Marvel-ous May Movies: Deadpool 2, Avengers Infinity War, and Solo A Star Wars Story

Marvelous May Movies!

As a cinema goer, this May was a slam dunk for geek girl and guy stories. The Marvel Cinematic Universe swaggered onto screens with another Avengers installment and the continuation of bad boy Deadpool’s story. The Galaxy Far Far Away brought us back in time to when Han Solo first started his space cowboy schtick. It was also a month for movies that were curiously offbeat like Charlize Theron’s indie, Tully, and movies that were not so curiously totally off the mark like Amy Schumer’s I Feel Pretty. And yet another G-rated talking dog movie. . . .ummm pass. Thankfully the duds were in the minority and the rad movies were out. of. this. world.

Here are the three movies that I crushed on in cinemas in May.



3. The Merc with a mouth, part two.

Deadpool 2 is back, baby. The rude, crude, and caustic merc with a mouth takes to the big screen in this follow up to his feature film. Deadpool 2, unfortunately named as it is, isn’t just a rehash of Wade’s misadventures and wickedly sharp sense of humor. The dark comedy and pop culture bashing and references (the snark aimed towards Batman Vs Superman and the entire D.C. universe had THIS Marvel loving girl giggle-snorting in her seat) are as rapid-fire as the bullets careening out of the many guns wielded by baddies and ‘heroes’ alike.

This Marvel flick has it all. Dramatic sacrifices, time-traveling assassins, and dubstep. A lot of dubstep.

This time, Deadpool tries his hand at being one of the X-Men, nearly kills himself in a glorious blaze, and ends up saddled with the responsibility of a teen potty-mouthed, pre-diabetic firestarter. Literally. The young New Zealander and mutant he meets in crisis mode can start fires in his hands with just a thought. So over it with his birth name Russell (Julian Dennison, Hunt For the Wilder people), the pyrokinetic teen much prefers to be known by his oh so creative new name, Firefist. After spending time locked behind institution walls and being tortured in a mutant ‘conversion therapy’ program helmed by a pedoish slash religious fanatic with his crew of white-clad mad scientists, the kid is ready to burn some sh*t down.




Wade does Wade and goes off script which leads to his trial run as an X-Men screeching to a halt and a stint behind bars with a power-blocking collar clamped around his neck. His body ravaged by cancer again, his plans for starting up a family of his own blasted to bits, and his Russian steel bae Colossus disappointed AF with him, Wade is at a low.

Jail-time and being ripped in half isn’t enough to cramp Wade’s style. With his squad of ridonkulous friends by his side (and keeping their eyes averted from his regrowing baby legs, and his not so baby peen, barely covered by a button-down shirt) his bad self hustles to do a whole lot of good.

Taxi-driver Dopinder (Karan Soni) and Domino (Zazie Beetz, Atlanta) a mutant blessed by lady luck herself are total scene stealers. Cyborg-assassin Cable (Josh Brolin, Avengers Infinity War) isn’t just a tropey superpowered baddie, although armored goliath Juggernaut is trope on trope on trope. Trope in triplicate. Well, Deadpool 2 can’t win ‘em all.




Stick around for the end of the credits to get some hilarious extra scenes. No, you don’t have to wait until the end of the CREDITS. I’m talking the two or so minutes of the quickie credits. Wait. You won’t regret it. Teaser for what you’ll see for your patience: a Wolverine cameo, a certain Ryan Reynolds role from the past…. (no, not Sandra Bullock’s rich Alaskan assistant from The Proposal).





2. That Movie Where Avengers Assemble….. Then Disassemble…

Raise your hand if Infinity War grabbed hold of your heart then drop kicked it into oblivion. The third Avengers flick had the whole spectrum of fans, from casual to superfans, fall to pieces. First of all, let’s take a moment to marvel at how Infinity War pulled together over twenty characters from the iconic universe-- many of which have multiple if not at least one movie to their name-- and fit them all on screen together without any of them being overlooked.

That’s a remarkable feat in and of itself-- to pull off a balancing act that gives each character a moment to completely be themselves and a key part of the plot. Watching Thor (Chris Hemsworth) meet the Guardians of the Galaxy and hit it off with the crew’s rabbit...I mean raccoon, Rocket, and simultaneously make Peter Quill/Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) question his second helpings and consider taking up a Bowflex regimen is just one example of the comedy hyped up on candy that characterizes the humor in this Avengers romp. Another gleefully charged collision of characters is when Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark/Iron Man catches Doctor Strange in an erm… compromising position.

This wacky humor accompanies this action-packed flick every step, dodge, and slash of the way. The script lends itself to conjuring up big laughs even as the drama and impending sense of doom and destruction mounts. It has a very Guardiansesque tone.




