When Logan was released in 2017, everyone thought it was the last ride for Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, including Jackman himself. It appears modern superhero movies are taking cues from pro wrestling because retirements don’t last long anymore. 

Deadpool & Wolverine is the third Deadpool movie and the grand return of Jackman’s Wolverine. The basic premise is that after Wolverine died in Logan, the timeline that Deadpool also exists is in danger of falling apart. While searching for purpose in life, Deadpool attempts to correct this by scouring multiple timelines for a replacement Wolverine.

The setup for the movie is surprisingly flimsy, and it’s just there to excuse the gratuitous amount of crossover characters and fourth-wall-breaking references. At the very least, it doesn’t retroactively ruin the end of Logan and makes it clear that version of Wolverine can’t be brought back. 

What really holds the movie up is that the writing is the sharpest of all three Deadpool movies and it does a great job of poking fun at Disney’s recent fumbles with Marvel movies. It also acts as a sendoff for many of the Fox-produced Marvel movie characters, and I’d be lying if I said all those cameos weren’t fun to watch.

While the script has its share of clever jokes and wacky fun, the film is quite low-brow. This isn’t the thinking man’s film, and it comes across, for lack of a better word, as dumb, even by comic book movie standards. The sexual jokes, high level of gore, and constant winking at the camera are all things that will make some viewers cringe. That being said, as a fan of comic book stupidity when done right, I was grinning for most of this movie’s runtime.

If you were a fan of Deadpool from the days when he was just an obscure joke character, then you’ve probably been waiting for this exact movie for decades. This is the epitome of what the character is all about. Gratuitous violence, constant references and jabs at other superheroes, and a complete lack of seriousness in its approach to the plot. And there are moments when the movie tries to tug at your heartstrings, which are pretty cheesy.

It’s hard to tell what effect this plot will have on the larger Marvel universe. There are hints that the future will rely on the X-Men license pretty heavily, but all that could have nothing to do with this movie. Then again, it doesn’t really matter because the movie is fine as a farewell to the old era of Marvel that laid the foundation for what exists now. 

Deadpool & Wolverine is complete nonsense in the very best way. Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman have great chemistry, and this vehicle makes great use of them both. It may be a bad movie plot-wise, but it’s a great one for just good old dumb fun.

Author Bio:

Ulises Duenas is a senior writer and film critic at Highbrow Magazine.

For Highbrow Magazine