Why 'Deadpool 2' Is a Family Film

At first glance you're already thinking, 'What? No it's not.'

And of course you're wrong.

Five minutes into the film, Deadpool himself explains that yes, this is a family movie. Not a 'let your youngest watch it with you' kinda family movie, but actually a 'look, I found my own family through struggle and hardship' kinda way.

We're not talking family movie like Disney or Pixar makes. We're talking about finding family, through impressive fights, a lot of self-hatred and just a sprinkle of love.

Don't believe me?

Okay Simon Cowell, I'll sell you on this pitch.

Everyone has a family. Everyone. Even that weird guy you always see wandering the streets asking for money. Chances are he's got a family somewhere.

And everyone always thinks that family is blood-related people. That's not completely true. A family is made up of people who love and care for one another.

"Blood is thicker than water" is so wrong. That's not even the full saying. The full saying is, "The blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb," meaning the bonds you choose to create with people is actually stronger than the forced bonds you are expected to make with your blood-relatives.

You can choose your friends, just as you can choose your family.

So how does this pertain to Deadpool, you ask?

Let's start with blood-relatives.

Wade Wilson's biological parents have a couple different origins in the comics, but we'll stick with what the movie has given us.

Wade mentions his father in passing, saying, "Pile of shit father took off and bailed," so from this we can confidently say that his dad was a horrible parent, possibly even a bit abusive.

Wade never mentions his mother in the movies, so I'm operating under the assumption that she has died of cancer. (Note: there are different origin stories for Wade's parents in the comics, I'm just assuming this is the case for the movies.)

Deadpool is known to make light of serious issues, but one issue that stuck out was his interaction with Russell when they first meet. Russell had been abused by the Headmaster of the orphanage and the caretakers. Deadpool believes Russell whole-heartedly because he knows the signs of abuse, most likely because he lived them.

Now abuse has many different forms: physical, emotional and verbal.

Physical abuse is getting hit, punched, and beaten up. The sort of shit that leaves scars and broken bones.

Emotional abuse is making you feel humiliated, diminishing your sense of self-worth, identity, and dignity. Often, the abuser denies responsibility and blames the victim. Mentally you're going to be pretty fucked up if you've been through this.

Verbal abuse is yelling, insulting, mocking, and pretty much anything to do with using words as a weapon. This leaves a person with no confidence and even more mental disorders.

Take your pick as to which you think Wade has gone through.

So... "what does this have to do with family?"

I'm glad you asked.

Blood-relatives are the most likely to do any one of those three forms of abuse, be it intentional or unintentional.

Friends of yours will be highly unlikely to pull the same shit as your parents.

The upside is you're not alone in your experiences at home. So many others have gone through shit like this, myself included. Which means there are people you understand what you've gone through and can help you.

Family is a support group as it were. It's your place of belonging and main source of unconditional love. When it comes to family there's no right or wrong way to be a family, so long as everyone in it supports one another and offers to help when you need it most.

So, what do you get when you take 8 feet of chrome, one pinch of courage, a cup of good luck, a dab of racism, a splash of diabetes, and a wheelbarrow of stage 4 cancer?

Answer: A family.

See? I didn't lie what kind of film this was. If there's anything you take away today it's that we all need to belong to someone.

So keep looking for your family.

Or if you've already found yours, I say well done.

Family doesn't have to be an 'F'-word.