It almost seems a miracle that Deadpool 3 got to the screen. Originally announced when the Marvel character was still at 20th Century Fox, it was shelved during the deal with Disney and questions were thrown up as to whether the House of Mouse would allow such a sweary character into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Now, it has finally arrived, and it could be the answer to saving the once all-conquering studio, so much so that even the Merc with the Mouth calls himself Marvel Jesus! It also brings back another fan favourite and the result is one of the most fun you’ll have at the cinema all year.

Wade Wilson has given up being Deadpool and is struggling with his life. His girlfriend Vanessa is no longer around; he struggles with a regular job and has to flatshare with Blind Al. That is until he is brought into the TVA by Mr Paradox, who tells him that his world is imploding on itself and the only answer is to find Wolverine. A challenging task, considering the former X-Man is dead. If he finds him alive, Logan will want to join in a war that could save Deadpool’s world from destruction.

Let’s immediately get this out: the plot is a mess. Using the multiverse and timelines is an easy excuse to bounce from one world to another and do the impossible, which is to bring the dead back to life. If you want an intelligent storyline that goes from A to B to C, forget it. You won’t get it here. You get everything you’d expect from a Deadpool movie and then some.

Direct Shawn Levy and his team of writers, including himself, go all out for fast-pacing, full-on action sequences and tons of swearing as if they had to make a point that they are now under the Disney banner and they want people to know that even the powerhouse of a studio couldn’t stop them.

The film begins with the red-suited one digging up a very dead Wolverine and using his bones to fight off a group of TVA agents in the most grisly, bloody and violent manner while the bones have the credits scratched across them. It goes into overdrive from that moment, with even more bloody violence than a Rambo film could handle. There’s not a single fight scene that doesn’t have gallons of blood, limbs and guts exploding all over the place, usually to a needle-drop song like *Nsync’s Bye Bye Bye.

What has always worked with these films is the self-deprecating breaking of the fourth wall, where Deadpool will turn to the audience to make some sweary comment, which happens all through. It also deals with the whole 20th Century Fox-Disney deal in only the way that a Deadpool movie could do: by calling it out every chance it gets. So much so that it even plays its own homage to the days when the old studio had a handful of Marvel characters under its belt.

The fun doesn’t stop there. This film is built for fans and geeks of the Marvel world. It has the most unexpected, left-field easter eggs and cameos you will ever see. You will be far from correct if you think you know who will appear in this movie. These all help with the manic and often bizarre behaviour of the two leads and the world they encounter, including a complete Mad Max rip-off that they gleefully acknowledge.

The real question is, does the partnership work. Of course, it does. Ryan Reynolds has become so synonymous with the character of Deadpool that even his Wrexham supporters chant the character’s name during matches. He is as intelligent and witty as ever, using the foul-mouthed attitude in the same way that Malcolm Tucker was so inventive with swearing in The Thick of It. Put him up against the grumpy, constantly angry Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, and you have almost the perfect comedy double act. The straight guy and the wisecracker. Their friendship off-screen helps with the chemistry between these two superhero superstars. Whether they are fighting each other or anyone else, it is creative, always laugh-out-loud funny, and you crave more.

Elsewhere, Matthew MacFadyen seems to be having a blast as Mr Paradox after playing it straight in Succession. At the same time, Emma Corrin is superb as the film’s villain, and we could do with more of this character as she seems far more interesting than other baddies in previous Marvel films.

Deadpool & Wolverine had me laughing from start to finish, including the post-credit sequence. It is childish, brutal and often silly but sometimes that is all we need. It’s been a long time since I have had this much fun in the cinema, and if this is the road that Marvel is going down in the future, then we should be back to the days when superhero movies didn’t take themselves so seriously.

4 out of 5

Director: Shawn Levy

Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin, Matthew MacFadyen, Morena Baccarin, Rob Delaney, Leslie Uggams

Written by: Ryan Reynolds, Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick, Zeb Wells, Shawn Levy, (based on the characters created) Rob Liefeld and Fabian Nicieza

Running Time: 127 mins

Cert: 15

Release date: 25th July 2024