Fast, ferocious and inevitably a bit too pleased with its own cleverness, this Fox-produced offshoot of the “X-Men” series nevertheless can’t help but feel like a nasty, nose-thumbing tonic next to the shinier delegations of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as represented by Disney’s “Avengers” franchise ( and its various subfranchises) and Sony’s not-so-amazing “Spider-Man” movies.
Better still, “Deadpool” knows exactly how to use Reynolds, an actor whose smooth leading-man good looks have long disguised one of the sharpest funnyman sensibilities in the business, as fans of “The Proposal, ” “Definitely, Maybe” and the underrated “Just Friends” can attest.