This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

As much stand-up comic as comic-book character, "Deadpool" is a scalding-hot satire on the superhero genre that gives star Ryan Reynolds the snarky platform he's always needed.

Reynolds plays Deadpool, a Marvel Comics character who is as fast with a sarcastic quip as he is with his guns and katana swords. He uses them all liberally in his rampage to capture his nemesis, the super-strong mutant Ajax (Ed Skrein).

Midcarnage, Deadpool narrates his own flashbacks to explain his origins as mercenary Wade Wilson, who abandoned his super-hot girlfriend, Vanessa ("Gotham's" Morena Baccarin), after a cancer diagnosis, for which he endured torturous treatment by Ajax that gave him recuperative superpowers.

Director Tim Miller, an animator and visual-effects guy making his feature directing debut, oversees a joke-and-profanity-laden script (by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick) that frequently mocks the genre, breaks the fourth wall and shreds the "X-Men" franchise that spawned it. Things drag in the movie's overly serious middle section, but Reynolds' gift for rapid-fire putdowns adds spice to the frenetic action.

'Deadpool'

Opening Friday, Feb. 12, in theaters everywhere; rated R for strong violence and language throughout, sexual content and graphic nudity; 107 minutes.