Deadpool & Wolverine
The fact that we actually saw Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) may come as a surprise to some of you. If you’ve been reading my reviews for a while, you know that Ryan Reynolds isn’t my favorite. I enjoy some of his movies, and he extremely funny at times, but he also gets out of control and ruins things that could have been wonderful if he had just stopped “the joke” a bit sooner. So watching a movie that is basically built around that exact feature of Mr. Reynolds running his mouth but “on speed and cranked up to 11,” plus lots of violence, cussing, and crude jokes, and… this isn’t my typical thing.
However, I am a *huge* Hugh Jackman fan, and I particularly adore him as Wolverine. Even in the couple of not very good Wolverine films that were made, *he* is just fine, it’s just the plot that is lackluster. (For what it’s worth, if you like Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine but you haven’t seen Logan, you should. It was far better than the other stand alone Wolverine films, IMO. Definitely NOT for children, though, as it is rated R, and rightfully so.) Thus, my dilemma! Is seeing Hugh Jackman as Wolverine (for probably) one last time worth sitting through an entire movie of Ryan Reynolds being as Ryan Reynolds-y as he can possibly be? I was torn.
But there was also another issue. I also didn’t want to be lost through the whole film because I haven’t seen either of the first two Deadpool movies (which my husband has seen and said I probably wouldn’t like them; after knowing each other for a few months shy of 30 years now, I tend to believe him about things like that). I really didn’t want to sit through both of them if I probably wasn’t going to like either of them, especially if I ended up also not liking the third one, ya know? But after consulting with several friends who are all Marvel fans and are fairly familiar with my preferences, and who had already seen Deadpool & Wolverine, they managed to convince me that the other two films were not necessary for me to see and that I would probably enjoy at least most of it. Okay, fine, I’ll go.
** DRUM ROLL **
May I have the envelope, please….
And the verdict is….
(I know, the suspense is killing you! LOL)
We all truly enjoyed it, all 3 of us. As in, we will probably be seeing it again! I’m sure there are a few references I didn’t understand – to other films, to pop culture, and to, uh, things I’m too young and/or naive to know! LOL – but the ones I did get (which was the vast majority) were utterly hysterical. And can we just talk about the cameos (or quite a bit more than cameos, in some cases)? Wait, scratch that, we actually CAN’T talk about them, because it would spoil the surprise (if every single thing hasn’t already been spoiled in the media; hey writers, PLEASE stop putting the spoilers in the titles of the articles!). BUT HOLY SHEEP, Y’ALL!! There were soooo many, and they were SO AWESOME, each and every one!
As for breaking the 4th wall, I know Deadpool is well known for doing it in both the comics and the films, but I typically consider that “talking directly to the camera/reader/audience.” But this?! This was referencing real-world (like in real life) things going on, and I thought I would die from laughing. (And for a couple of them, I *really* hope Reynolds got permission to mock those things, if not before he said them, then at least after. But he seems like a nice enough person that even if they popped out of his mouth spontaneously, they wouldn’t have been left in the film if the person the joke was about was hurt by it.) The shame of it is that even just 5 years from now, anyone seeing this movie for the first time probably won’t get those references. Twenty years from now, half the jokes won’t be understood anymore, unless the younger folks are true students of “ancient” pop culture. But for those of us who saw it “in real time” and *do* get the references, they are priceless! If you’ve ever wanted to know what conversations are like in my family – with all kinds of movie quotes and pop culture references constantly flying everywhere – this movie is about as close as it gets. Well, minus the sex jokes and most of the cussing!
Yes, there were a few scenes and a few comments that I objected to, but one of everyone’s biggest worries for me was the level of violence. I am quite sensitive to it in some (many) circumstances, so that was a genuine concern on both my part and that of my “advisors.” But the way it was done in this movie was so completely cartoonish and over the top and ridiculous that I just couldn’t be bothered by it. And all things considered, it may have been very bloody, but it was not typically gruesome. To me, those are different things. Not quite as “clean” as The Matrix, which is violent and bloody but not gory at all, but not bad either. There were a couple of “shock value” moments, but they didn’t last long. I do think the opening scene went on for too long, and a few other places were like “okay, we can move on now” (like the car, though the end of that scene was worth the wait), but from an “affecting me later” perspective (which is my primary concern), it was fine. Y’all, I saw SE7EN in the theater, because I thought it was a mystery thriller. And it was. But OMG, that movie haunted me for weeks!! (IYKYK) Deadpool and Wolverine is *nothing* like that. Not even close.
And my beloved Hugh Jackman was absolutely PERFECT! This version of Wolverine was surly when needed, sentimental when needed, and could easily go toe-to-toe with Deadpool in the sassy snarky sarcasm department. (Hmm, the term “sassy” definitely fits Wade, and it’s the right concept for Logan in this film, but the term seems a little too… silly, maybe? light? It’s hard to articulate. But you get my point, right?)
In short, Deadpool & Wolverine was 100% worth seeing for me.
And this *is* a Marvel movie, so I’m *sure* I don’t need to tell you to stay *all* the way through the credits, right? Right. Good. Glad we got that straight.
