[Watch our review above or read it below!]

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Deadpool and Wolverine comes with huge expectations and great responsibility at a time when the Marvel machine has been losing steam. So, is this the Marvel saviour? While the film may fall a few notches short of glorious perfection, it certainly makes a strong case for being this universe’s current deliverer.

The film aims for pure entertainment – and it truly delivers. From the first moments, Deadpool 3 finds director Shawn Levy (Night at the Museum, Real Steel, Free Guy) picking up the tone established in the Deadpool franchise and confidently running with it. It’s quickly clear that fans are in very safe hands. There are quips, sight gags, and meta-references aplenty, so much so that there’s inherent rewatch value to catch it all. And, importantly, the Deadpool world’s penchant for blood, guts, cussing, and all-round non-PC mayhem remains intact: the MCU hasn’t seen this before.

Ryan Reynolds is certainly very comfortable as the Merc with the Mouth at this point. He is, as expected, the embodiment of Wade Wilson/Deadpool, and his high-energy performance is as magnetic as it is, purposely so, enjoyably exhausting. But as the title makes clear, this is a two-man show. Hugh Jackman delivers another solid turn as Wolverine – again weathered, angry, and pained, although a few steps less extreme than his depiction in Logan.

The two characters are perfect opposites, making them ideal for a fun buddy film. There’s plenty of bickering and ultra-violent, giddily entertaining fights between the two. And, importantly, the buddy love and emotional side of things is there too – and the pathos lands well when it arises. It often comes down to the palpable chemistry between Reynolds and Jackman. The seasoned performers play off each other with ease and with clear knowledge of what their audience wants. Whether they’re bickering over the best way to take down a horde of enemies or sharing a rare moment of vulnerability, the pair keep the energy high and the laughs coming.

While Deadpool & Wolverine has plenty of fun with its fourth wall-breaking disses of the superhero film genre and the MCU in particular, it still draws heavily from some of the more, shall we say, dated and tired elements of Marvel’s storytelling techniques. The overall plot, of course, has been crafted to allow for plenty of fan service, an array of cameos, and amiable redemption arcs for our heroes, but it’s a familiar exercise in Marvel plot-crafting. Villain Cassandra Nova, for example, isn’t a very interesting antagonist – her surface-level motivations don’t provide much engagement either. Also lacking is the film’s flimsily presented multiverse angle, which haphazardly piggybacks on what was explored in Loki (arguably the best Marvel series on Disney+). It’s nice to have Deadpool telling us what’s being mocked, but the jabs are certainly softened if they’re hitting similar shortcomings.

Visually, Deadpool & Wolverine is glossy and colourful, and the action sequences are very well choreographed, with a blend of humour and brutality in equal measure. That being said, there is the occasional overuse of CG sheen – a type of “is that AI?” glossiness used to smoothen out a visual or drive visual effects. There wasn’t a reliance on it exactly, but there were more than a few moments I found myself distracted by the digital glaze.

There’s no denying just how much fun this film is. It may not reinvent the wheel, but it certainly gives it a shiny new spin. With its blend of irreverent humour, high-octane action, heartwarming moments, and cameo-driven treats that will have Marvel fans grinning from ear to ear, Deadpool & Wolverine may very well be the jolt of energy that the Marvel Cinematic Universe needs right now.