When things fall apart and evil mutant Cable (Brolin) arrives from the future to cause havoc, the merc with the mouth Wade Wilson, AKA Deadpool (Reynolds), steps up to face down the tide of villainy. Attempting to save angry and confused young mutant Russell (Dennison) from taking the wrong path in life, Deadpool creates his own crack team - the X-Force – to aid his personal mission. But, this is Deadpool, and things are never quite as straightforward as a synopsis may suggest,

 

Not an awful lot is safe from Deadpool – pretty much anything goes and, in this worthy sequel, the same very much applies. That’s not to say that everything is simply just bigger and badder, because it isn’t, in a strange way it’s almost a more stripped back sequel (hear me out!). The gags are there, but they don’t arrive quite as thick and fast as they did previously, the action is bigger and more frantic, however, but it appears slightly less frequently and where the original Deadpool had a paper-thin story, Deadpool 2 carries a stronger narrative and goes for the emotional jugular at times too. It’s a stronger sequel storywise, not as smart humour-wise – and that is in no way a negative for the movie to bear.

 

Ryan Reynolds obviously returns to the role he now utterly owns, and this time around Josh Brolin’s straight-talking, arse-kicking Cable is his opposite and the two are so well matched together. Similarly, Julian Dennison stepped away from his hunt for the wilderpeople and is great to watch as the fire-throwing Firefist, and also carries an interesting character angle. The wonderfully named Zazie Beetz is also a lot of fun as the luck-manipulating Domino. The members of X-Force are great for their parts and this is clearly a cast having some fun (ah, the joy of Peter).

 

The ingredients that made Deadpool such a success still live on here, but just with a more robust story. The DCEU, Logan, creepy old white men, Dubstep, Enya – none of them escapes the madness (and that’s before the plethora of superb post-credits scene). It’s still plainly ridiculous and utterly self-aware, but, crucially, the movie doesn’t buckle under the weight of itself. John Wick and Atomic Blonde director David Leitch ‘gets’ action and crafts some great looking scenes here for those wanting to see the violent stuff. It probably would’ve been very easy to ramp up everything that made the original so fun, but the team here keep it consistent and, if anything, make it more interesting by having Deadpool be pretty much depressed for a lot of the movie. The movie shoots right for your feels at certain parts too, so strap in.

 

It’s unnecessary to say at this point, but if you can handle a bit of ridiculousness and low-brow humour, then Deadpool 2 will absolutely float your boat. A stronger story helps elevate this sequel, and the inclusion of Cable is the glue that holds it together. Reynolds has crafted a wonderful character and one that I look forward to seeing for another ride. Plus, any movie that can include a scene with toddler's legs and that Basic Instinct moment is a win for me.

 

Yes, there’s tea bagging, also.