Deadpool Series (2016–Present)

Deadpool Series (2016–Present)

Deadpool was a comic book superhero created by Rob Liefeld for Marvel Comics. Liefeld has said that he got the name from the final Clint Eastwood Dirty Harry film: The Dead Pool (1988). A film was a long sought–to–be–made project by actor Ryan Reynolds and it was in 2015, with a 2016 release. Deadpool, as portrayed in the 2016 film, is a crass and sarcastic superhero born out of revenge from a experiment done on a hitman who was terminally ill. The film was a roaring success at the box office and set off a chain of R rated superhero films, some being better than others in this reviewer’s opinion. A sequel followed the 2016 Deadpool film in 2018. Below are the reviews for the hit series.   

Deadpool (2016)

C – 108m
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 – Widescreen
A.K.A.: X–Men Origins: Deadpool, X–Men: Deadpool
Characters By: Geoff Johns, Rob Liefeld, Len Wein, Dave Cockrum, Fabian Nicieza, Grant Morrison, Joe Kelly, Ed McGuinness, Frank Quitely, Joe Madureia and Shawn Martinborough.
Screenplay By: Rhett Reese and Paul Wenick
Exec. Prod.s: John J. Kelly, Stan Lee and Rhett Reese
Prod.: Ryan Reynolds
Dir.: Tim Miller
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Karan Soni, Ed Skrein, Michael Benyaer, Stefan Kapicic and Stan Lee.

A fast–talking mercenary with a morbid sense of humor is subjected to a rogue experiment that leaves him with accelerated healing powers and a quest for revenge. Delightfully morbid and sarcastic superhero film? Yes please! Ryan Reynolds finally hit his stride with this one and it paid off! The first R rated superhero film of the 20 – teens started a small rash of them. This is by far the best of the bunch. No complaints here! 

Trivia: Ryan Reynolds full body makeup took 8 hours to apply. Once it was on, he was not able to sit or lie down. Ryan Reynolds took his Deadpool costume without asking anyone. When 20th Century Fox found out, they just didn’t care and let him keep it. Ryan Reynolds says that Deadpool would be his last comic book superhero he’d play. This obviously left the door open for sequels or cameo appearances. While filming, Ryan Reynolds would visit sick kids in his Deadpool costume via the Make A Wish Foundation. It has been said by Ryan Reynolds that there are over 100 references throughout the film. This film was shot in 48 days.

Deadpool creator Rob Liefeld said he stole the name from the title of the final Dirty Harry film: The Dead Pool (1988). This was Tim Miller’s feature directorial debut. And finally: An example of this would be when Deadpool saws off his hand and sprays blood in Colossus’ face he says, “Are you there God? It’s me, Margaret.” This was the title of a Judy Blume coming of age novel where the teen girl gets her first experience with, “that delightful time of the month” (her first period).

Golden Globe nominated for: Best Picture – Musical Or Comedy and Best Actor In A Motion Picture – Musical Or Comedy – Ryan Reynolds.

Followed by: Deadpool 2 (2018).

Rated: [R] – Strong Violence And Language Throughout, Sexual Content & Graphic Nudity
Available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy

Deadpool 2 (2018)

C – 119m
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 – Widescreen
A.K.A.: Love Machine, Daisy, DP2
Screenplay By: Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick and Ryan Reynolds
Exec. Prod.: Stan Lee
Dir.: David Leitch
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Josh Brolin, Morena Baccarin, Julian Dennison, Zazie Beetz, T.J. Miller, Karan Soni, Eddie Marsan, Rob Delaney, Bill Skarsgard, Terry Crews, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, James McAvoy (uncredited), Evan Peters (uncredited) and Tye Sheridan (uncredited).

Foul–mouthed mutant mercenary Wade Wilson (A.K.A. Deadpool), brings together a team of fellow mutant rogues to protect a young boy with supernatural abilities from the brutal, time–traveling cyborg, Cable. Uproariously funny sequel to the 2016 hit film. This film was not received well by critics, except this one, but audiences liked it well enough. Ryan Reynolds and the gang are in fine form here and the jokes fly fast and furious. The story isn’t as good as the last one but there is enough of one to keep the film afloat and allow viewers their laughs at the jokes. To be fair there are some corny jokes here, that weren’t present in the first one, but they too are passible. Yes there is quite a bit of witty remarks too. If you liked the first film, you’ll likely like this film. If you didn’t like the first film, this isn’t for you. See it!

Trivia: On August 16, 2017, a stuntwoman named Joi Harris died while filming a stunt on a motorcycle. Production was stopped for two days. In one scene Deadpool refers to Cable saying, “Bring on One Eyed Willy,” which was the name of the pirate in: The Goonies (1985). The sequel was announced three days before the release of: Deadpool (2016). Brad Pitt met with director David Leitch to discuss playing Cable but he couldn’t commit due to scheduling conflicts. Dolph Lundgren, Mel Gibson, Kurt Russell, Bruce Willis, Alec Baldwin, Sylvester Stallone, Arold Schwarzenegger, Stephen Lang, Ron Perlman, Peirce Brosnan and David Harbour were all considered to play Cable. Russell Crowe was Deadpool co–creator Rob Liefeld’s choice for Cable. Michael Shannon was reportedly considered for the role of Cable, but dropped out due to scheduling conflicts.  

