Mason Manuel on the Deadpool movie…
Though I like to think of myself as a critic of the fine wines of film, every once in a while I need a keg of fun mindless nerd fun. So every summer when Marvel/DC rolls out their latest comic book film, I’m there with everyone else at the premier dressed up in that cheap hero mask that I will never use again. But after so many repetitive nerd binges the buzz starts to dull. There have been SO many comic films over the past decade that even the awesome ones don’t feel as great as they would have, had we not been exposed to the same material before. Even the latest Avengers fell into rather mediocre reception. There needs to be a change. These films need to take chances and push boundaries to surprise and please audiences. Thanks to the recent Fantastic Four I never thought I’d say it but thank God that FOX has greenlit the movie for Deadpool, the most progressive comic film ever. I don’t mean progressive as in more roles for minorities in Hollywood or tackling social issues – no, I mean progressive as in we finally get a movie where a “hero” reacts the way anyone would with ultimate power who gets shot a bunch of times; with a bunch of showing off and “fucks” every time a bullet bites his ass. Trust me, we need this.
Part of the film’s already trademark cheekiness comes from the fact that it very nearly didn’t get made. Stuck in development hell for years, put in the rumor mill for longer, Deadpool was expected to never see the light of day outside of the awful X-Men Origins: Wolverine. It probably would have stayed that way had someone not accidentally released test footage online. The footage immediately took the world by storm and the following fan praise was the main reason the movie was finally given a greenlight according to Ryan Reynolds while on stage for Comic-Con. “You guys, the internet, fans, you guys made the studio do this. You bent their arms behind their backs, twisted their frigging necks, and here we are” he said addressing the fevered fans in front of him. A movie made for the fans, made possible by the fans. That’s how you get your cult following. But will it have the power to go mainstream? Recent similar examples say yes.
Director Matthew Vaughn is famous for his take on the comic-verse. From the fun PG-13 X-Men: First Class, to the “let’s just have fun and screw it” rated R take on Kick-Ass and Kingsman, Vaughn proved that fans more than love to have their heroes be a little more naughty than nice. Despite rumors hinting that the film had been worked into a PG-13 rating, a video released as an April Fools prank from the production team announced officially that the film would take full advantage of an R rating. While this has been done before with mediocre critical reception (cough – The Punisher – cough), what we have seen so far shows that Deadpool knows how to do it right. The guy is a psychotic mercenary after all. What’s the point in having twin Katanas and SMGs if you don’t get to use them to their full bloody extent? Though the film is said to be low-budget and being directed by newcomer Tim Miller, hopes are high that this is the comic film that we have been waiting for. Will it have the strength to be commercially successful? Only time will tell when it is released Valentines Day, February 14th 2016. Until then, let’s get fat on some chimichangas.
Mason Manuel
Originally published January 7, 2016. Updated April 15, 2018.
