Upon being released in February 2016, Deadpool claimed a large following. People came to love the foul-mouthed, sword wielding anti-hero who defied the odds. A parody of action movies, cheesy romcoms, and sci-fi blockbusters, audiences adored the laughs, the outrageous language, and the fresh script. Two years later, with the sequel now showing, I saw the latest one with Nick.

Must see viewing

My friend really wanted to see the movie on opening day, which just shows that this was must see action. He’s a movie buff who knows his films, and said that the first one ‘was awesome’. I couldn’t agree more. After buying his cider, we sashayed to the cinemas. For me, the movie was okay. It was funny, and unique just like the original. Fast paced and confrontational, the picture kept you guessing. In the trailer, you may have come across a mention of the ‘x force’, as well as a superhero audition. This, and the ensuing parachute scene, was some of the funnier moments.

I know they were trying to parody Logan, but the whole idea of saving a precocious kid, was a distraction. Shame, since they spent too much time trying to build this up. Cable (Josh Brolin) is likewise impressive as the unrelenting baddie, reminiscent perhaps of Terminator? Altogether, the production attempts to merge elements from Logan and Terminator while excelling in neither. There’s also a scene where Deadpool dodges bullets like a samurai. What a novel way to evade magazines. However, my favourite role in this film was Dopinder, the taxi guy. His first scene was hilarious, where he unleashes a priceless scream after DP crashes through his cab. The character is obviously a satire of Mohinder Suresh, the former genetics professor in Heroes. Suresh is likewise a taxi driver in New York, but Dopinder takes it easy. He’s far from being the brains behind a team of superheroes.

Directorial mess

The film, like the first, remains r-rated due to sex and nudity, violence, and blood and gore. Having said that, this installment is not for the faint hearted. There was also a change in director between the two editions. While Tim Miller helmed the first one, David Leitch fronted 2.0. Nick asked me whether I saw Atomic Blonde or John Wick, both of which the latter also directed. Having seen John Wick, there were some slight similarities between the action scenes of that movie and this one. Call it directorial idiosyncrasies.

Deserving

The film does not only parody blockbusters, but also spoofs cliché 90s songs. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think that this was straight out of Generation X. You could say the film has earned its certified fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Deadpool is good as is: a plus time filler but nothing special. I guess after seeing so many sequels, I get sequelitis; but Nick thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I mean, who wouldn’t want to be Deadpool? Chasing bad guys from Hong Kong to Sicily, making peace with his sworn enemies, cracking jokes along the way?

**1/2(out of four stars)