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In 2008 there was a parody film called Superhero Movie. It followed on from Scary Movie, Not Another Teen Movie and Date Movie in spoofing popular genre pictures and like all those projects, it was utterly terrible. Here we are though with Deadpool & Wolverine, undoubtedly one of the blockbuster movies of the Summer, and it is doing essentially the same thing. Of course the budget and creative forces behind it are considerably better but this is pretty much Superhero Movie with more a lot more money behind it, far superior writing and a much better cast.

To a large extent that is what the 20th Century Fox’s Deadpool films have always been though. The first missed the mark on this a little, coming out six years after Kick-Ass had already effectively punctured the comic book movie bubble but Deadpool 2 landed at a better time with a release only three weeks after Marvel Studio’s Avengers: Infinity War and with a whole load on newly established tropes and conventions to mock. Back then there was a limit to how much they could reference the work of that rival company but now Disney who already own Marvel have bought Fox as well so the legal rights gloves are off. Deadpool is now an MCU property and affectionately taking the mickey out of family members is on the cards.

The result of this is two fold but in some respects still a bit restrained. Deadpool & Wolverine borrows a set up from one of the MCU shows to get its plot going, and there are lots of one liners about the current state of the MCU, both good and bad. There are also a lot of jokes about the very unDisney nature of this film series’ tendency toward quirky sex references (indeed not counting subsidiary companies this is the first Disney movie to be rated 15) so it’s not biting the hand that feeds so much as sucking on its fingers perhaps. Despite this, in terms of the other films and characters it riffs on this is still very much playing in the world of the X-Men.

First among these men of course is the other title character and after years of Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman ribbing each other, both in these movies and in interviews and tweets, it is great to have them finally teamed together. Not only is this a star vehicle for these two but it puts the characters they are most comfortable being alongside one another and the result is great. Reynolds has been running with his Deadpool schtick in too many other films recently but it is good to see it here where it belongs. In this context it’s bold, it’s irreverent and it’s funny.

When asked if she wanted to accompany me to this, my daughter said she would but she hadn’t seen the other Deadpool films. If that is something she is worried about then I can add about twenty films to that list. To say which would be a spoiler but there is no doubt that you need to have seen (and read) a fair amount to get every in joke. I think there is still fun to be had here if you’ve not though. The story does come second to the gags, just like in Superhero Movie and it’s ilk, but there is enough here to enjoy the journey even if you’re not totally familiar with the places you are passing through.

Like any parody, and I do include Deadpool 1 and 2 in this, this is maybe trying just a little too hard but it is still highly enjoyable. There were two bits of stunt casting I particularly enjoyed, one of which was in the last trailer and one of which is as of yet is still a secret, and it’s impossible not to feel good will for these people that have earned it in a range of previous movies. In the end the most successful pair up here is between the material and the audience and it feels nice to be a part of that.

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The Ripley Factor:

The internet has been going nuts since Lady Deadpool appeared in one of the promos with regard to who was playing her and I am very pleased to find the movie treats this with the attention it deserves. The reveal of who this is comes exactly where it should. Of all the female players though the most significant is Cassandra Nova, essayed brilliantly by Emma Corrin. They are not really able to run with this as much as they would in a film not so heavily built around two other characters but Corrin is having a great time and their scenes are a high point in a movie that is built around entirely its individual moments.

Sadly the narrative sidelines previous women from this series, like Morena Baccarin’s Vanessa and most criminally Brianna Hildebrand’s Negasonic Teenage Warhead but with so many successes elsewhere I’m not going to get my claws out because of that.

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