The first John Wick came out of nowhere and immediately became a footprint in pop culture. Since that 2014 release, we’ve seen two more sequels that have escalated the violence and body count, while also solidifying Keanu Reeves as the gentle assassin we all love to love.
While plot has never been the forefront of the franchise, each movie does build off the others. We’ve seen John Wick get revenge on the Russian mafia, then revealing an underground of international assassins that are around us at all times, and finally a High Table that oversees each of these assassins and literally owns them.
John Wick has survived incredible odds and is now proactive about hunting the mysterious High Table down. However, the High Table has sent the Marquis (Bill Skarsgård) to represent them and finally take out Wick. John Wick still has friends that will help harbor him, but even those relationships are uncertain or may even be his combat equals.
Not only does the story escalate into complete farce and fun, but the violence has also upped the ante. Wick can’t merely shoot each assailant and easily walk away. Now, nearly every thug has a bulletproof three-piece suit. You’re gonna love the way bullets bounce off of you, I guarantee it. Merely getting a lucky shot isn’t good enough to win skirmishes anymore. Wick constantly has to pit himself against opponents that are much larger than him and somehow find a way to get past them. This requires an immense suspension of disbelief of the audience, but let’s be honest; if you have made it this far and still enjoy the ride, you won’t have an issue with any of the mayhem.
If you haven’t been convinced of the strengths of these movies, then this one may not persuade you. On the same note, if you have loved everything you’ve seen so far, prepare for the most thrilling experience of the series. You’re in for two hours 49 minutes of ever-increasing action. It’s a time investment to be sure, but the experience feels breezy. The final hour is so engrossing that you won’t want it to end. And even when scenes should rationally come to their conclusion, things only get more insane.
Director Chad Stahelski spares no effort at conveying how action should be shot. He asks so much from his actors and stunt performers, and he allows the camera to dwell on each, which gives us, as the audience, the chance to constantly be in awe.
Keanu Reeves puts his body through the ringer, with some scenes proving that he may be the Buster Keaton of modern action movies. Some scenes are so punishing that they garnered laughs from the crowd. This movie makes you feel the exhaustion of its titular character, but also constant drive to reach his end goal. Legendary Donnie Yen joins the cast in a spectacular role and easily steals every scene he’s in. Seeing these two on screen together was wish fulfillment.
There are some all-time historic action set pieces that will be hard to beat. There is an abandoned building showdown that feels like the standard one-man army violence we can expect from the series, but the crane camera pulls back and navigates above the action and follows the carnage in a wondrous one-shot experience. That spectacle is sandwiched by the deadliest game of Frogger and the most devastating cardio while climbing the Montmartre stairs in Paris.
John Wick Chapter 4 immediately belongs on the list of all time great action movies. The story is consistent with the series, which has never been a strength. Yet, the choreography of the camera, the stunt work, the soundtrack, and surprising emotional core are what we should all expect from action movies from now on. This franchise has always provided a visual meal, but with this chapter, we are given a feast. A-
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