The Plot

Indestructible, foul mouthed and morally flexible anti-hero Wade Wilson aka Deadpool finds himself very reluctantly caught up in a messy series of blood soaked events that pits him against fellow mutants, time travelling super soldiers and common decency.

The Good

Ryan Reynolds remains the perfect human embodiment of Marvel’s most gleefully anarchic creation. After failed attempts and a long wait in development hell the first Deadpool film saw him finally deliver on what fans always knew was going to be a very special combination of raw comedic charisma and ultra-violent mayhem. Reynolds unashamedly relishes the role and is once again relentless in doling out wise cracks and maniacal buffoonery. His abundant enthusiasm makes him the most enjoyable foul mouth machine gun you can imagine. While sequels tend towards diminished returns he at least has lost none of his shameless potency.

Expanding the Deadpool universe to include fan favourite characters like luck powered Domino and time travelling hard ass Cable  goes a long way to making this sequel an even more worthwhile crowd leaser. Josh Brolin does a good job of playing the surly cyborg straight man to Wade Wilson’s relentless provocations. Likewise the much debated casting of Zazie Beetz proves effective. Her Domino may look a little different than the iconic comic book incarnations but it’s otherwise hard to fault her suitably smug and self-assured performance.

Without spoiling any of the less advertised surprises the sequel continues to pack plenty of in jokes and 4^th wall breaking delights into a generally action packed trail of death and destruction. Familiar faces from the first film make welcome returns and all of the new additions serve to set up memorable moments. Those that loved the first film will no doubt welcome a super-sized second helping which sticks to much the same template.

After an attention grabbing opening the film at times flails erratically on its way to a final third that delivers many of the film’s more satisfying comedic punches and delivers the winning combination of characters that just might be enough to carry the franchise forward for further misadventures.

The Bad

The first big screen outing for Deadpool was a long awaited delight that provided a perfect antidote to the increasingly serious and decidedly family friendly comic book blockbusters. Unfortunately it’s tough to stretch that novelty factor into a second film. Audiences are already less easily shocked and know exactly what to expect from Deadpool’s distinctive dark comedy. While as expected Deadpool 2 throws plenty of CGI blood, one liners and new characters at audiences; this clearly improved budget can’t quite buy back the novel impact of Deadpool’s modest but well-crafted debut.

As an unlikely franchise Deadpool has plenty of slapstick sadism and knowing in jokes to dish out, where it falls a little short is in finding an urgent and coherent plot to tie things together. It’s obviously ironically hard to offer up fresh character arcs, new faces and more elaborate action sequences without resorting to the very blockbuster clichés Deadpool so wilfully seeks to lampoon.

The Ugly Truth

Deadpool 2 gives fans of the first film another chance to bask in the gleeful glory of Ryan Reynolds perfect casting. It also adds a shamelessly pumped up budget, expanded cast and plenty of senseless comedic violence. While far from perfect, or nearly as unexpected as its underdog predecessor, it’s a mostly satisfying slice of madcap mayhem.