Deadpool & Wolverine is a highly entertaining movie filled with well-executed moments that pay tribute to fans of this franchise. The action is immensely satisfying, the character interactions are loads of fun, and some of its ideas are genuinely clever. That said, it loses the sincerity that made the first two Deadpool movies shine, in a plot where shallow jokes overshadow thin emotional grounding.
The film opens with Deadpool being rejected from the Avengers in 2018, who we’re told exist in the 616 “Sacred Timeline”. His rejection leads to a spiral of self-confidence and insecurity leading him to take a mediocre job as a used car salesmen. His fortune changes when TVA informs him that his timeline is dying because of Logan’s death as the “anchor being”/. The TVA plans to kill earth 1005 earlier than it will die naturally but offers Deadpool the chance escape and serve a higher purpose in the Sacred Timeline.
After refusing, Deadpool tries to recruit a different Wolverine to replace and save his timeline, but the TVA claims this doesn’t work. Deadpool and Wolverine are then sent to the void of rejected characters from various obscure timelines and have to escape in the hope that they may be able to save their own worlds. Along the way they have to deal with the ruler of the void, Cassandra Nova, who after attempting to kill them, becomes hellbent on destroying every timeline in existence so that only the void will exist where she will rule over everyone.
There are so many moments in this film that really honour fans of the comic books and X-Men franchise in a way that previous films never have. From the yellow Wolverine suit complete with a mask, to blowout action scenes with all the blood and gore you’d expect from a Wolverine and Deadpool battle. The montage of various comic-accurate Wolverine variants filled with deep cuts and references, is a highlight.
Tonally, this film leans heavily into the more unhinged Deadpool comic books. Filled with senseless violence, a chaotic plot and drenched with hyper ironic dialogue throughout. This can be super fun, like when a hundred or so Deadpool variants exit through a portal that sets up the most absurdly satisfying action sequence with impressively executed tracking shot. At some point though, this tone can get tiring.
Deadpool & Wolverine pushes the fourth-wall irony to such an extreme that there is little sincerity left. What made the first Deadpool magical was that under the veil of cynicism, it was sincere. Wade was given emotional depth. As a former special forces agent who was dishonourably discharged, he devolved into a morally bankrupt mercenary faced with terminal cancer. In this film, he barely resembles that character and feels more like Ryan Reynolds doing two-hours of non-stop post-ironic jokes steeped in corporate cynicism. For those who are well-versed in the obscure history of cancelled Marvel movies, there are plenty of laughs to be had, and for the rest of the audience, a barrage of quippy explainers tells what you need to know. Even still, there is something remarkable about watching Reynolds, who spent nearly a decade campaigning for a proper Deadpool movie to be made, so effortlessly perfect a role that was made for him. He is endlessly charming and hilarious— his performance is perhaps the most well-realised comic book adaptation to ever make it to the screen. It just feels right.
To its credit, the movie does slow down for some serious moments. Both titular characters are given an emotional background. Deadpool’s insecurity is that he’s an insignificant loser who will never matter. He’ll worries he’ll never be a world-saving hero like the Avengers, or even the X-Men. As for Wolverine, we learn that this variant left the X-Men to die when they needed him most.
Sadly, these backstories feel like an afterthought that was layered on top of an otherwise loud and busy movie. We learn about Wolverine’s past through a series of flashbacks that mostly involve Hugh Jackman solemnly reciting exposition by a campfire. His guilt is only worsened by the fact that he went on an indiscriminate killing spree in the aftermath of his failure. It’s sentimental, but it’s the bare minimum we need to feel who this character is. One particularly potent moment though was when Dafne Keene’s character Laura speaks to him, and her words echo in Wolverine’s head during his heroic act. Her short performance was outstanding, and really held gravitas anytime she was on screen.
