John Wick is written by Derek Kolstad and directed by David Leitch and Chad Stahelski starring Keanu Reeves, Michael Nyqvist, Alfie Allen, and William Dafoe. The film follows the infamous hitman John Wick (Keanu Reeves) who now lives in retirement and trying to stay out of the game. His wife has recently died from an unnamed sickness and in his state of grief receives a late gift from his wife before she passed: a puppy. Just as John starts to overcome his grief, he runs into a young mobster (Alfie Allen) who decide to break into his home, steal his car, and murder his new puppy. He finds out that the young mobster is the son of his old boss and he will do anything and kill anyone that stands in the way of his retribution. Now in rage, John Wick decides to get back into the hit game and get his revenge on the mob boss' son.
John Wick definitely deserves a lot of the praise it has been receiving lately for being a purely entertaining action flick. While it doesn't accomplish everything that it is trying to achieve, it certainly nails its action scene and has just enough drama in it to carry the rest of the film. That said the movie has plenty of flaws, plot holes, and the last part of the film falls flat on its face. Luckily that is not what makes the movie memorable, instead of walking out of the theater talking about its mistakes you will be jacked up from the action set pieces. What else do you expect from stunt coordinators turned directors? I don't mean this in an insulting way at all but they exceptionally thrive at action. The action feels intense with just the right amount of gore and totally makes Keanu Reeves look like a total bad ass! Also while the film overall has a serious tone, it isn't afraid to use humor sprinkled throughout that works perfectly.
So the big take away here is that we have a solid and entertaining action flick with some great set pieces. You will see gun play, knifes, cars, and kills done in some really creative and kick ass ways! That is what we really want to see from a film like that and I applaud the movie for that. If you are looking for a fun popcorn movie this weekend than this is the one to see! My personal favorite was watching how John Wick was able to use his car to hit people then shoot them with his huge pistol as they rolled on the roof of the car. The club scene though probably stands out above the rest of the film for keeping the intensity high while combing lots of unique kills for pure eye candy. The other part that his film completely knocks out of the park is the world building. It slowly pulls us into the world of hitmen and mob bosses. Introducing us to a cool group of unique individuals all of whom have an important part to play. Its thanks to the great supporting casting choices and the characters they play. My personal favorites being Lance Reddick who plays a hotel clerk and Adrianne Palicki from Friday Night Lights playing a roque and deadly assassin. I would totally pay to see a sequel or short film follow up just so I could be in this world again and follow these characters. They helped make the world feel believable and added some great moments throughout the film.
Still the movie spends a little bit too much time on the plot and its main characters when the audience just wants to get back to the awesome action. The main characters also could use a little more work because there isn't much substance there for us to care about them. John Wick luckily is so bad ass that you just root for him so that he can keep killing enemies but outside of that, besides the film's intentions, I didn't care about his back story or wife. Also the plot jumps all over the place at times and is hard to keep track off. Characters go from keeping promises and making peace one minute to breaking them and trying to get revenge. Also while the action is amazing there were a few points where it was hard to follow who John Wick was shooting or what exactly was going on. Luckily most of the action is shot well and the few times that the shaky camera gets distracting don't ruin the experience. Plus the beginning has a much more serious tone than the rest of the film and it feels out of place. You feel like your about to watch a dark drama and then we end up in a action pack gun fest.
John Wick is definitely a movie that deserves your time and attention but don't expect a masterpiece. It is a fun, entertaining popcorn flick that promises plenty of fun action to be enjoyed. Don't expect much from the plot or its characters, instead enjoy the world that is being built and trying to keep count of how many head shots there are in the movie. Plus there is nothing wrong with being a popcorn flick as long as your doing it efficiently and allowing the audience to have fun with the film. While there are plenty of flaws, the positives outshine the negatives wonderfully.
3/5
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