The performances and radiant personalities of many of the cast members in their roles as these most iconic characters have never been better. Tom Holland as Peter Parker still turns heads and both tickles our funny bones and warms our hearts in his portrayal of Spider-Man. Unlike Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield before him, Holland, a gifted gymnast in his own right and the youngest Spidey cast, captures the effervescent geeky enthusiasm of Peter and the web slinger’s fierce gravity-defying fighting style and bold moves. The passion Holland has for Peter Parker/Spider-Man radiates out from him in every scene he’s in and makes him one of the most entertaining and loveable characters. And that poignant final scene? Holland came up with it on his own!

Infinity War isn’t all slapstick comedy and dynamite characters. There’s also the plot. The story at the heart of Infinity War is worth admiration. Or at the very least, respect. Directors Anthony and Joe Russo and the team of screenwriters weave together narrative threads from all eighteen Marvel movies-- from the very beginning of the Marvel canon in 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger to Black Panther which premiered in February, a mere three months before Infinity War assembled in theatres.



Their knowledge and deft and deliberate efforts give us a tightly-plotted, astonishingly filmed, action extravaganza. Yes, Thanos is big, bad, and seemingly indestructible. The typical boss fight baddie in the last levels of a video game, or pages of a comic. But, actor Josh Brolin brings some humanity to the purple-skinned, ruffles potato chip chinned, extraterrestrial.

In some ways Infinity War is predictable. But in soooo many other ways it flips the script, or even straight up tears it into pieces and sets it on FIRE. The ending is unexpected, painful, and honestly kinda awesome that it wasn’t pussyfooted around for the sake of a happy ending. So check your attitude and misgivings at the door. Infinity War is a bold, dazzling, and completely kickass two and half hour escape that brings new meaning to the word fangasm.



1. Solo, HAN Solo.

Forget boy meets girl. Solo: A Stars Wars Story revolves more around smuggler meets wookie. Ditching the heavy space opera drama common to some of the earlier episodes of Star Wars, Solo is a jaunty romp that plays off western and heist movies. Han Solo is, after all, the OG space cowboy.

As a twenty-something wannabe pilot Han (Alden Ehrenreich, Hail Caesar!) looks for acceptance in all the wrong places. Fleeing his hard-knock life as a street urchin indebted to a giant centipede, Lady Proxima (Linda Hunt) with dozens of other homeless kids and teens, Han could imagine no brighter life than one with his girlfriend Qi’ra (Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones) by his side the not-so-criminal Bonnie to his criminal-to-survive Clyde. The two lovers are within inches of freedom when Qi’ra is snatched away by the Empire. Han makes it out and pledges to go back for Qi’ra. But until then, he steels himself for going it Solo. In case you were ever wondering the origin of his surname, this movie’s got you covered.

Booted out of the flight academy to become an Imperial Pilot, Han ends up enlisting in the military where surprise surprise he also finds he’s not exactly a good fit for the joyless and no nonsense Empire.




Enter Beckett (Woody Harrelson) and his crew. Running heists for organization Crimson Dawn helmed by crime lord Dryden Vos (Paul Bettany, Avengers Infinity War), brings Han ever closer to 1. hitting bank, 2. getting his own ship, and 3. rescuing Qi’ra. But before either of those can happen Han inadvertently runs into Qi’ra, who erm… already escaped. And is cozy with crime lord Dryden V. Like, sharing a loveseat couch cozy.

Lovestruck Han doesn’t have time to moon over Qi’ra’s return as she joins forces with him and the rest of Beckett’s crew to run the most impossible heist yet. Space pirates, intergalactic trains, and deadly black holes await the team. As does a high stakes Sabacc game and a scene-stealing interspecies BFF duo Lando (Donald Glover, Atlanta) and his droid L3-37 (Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Crashing).

Solo may be a Star Wars Story but it isn’t rigidly Star Wars. Instead, it’s a Star Warsy romp that doesn’t take itself too seriously until nearly the final two scenes. Is this Han the spitting image of Harrison Ford’s Han? Well, no. But Ehrenreich nails his cocky and roguish personality. He brings some naivete to the character that just shows his youth and how he hasn’t been completely hardened by the harshness and danger of the world. The fight scenes, special effects and settings like the oh so beloved Millennium Falcon and the many different planets the team lands on are intricately crafted, bold and totally immerse us in the lawless world.



With a charismatic lead, dynamite supporting characters and a punchy no holds barred plot, director Ron Howard’s Solo is big budget, big-hearted, and totally irresistible take on the earlier years of the iconic shoot-first-ask-later, Han Solo.


So, what were your favourite movies this May?

images from IMDB