Fans, the creative team behind this film, and even star Ryan Reynolds himself have been trying to get the title character of “Deadpool” on screen somehow for over a decade. Reynolds had previously played the character in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” but the version of Deadpool he had portrayed in that film was less than satisfactory to fans of the character. Fast forward seven years and we have Fox’s second attempt to bring the beloved character to life. Do they succeed? To put it simply, absolutely.

Deadpool tells the story of Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds), a former Special Forces operative who now works as a mercenary. His world comes crashing down when evil scientist Ajax (Ed Skrein) tortures, disfigures and transforms him into Deadpool. The rogue experiment leaves Deadpool with accelerated healing powers and a twisted sense of humor. With help from mutant allies Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand), Deadpool uses his new skills to hunt down the man who nearly destroyed his life.

Deadpool takes anything and everything that is loved about the character and delivers it in spades, with a hard R rating, a terrific cast, exhilarating action and downright hilarious comedy; Deadpool just may be one of the top 10 superhero films of recent years. The movie is smartly played out as an origin story played alongside the superhero action, so Deadpool himself keeps from getting stale and the backstory is still interesting to watch. The cast clearly has a ball during the film and that fun is incredibly infectious to the audience.

The only minor problems the film may have is that the cinematography, while terrific during the action scenes, is rather bland most of the time and seems more focused on just getting the shot, rather than doing something interesting visually. The villains are also generic, however the film isn’t focused on either of these two things, and the villains are still threatening enough. And honestly, most people probably don’t go to see a Deadpool movie to see who he fights. They go to see the unpredictable Merc with a mouth, breaking the fourth wall and straddling the fence that separates heroes and villains.

Overall Deadpool is exactly the film people have been wanting for years. With its success there’s potential for a very bright and open future for its sequel, following superhero films with R ratings, and studios taking more chances. Go see it (if you’re allowed to.)