Movie Review

Once Upon a Deadpool waters down violence but doesn't drain fun of original

One of the biggest reasons for the success of both Deadpool and Deadpool 2 was its willingness to push past the boundaries of the PG-13 superhero genre and deliver an R-rated experience that was genuinely fun. Now, with the charity-driven Once Upon a Deadpool coming out for a special two-week run, they're testing whether a watered-down version can be popular, too.

Aside from removing all traces of a certain four-letter F-word — along with most of the blood, guts, and other things that would trigger an R rating — the movie's conceit is that Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) is telling the story of the film to Fred Savage, re-creating the former child actor's iconic scenes from The Princess Bride.

The story, of course, remains the same, with Wade Wilson/Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) doing his lone wolf thing until an upheaval in his personal life and the appearance of a time-traveling mutant named Cable (Josh Brolin) forces him to try to put together a team. Cable is on the trail of Russell (Julian Dennison), a young boy with fire-starting powers who will go on to kill Cable’s family in the future.

Just as in The Princess Bride, the film stops in its tracks throughout the film for either Deadpool or Savage to comment on what's going on in the story, with varying success. The breaks contain winking nods for fans of both films, something that would be a lot funnier if Deadpool wasn't already in the habit of breaking the fourth wall in his own movie.

It's difficult to tell how precisely how much material was excised from Deadpool 2, but with Once Upon a Deadpool clocking in at 117 minutes compared to DP2's 119 minutes, complete with five minutes or more of new scenes with Savage, the changes are significant. Anyone who didn't see the original may not notice the difference, but the experience is choppy for those who have.

What's most interesting about the experiment is that it demonstrates just how violent and profane a PG-13 movie can be. The film is being marketed as an alternative for kids who weren't old enough to see the R-rated version, but it's still not exactly kid-friendly. While the consequences of violence, i.e. most blood and gore, are not shown, the body count remains high, and there is still plenty of profanity and sexual innuendo to be found.

Even with all that, the film remains a lot of fun, with a story that zags where you expect it to zig, keeping the audience on its collective toes the entire time. And even though the language is tamer, the barrage of jokes and insults about the X-Men, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the DC Comics universe, itself, and more is as funny as ever.

Once Upon a Deadpool is not a wholly satisfying experience for anyone who has seen Deadpool 2, but with some of the proceeds going to the appropriately renamed Fudge Cancer, it adds a little more heart to a film that already had more than you'd expect.

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Once Upon a Deadpool will be in theaters through December 24.

Ryan Reynolds in Once Upon a Deadpool.

Ryan Reynolds in Once Upon a Deadpool

Photo courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

Ryan Reynolds in Once Upon a Deadpool.

Movie Review

Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney go off in trashy film The Housemaid

Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney in The Housemaid

Photo courtesy of Lionsgate

Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney in The Housemaid.

Both Amanda Seyfried (the upcoming The Testament of Ann Lee) and Sydney Sweeney (Christy) are starring in movies with Oscar ambitions this year. By sheer coincidence, the two actors are also co-starring in The Housemaid, a thriller coming out within weeks of their more ambitious works, one that is likely to be seen by many more people than those prestige plays.

Sweeney is given top billing as Millie, a down-on-her-luck ex-convict looking to land any type of job so as not to break her parole. She finds a too-good-to-be-true lifeboat with Nina (Seyfried), who hires her to be a housemaid for her large house on Long Island, where she lives with her husband, Andrew (Brandon Sklenar), and daughter, Cecilia (Indiana Elle).

After a warm interview, Nina almost immediately becomes highly erratic, whipping back-and-forth between happy-go-lucky and rageful. It seems clear that Nina is suffering from mental health issues, as she’ll often accuse Millie of misplacing or stealing items that she didn’t take. Andrew, apparently used to Nina’s tirades, tries to protect Millie from the worst, something that grows increasingly difficult as Nina ups the ante.

Directed by Paul Feig (A Simple Favor) and adapted by Rebecca Sonnenshine from the bestselling book by Freida McFadden, the film is likely the trashiest mainstream movie to come out in 2025. The first half of the movie relies not on story but on moments as Nina embodies the word “hysterical” to an unbelievable extent. The resigned acceptance of the abuse by Millie, as well as the saintly patience of Andrew, make almost every scene laughable, as nobody seems to be acting anywhere close to how a person would normally react to such extreme situations.

The scenes and the performance of Seyfried are so over-the-top, in fact, that it’s clear that the filmmakers are in on the joke. It’s next to impossible not to have a little bit of fun while watching the actors react to outrageous incidents as if nothing is out of the ordinary. The worse Nina acts, the more Millie and Andrew retreat into their chosen roles, and the funnier the film becomes.

Fans of the book will know that the story changes course, eventually turning into a more stereotypical thriller that also has some relatively gnarly visuals to offer. But the trashiness continues, with Sweeney’s, um, assets repeatedly on display in both clothed and unclothed ways. The sex appeal of the R-rated movie makes it an outlier, as recent studio films have shied away from asking their big stars to disrobe completely.

Both Seyfried and Sweeney are far from their Oscar hopeful roles here. Seyfried is given free rein to act as brazenly as she pleases, and she takes full advantage of that ability. Sweeney seems to have been told to be much more reserved, and unfortunately that results in too many wooden line readings. Sklenar continues his breakout streak (It Ends with Us, Drop) with a role that allows him to show more range than either Seyfried or Sweeney.

The Housemaid is an unusual type of movie to be released at a time of year when most films are either those aiming for awards or more family-friendly fare. Despite its many flaws, it’s still an enjoyable watch that features a variety of crazy scenarios not typically seen in movies nowadays.

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The Housemaid is now playing in theaters.

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