'Deadpool 2' is a wisecracking, chaotically staged action romp
When it came out in 2016, the extreme jokiness of 鈥淒eadpool鈥� was something relatively new to the Marvel franchise, but, in the interim, many of the non-鈥淒eadpool鈥� Marvel movies have followed its lead. This means that 鈥淒eadpool 2,鈥� directed by David Leitch, isn鈥檛 a novelty anymore. Ryan Reynold鈥檚 Wade Wilson aka Deadpool is as wisecracky as ever, and some of the franchise鈥檚 meta jokes, like its swipes at the DC Comics movies, or Wolverine, hit the target. Just as many of the jokes don鈥檛, and when the movie isn鈥檛 being goofy, it鈥檚 a pretty standard, chaotically staged action romp. The plotline, such as it is, involves Wade and his X-Force crew attempting to protect the teen mutant Russell aka Firefist (Julian Dennison) from sundry interlopers. Josh Brolin, as the time-traveling Cable, is one of them (sort of). Zazie Beetz as Domino is the freshest new face. A mock credit sequence riffing on the snazzy openers to the James Bond movies is fun. All in all, I prefer a Marvel movie that doesn鈥檛 take itself seriously, but the nonstop unseriousness of 鈥淒eadpool 2鈥� can wear you down, too. Grade: B- (Rated R for strong violence and language throughout, sexual references, and brief drug material.)
