Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman inject much-needed life and levity into the Marvel Cinematic Universe with “Deadpool & Wolverine,” a film that breaks away from the superhero movie cliches amid audiences’ MCU fatigue.
“Deadpool & Wolverine” is the first “Deadpool” film since Disney acquired 20th Century Studios, the studio that owned the film rights to the character. It is the first R-rated movie Disney has ever produced.
While there was some concern as to whether the Deadpool character would remain as violent and vulgar under Disney’s control, “Deadpool & Wolverine” shows that Disney did not hold the filmmakers back.
Seven years after his last appearance as Wolverine, Jackman remains great in the role.
While Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine character died in the critically acclaimed 2017 film “Logan,” in this film, Deadpool travels to different universes to bring the character back to save his universe.
This Wolverine from an alternate universe is not the same hero from the mainline universe; he wallows in alcoholic depression throughout the film. This new version of the character is close enough to the Wolverine we know and love from the original X-Men films, but also allows Jackman to approach the character from a different angle.
Reynolds remains as funny and charismatic as ever as the titular character, making lots of fourth-wall-breaking jokes poking fun at the current state of the MCU. These jokes are compelling because most people are getting tired of the MCU, and Deadpool is the perfect character to deliver this meta-humor.
The film is loaded with fan service, even more so than “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” as the film brings back many characters from previous Marvel movies for the first time since Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox in 2019. If you are a Marvel fan, you will be smiling ear-to-ear when you see these characters return to the big screen.
Like the “Deadpool” movies before it, “Deadpool & Wolverine” satisfies as an action-packed blockbuster. It is loaded with bloody, over-the-top violence and edited in such a way that it never gets old throughout the film.
While the movie feels like a breath of fresh air in many ways, it is not without its problems — the film’s length being one of the more noticeable ones. At just over two hours in length, there are at least 30 minutes of the movie that could have been cut. The film starts to drag towards the end, and even though Reynolds makes a fourth-wall-breaking joke about it to the audience, it does not make it any better.
“Deadpool & Wolverine” is more about the dialogue, characters and action than the story, so while many parts of the film were compelling, the story did not hold enough weight to justify the runtime. Given the film’s comedic, tongue-in-cheek nature, a more concise runtime closer to 90 minutes would have made the film significantly better.
After a long wait for a third “Deadpool” film, Disney has thankfully delivered another good film in the franchise. While the movie is just too long, it is loaded with fun comedy, exhilarating action and plenty of surprises for long-time Marvel fans. Not only is it the best Marvel film in some time, it is one of the most fun movies to hit theaters this year.