Deadpool

7.5/10

The 2016 season of the superhero is upon us. With Civil War, X-Men: Apocalypse, Batman v Superman, Suicide Squad, and Doctor Strange on the horizon, 2016 is shaping up to be a seminal year for the genre. Yet, ironically, the year kicks off with a hero that is in its very essence designed to subvert the genre, Deadpool, the fourth wall breaking, Merc with a mouth. This film is basically Ryan Reynolds riffing on the superhero genre and making fart and sex jokes, while basically killing everyone who isn’t a good guy in brutal fashion. The biggest surprise of all of it, is that it is buckets of awesome non-stop fun. 

My only pseudo criticism is that I don’t know if there was a distinction between the character (Deadpool) and the Actor (Ryan Reynolds) begins, so intertwined are their characters. The movie left me questioning whether Deadpool would feel if he wasn’t played by Ryan Reynolds. How much would a new actor dominate or take over the character? I think I want to see Deadpool portrayed by different actors all the time, just to keep it fresh.  It’s this meta question that plagues me, but it’s a meta kind of film so I’m even over my own self-doubt.  

Deadpool is slick, foul mouthed, cartoonish and meta – but it’s a damn fun time.

Watch this if you liked: Guardians of the Galaxy, Ant Man, X-Men: Days of Future Past

The Revenant

8.5/10

Based on a true story of a frontier scout who was mauled by a grizzly and survived on his own in the wilderness, the Revenant is visual, visceral and hard-hitting. Alejandro Inarritu’s frontier epic is filled with gorgeous, naturally lit nature shots that give the film transcendence. Leonardo DiCaprio’s grunting and deeply believable performance, which sees him get annihilated the whole film and survive incredible odds, may not be his best role ever, yet it provided the revenant with an emotional core like no other.

I enjoyed the Revenant – it reminded me of Terence Malick Films, specifically “the New World” and “Days of Heaven”. Amidst all the action, it communicated a powerful message about the abuse of nature and indigenous cultures, and how these forces in-turn abuse and scar the oppressors. It was deep, had powerful action sequences and didn’t drag.

Recommended.

Watch this if you liked: The New World, Days of Heaven, Unforgiven