Deadpool’s backstory gets a little more time, as the opening scenes are dedicated to his rejection from the Avengers and subsequent mid-life crisis. Later on, a peek inside his memories reveal that Vanessa left him because of this spiral. The best part of this flashback is that it reminds you how strong the chemistry is between Wade and Vanessa, but after this it’s relegated to the sidelines. Vanessa is nowhere to be found for the rest of the movie except for a glorified cameo in the opening and closing scenes. It’s hard to care when the emotional struggle is mostly peripheral. We hardly see Deadpool deal with his insecurity for more a few seconds. Sure, he sulks to Wolverine while in the diner, but he spends every breath after blurting lines of hyper-irony in the loudest voice possible, never having a real moment. And while Deadpool has always been hugely ironic, the first two films revealed that behind the jokes, Wade is hiding real pain. Here he just seems invincible, arrogant, and quite literally has a messiah complex. While hilarious at times, it diminishes any attempt for the story to feel like a real challenge.
Because of this, character motivations come across as shallow and don’t hold much weight by the finale. I didn’t find myself thinking about this Wolverine’s tragic past during the climax of the movie. I wasn’t picturing what he’d been through and how it would feel to try to make up for it. The closest thing we get to a real moment of vulnerability comes in the final scene where Deadpool and Wolverine argue over who should sacrifice themselves to save the universe. By this point though, the stakes have changed so many times that we either can’t keep track, or simply don’t care anymore. It’s this problem which prevents the movie from ever having any tension. None of the problems ever seem out of reach, we never fear that the characters might fail. Perhaps it would matter more if Deadpool & Wolverine at least had to learn something to save the day. The idea of a broken Wolverine teaching Deadpool how to be a hero is a great concept. Sadly, the story doesn’t ask them to learn anything, and their final act of sacrifice ultimately amounts to nothing more than holding hands and stopping a MacGuffin. Even Cassandra Nova, whose powers have been demonstrated to be nearly beyond limits, doesn’t become an actual threat in the climax. She just powers a machine to destroy the multiverse rather than use the ingenuity of her abilities to stop the heroes.
A good story should have an audience able to grapple with the elements that will drive the final showdown of the movie. Foreshadowing, character building and setting up clear points of tension all mean that the audience should feel the finale creeping up on them. Instead, Deadpool & Wolverine feels aimless for most of its runtime. Luckily, in between all this is a series of supremely entertaining scenes that combine excellently directed action, enigmatic performances, and genuinely hilarious moments that still make this a great film.
What is interesting is that Deadpool & Wolverine does not suffer from the ailments that everyone predicted it would. It is not overstuffed with gratuitous cameos or rehashing of old X-Men references. As someone who watched all 13 X-Men movies in the leadup to this release, barely any of the past events are mentioned. In fact, one thing this film should be commended for is the restraint it demonstrates with regard to callbacks. SPOILER—none of the core X-Men cast return, neither from the original films or the prequels. Sure, Pyro and Azazel are there amongst a sprinkling of background characters, but the core team is nowhere to be found. Instead, it chooses to give a small few characters one final sendoff, or in the case of Gambit, a very short-lived debut. The return of Blade, Elektra, X-23 and even Chris Evans’ Human Torch is not just satisfying, it’s probably the smartest element of meta-storytelling in the movie. Deadpool has always been a reject, and he opens the movie admitting to the audience that even he’s surprised he ended up getting such a successful trilogy. The choice then to highlight forgotten characters who were victims of cancellations, corporate stuff-ups, and a tumultuous history of Fox-owned Marvel properties is an admirably clever one. Rather than having the popular band of X-Men or even Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man show up for cheers, these characters get one final sendoff that actually lands the most emotional moment of the movie for me.
To its strength, Deadpool & Wolverine is a great legacy movie that still manages to tell a refreshing new story about Wade and Logan teaming up. It should be commended for adding some emotional weight to its story, even if that’s thin at times. The hyper-violent fights, deep-cut references and great character moments make this a hell of a fun time throughout.