Rated: [R] – Strong Violence & Language Throughout, Sexual References & Brief Drug Material
Available on 4K & Regular Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy

It (1990) & It (2017)

It (1990)

C. – 192m. (Original Cut), 187 (DVD & Blu–ray)
Format: 1.33:1 – Fullscreen & 1.85:1 – Widescreen
A.K.A.: Stephen King’s It
Dir.: Tommy Lee Wallace. Novel by Stephen King.
Starring: Harry Anderson, Dennis Christopher, Richard Masur, Annette O’Toole, Tim Reid, Jonathan Brandis, John Ritter, Richard Thomas, Tim Curry and Olivia Hussey.

A group of school–bullied teens get stalked by a monstrous clown during the summer; years later they reunite as adults and vow to take down the clown who has just reappeared. The film is mild in terms of how everything looks decades on from when it was made but it still boasts of fine performances by the cast, particularly Curry. Worth a watch on a rainy day.

Some trivia: Tim Curry gave such a creepy performance as Pennywise the monstrous clown that everyone avoided him during the production. Years later he was offered a chance to reprise the role in the remake but turned it down. Tim Curry was reluctant to take the role because of a bad experience with heavy makeup in Legend (1985). Upon hearing this, the director minimized the makeup for Curry. Sadly Jonathan Brandis and John Ritter died suddenly in 2003. Brandis committed suicide by hanging himself, while Ritter suffered an unexpected and fatal Aortic Dissection. And finally, on the day that the shoot called for the kids to go into the sewer, it was actually raining – thus saving the filmmakers the trouble of creating fake rain.

Rated: [Unrated] or [R] – Violence & Language.

Out Of Print on VHS and Laserdisc, but Available on DVD and Blu–Ray.

IT (2017) Movie Poster

It (2017)

A.K.A.: Stephen King’s It Chapter 1, Stephen King’s It Part 1 and It: Chapter 1

C. – 135m.
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 – Widescreen

Starring: Bill Skarsgard, Sophia Lillis.

A group of teens have a year and change of growing up terrorized by the school bullies and a monstrous clown. It should be noted for those who are not impressed with the film’s ending and feel that there is a massive amount missing from the film, including the ending of the book, that this is just the first half of the story. While a ton of material was left out, there is still (at the time of this writing) a part two pending release. This is a ton darker than the original with much better C.G.I. Perhaps a tad too dark since it features an un–needed incest pedophilia sub–plot. Very well done though and the performances are stellar. Skarsgard’s insane clown is played with gusto and the aid of a plethora of C.G.I. His performance stands out here, as is the performance of Lillis as Beverly!

Some trivia: Skarsgard felt a ton of pressure to play the role of Pennywise to the same flamboyant level as Tim Curry, since Curry’s performance was widely praised in the original 1990 film. Those are really Skarsgard’s eyes that look in different directions in the film, not C.G.I.! The number 27 is often associated with this story; in the film it is mentioned that every 27 years Pennywise returns to Derry; this film was purposefully set to be released 27 years after the original 1990 mini–series aired on TV; the actor Jonathan Brandis, from the original film, died at age 27 (suicide by hanging), and this film was released one month after Bill Skarsgard’s 27th birthday! Skarsgard reportedly trained with a contortionist for his role in the film and yes, he does speak Swedish in the film.

Skarsgard was the fourth actor offered the role of Pennywise. Tim Curry was offered it first as a chance for him to reprise the role, but her turned it down. Then Ben Mendelsohn and Will Poulter were offered the role. The slideshow scene was a nod to Stephen King’s story: The Sun Dog. Chloe Grace Moetz, best known for playing Carrie in the 2013 version of that story, was originally considered for the role of Beverly here but was rejected due to her age when the film finally got around to being shot. The woman that you see in the film, Sophia Lillis, was cast instead. The novel took place in 1957 and 1958, where–as this film takes place in 1988 and 1989. The film, believe it or not, was in pre–production for seven years before the film even started shooting. And finally, the film’s shooting wrapped (finished) one day before Stephen King (the author of the book) turned 69 years old – 9/20/2016 (King’s birthday being 9/21/1947).   

A personal note: When I saw this it was 9/9/2017 with Thomas Sawyer and Cory Fairfield. It was part of a celebration of my 30th birthday. We went to Chunky’s Cinema Pub in Nashua, NH and had drinks and watched the film. The boys had food too. The theater had professional people dressed in creepy clown masks stalking around the theater scaring the hell out of patrons who were there in droves to see the film. Mostly they scared the women of the crowds.      

Rated: [R] – Violence / Horror, Scary Images, & Language

Available On 4K Blu–ray, Blu–ray, DVD and Digital Copy.