouth” is another success story, for the most part.

When I say this though, it is not necessarily all for the bad. This film heavily relies on a multitude of comedic and plot devices from the first film, so sometimes it does not always feel entirely original in its own right. While the sequel is bigger, louder and cruder than its predecessor, sometimes it just relies too much on things present in the first film, which holds it back from completely standing on its own. 

This is not a necessity per se, but it is nice to see a sequel which can not only improve upon things from the first film but build upon it as well, without bringing back stuff from the first film as often as this one does.

In saying all of this though, I still feel this one has improved upon the so-so things from the 2016 film in the right way. It certainly feels like a bigger movie, and Deadpool is certainly the character that warrants a film to bring the extra factor to it. The amount of fun I had watching the film however is not to be understated in the slightest. It is one of the most fun, exciting and entertaining times I’ve had at the theater in a very long time. 

After the utterly devastating emotional blows left by a previous Marvel movie earlier this year and by the brooding, dark nature of literally all the DC films, it is nice to sit down for a superhero movie and feel a sense of pure fun while watching one. “Deadpool 2” is certainly this and then some. 

Just like Hugh Jackman was born to play Wolverine, Ryan Reynolds was born to play Deadpool. Nobody else could bring the sense of darkly humorous charm and searing sarcasm as well as Reynolds can. He completely lights up the screen, and when he was not on the screen, I yearned for him to return to it. 

The supporting cast also brings their own sense of charm to their characters, too. Zazie Beetz as Domino was another complete scene stealer. She brought everything to the table and she pulled it off. I really want to see more of her. Josh Brolin was also good in his role as the villain, Cable. I won’t get too much into his character for the risks of spoiling anything, but something he does in the third act of the film helped humanize the character a little bit more, which in turn helped the audience feel a bit more connected to him than before. 

“Deadpool 2” has some flaws of course, but it is also one of the most blisteringly entertaining times I’ve had in the theater in a long time. Fans of the character should absolutely love it, and fans of the first film should, too, if they can get past some of the rehashed bits. 

My rating: 4.3/5

Featured Image: Courtesy 20th Century Fox