REVIEW: Deadpool 2

It's going to be more than a little difficult to write about Deadpool 2 without simply reiterating everything I said in my Review of the first Deadpool film. It stands to reason that, if you enjoyed Deadpool, you'll also enjoy Deadpool 2; however, I feel like statements such as these tend to take on a somewhat bittersweet connotation, implying a lack of scope or growth on the part of the filmmakers. "If you liked X, you'll like Y" seems to imply the idea that a sequel is simply more of the same and little else, but I have to say that that's not entirely the case with Deadpool 2. While it doesn't exactly shoot for the moon in terms of upping the stakes, it still manages to deliver another hilarious (yet surprisingly heartfelt) chapter in the life of Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds). 

When you've broken as many box office records as Fox did with the first Deadpool, there'd be an understandable temptation to go all-out with the sequel. The first film was made on a comparatively modest budget of $58 million (about a fifth of what it cost to make Avengers: Infinity War), forcing director Tim Miller to find creative workarounds for the movie's lack of funds; for example, the planned gunfight that was meant to make up the climax proved too expensive to actually film, leading to a stellar gag in which Deadpool forgets all of his weapons in a taxicab and has to fight everyone with just his swords. Limitations can often be the impetus for moments of brilliance, so one of my greatest fears for this sequel in the months leading up to its release was that the small-scale charm of the original would be lost under a tsunami of studio money. There's always clear temptation to blow millions upon millions on making things bigger and better when making a sequel (especially a superhero sequel), so I was happy to see that the crew behind Deadpool 2 focused decidedly less on reinventing the wheel and more on merely refining what made the original so endearing.

With the original Deadpool ending on a surprisingly sweet note, it's worth noting that happiness and good fortune rarely smile upon the life of Wade Wilson for long. Without spoiling anything (that, admittedly, happens in the first five or so minutes), we see Deadpool's life thrown into chaos and misery once again. As Colossus (Stefan Kapicic) and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand) attempt to get the mopey merc back on his feet by training him to be an X-Man, the team runs afoul of a troubled young mutant by the name of Russell (otherwise known as his edgy alter-ego, Firefist, played by Julian Dennison). Meanwhile, in a briefly-glimpsed post-apocalyptic future, the cyber-soldier known as Cable (Josh Brolin) returns home to find his family incinerated by a now-grown Firefist. With Cable traveling back in time to kill Russell before he can get a taste for murder, it's up to Deadpool to step outside of his comfort zone and try to find a decidedly non-violent solution that will simultaneously fix the future and save Russell's soul.

The thing I liked the most about the first Deadpool is that its stakes were, for a superhero movie, very small and personal. There was no super-weapon or invading force poised to destroy all of humanity as we know it, just an insecure goofball looking to get revenge on the guy who ruined his good looks. This is also the case here; Cable isn't fighting for the fate of the entire future, just his wife and child. Deadpool isn't looking to save the world, just one messed-up orphan. And Russell isn't looking to take over the world, he just wants retribution on those who wronged him. It's all very low-key compared to the planet-hopping odyssey that is Infinity War; it doesn't feel like an "event", per se, just another adventure. Describing it in that way almost makes the events of the plot seem unimportant, but that's hardly the case. Deadpool 2 and it's predecessor are largely character-driven, from the plot to the jokes, so that kind of small-scale, unorthodox approach suits this irreverent kind of spoof just fine.

Make no mistake, though, this isn't just another retread. Everything you loved about Deadpool is here, but better. A bigger budget means better special effects, so while the action is still relatively up-close and personal (care of John Wick director, David Leitch), the movie is free to get a little more creative with its use of gore and dismemberment. It also feels far more self-assured in its sense of humor than our first outing did; Deadpool was a tremendous risk for the studio when it was released, so it's understandable that the filmmakers would make an attempt to please as many people as they could. It's an approach I referred to as a "comedy shotgun" in my old Review of the first film; it doesn't matter if the jokes are hit-or-miss, so long as there are more hits than misses. 

With Deadpool 2, the referential humor (while still very much present) feels far more self-contained and relevant this time around. Compare the scene from the first film in which Wade refers to Gina Carano's character as "less-angry Rosie O'Donnell" (LOL, I 'MEMBER!) to Deadpool 2, where we see Cable get called "One-Eyed Willie" during an action sequence (both a surface-level visual gag and a reference to Josh Brolin's first appearance in a film). It just feels like, for the most part, it isn't trying quite so hard to be shockingly irreverent as the first one was; people know what to expect from a Deadpool film at this point, and while not every joke lands as hard as that Logan reference in the opening scene, it's definitely a more consistently funny comedy than its predecessor was. You can tell everyone involved learned and grew from their experiences with their first time around the block; they've found what works and now they're free to simply focus on crafting a fun, entertaining time.

The supporting cast (with the exception of T.J. Miller, who has completely regressed into irrelevance) is by and large excellent; it's great to see Stefan Kapicic and Brianna Hildebrand back as Colossus and Negasonic, and both Cable and Domino (Zazie Beetz) make for great additions to the gallery of straight-men for Deadpool to bounce off of. The only issue is that, not unlike the first film, it can sometimes feel as though we don't get to spend as much time with these characters as we would like. Cable in particular feels a little lacking in terms of screentime, considering how vital he is to the plot; his fluctuating good-cop-bad-cop dynamic with Wade makes for some of the most interesting and entertaining moments in the film (particularly during the finale), and it definitely leaves you wanting more (which I suppose is a good problem to have). At the same time, no one really feels overplayed either, so I suppose this approach of making Deadpool the primary focus while swapping out whichever character he's meant to interact with has both its benefits and its flaws.

I think it's also worth noting that your mileage may vary when it comes to the more emotionally straight-laced elements of the film. As a fan of the comics from which this character spawned, I greatly appreciate Ryan Reynolds and pals taking the time to inject a little heart and tragedy into the story of Wade Wilson, rather than just making him a taco-eating meme machine. It balances out some of the more outlandish comedic moments, but some will definitely find themselves wishing that the film would just get on with it, rather than coming to a full-stop every so often in order to hit the requisite emotional beats. It also doesn't help that, for all the sarcastic winks and nods the movie tosses towards various superhero clichés, it very much falls victim to several of the conventions it sets out to mock (most notably, an over-reliance on the status quo).

These hang-ups, it's worth noting, are very minor; all in all, I actually enjoyed Deadpool 2 much more than I did the first one. Perhaps it's simply because it's free from being bogged down by all the origin story boxes that the first Deadpool needed to tick, but I found this sequel to just be objectively better. For as crass and irreverent as it gets, there's an undoubted feeling of refinement in how the filmmakers serve up their cartoonishly brutal displays of viscera and toilet humor. Is it as emotionally-engaging and conceptually-ambitious as something like Infinity War? Not by a long shot, but then it's not exactly trying to be. Deadpool 2 is the lone pull-my-finger gag amidst the monolithic, multi-billion dollar industry that is the modern superhero genre; it sets out to keep everyone humble and smiling, and it goes about accomplishing this task with a sardonic grin on its face. My only hope is that, as Deadpool continues his steady rise to the top of the X-Men franchise, Ryan Reynolds and friends don't fly too close to the sun on future installments. We don't need a Deadpool Cinematic Universe; I'd be perfectly happy to get a solid, heartfelt action-comedy every few years (though some innovation definitely wouldn't hurt here and there). Seeing how they've approached Deadpool 2, I see no reason to temper my expectations for the inevitable third entry. I'll be there opening night, excited and ready for more.