Retrospective - John Wick (2014-2019)

        Hey guys, Chuck here. In anticipation of the new movie John Wick Chapter 4, hitting theaters this March, I've decided to put together this retrospective of the first three films of the John Wick franchise starring Keanu Reeves and Ian McShane.

       So, the first John Wick was released in 2014, and along with Reeves and McShane also starred Michael Nyqvist, Alfie Allen, Lance Reddick, Adrianne Palicki, Toby Leonard Moore, Bridget Moynihan, John Leguizamo, and Willem Dafoe. The movie focuses on ex-hitman John Wick, whose wife had just passed away from a terminal illness. On the night of her funeral, John receives a delivery of a letter from his dead wife, Helen, and a puppy, Daisy. John spends the entire next day bonding with the pup while driving around in his vintage 1969 Mustang. The car, unfortunately, draws the eye of a group of Russian mobsters looking to buy the car, which John refuses. That night, however, they break into his home, beat him up, kill his dog, and steal his car. Now, John is pissed, and his goal is simple: put down the men who stole his car and killed his dog. 

        To this end, John goes to see a friend of his, Aurelio, who identifies the mobster who stole John's car as Iosef Tarasov, son of Viggo Tarasov. Viggo, it turns out, is one of the biggest Russian mobsters in New York City, and John used to work with the guy, having carried out one final job for Viggo in order to live a more peaceful life with Helen. In fact, we actually see Viggo describing John to Iosef as "not the boogie man, but the man you send to kill the boogie man." Viggo, himself, calls John in an attempt to reason with him, but John is pretty much past all that, and he goes to work taking down Viggo's men. 

        Viggo ends up putting up an open contract of $2 million on John, and goes to an assassin named Marcus to offer him in on the contract personally. John ends up at the Continental Hotel in New York, where no business (assassination) is permitted to be conducted on the premises, prompting Viggo to double the bounty for anyone willing to break that rule. It's here where we also meet the likes of Perkins, a woman who is also a kickass contract killer, and Winston, who owns the Continental. 

        So, John takes out Viggo's men, tends with Perkins (who had no problem cashing in on Viggo's contract of double pay for breaking house rules of no business conducted on the premises of the Continental), and eventually comes face to face with Viggo himself. Viggo agrees to revoke the contract and give up Iosef in exchange for living. John kills Iosef, returns to the Continental (where he gets a new car), and bids farewell to Marcus. Unfortunately, Marcus is killed by Viggo and Perkins (who lost her membership to the Continental), and John goes after them to finish Viggo off for good. 

         Now, I'm just going to say this, I think that John Wick is easily Keanu Reeves' best character since Neo from The Matrix franchise. Honestly, this dude is just a complete badass in every sense of the word, and the fact that he does a lot of his own stunts in this movie is frickin awesome. I also really enjoyed both Willem Dafoe as Marcus and Adrianne Palicki as Perkins. Both showcase different sides of being assassins: one loyal to his fellow assassin, the other willing to break the rules for money. Now, while we don't get a lot of scenes with Ian McShane as Winston, he does make an impact and I definitely enjoyed seeing him here. 

        Having the main antagonist be a figure from John's past was fantastic, and I thoroughly enjoyed Michael Nyqvist as Viggo. The scenes he has clearly showcase a mutual respect that Viggo has for John, but also a willingness to protect his son. Speaking of which, Alfie Allen, who I mostly know for his role as Theon Greyjoy on Game of Thrones, also stands out here as Iosef. He definitely did a great job conveying the punk youth who doesn't realize just how badly he fucked up until he learns just who it was he fucked with. 

        Overall, I enjoyed this movie. As far as action franchises go, this definitely redefined the medium, and showcased just how an action star can be in our modern times. Keanu Reeves is easily at his best here, and I'm giving John Wick a rating of 5/5. 

          Released in 2017, John Wick Chapter 2 saw the returns of Keanu Reeves, John Leguizamo, Lance Reddick, and Ian McShane, and see the additions of Laurence Fishburne, Common, Ruby Rose, Riccardo Scamarcio, and Peter Stormare. 

        This movie picks up with John finishing up some business with Abram, brother of Viggo and uncle of Iosef. What business? John's Mustang. So, John gets the car back, but it's pretty well wrecked by Abram's goons, all of whom John kills thoroughly. John heads into the office, where he and Abram share a drink, and John departs with the plan being to stay retired this time. John takes his car back home, where it gets picked up by Aurelio to get fixed. And how cool was it to get John Leguizamo back to play Aurelio once again. I mean, it's a small part and all, but he's just a lot of fun to watch in every movie he's in, especially these movies. 

         Anyway, we actually learn that, when he went on his final mission for Viggo in order to live a quiet life with Helen, John got help from Santino D'Antonio, who helped him in exchange for giving him a "marker," which is a favor represented by a blood oath medallion. And markers can never be broken, no matter what. When Santino attempts to cash in on said marker, John refuses, which leads to Santino destroying John's house. Having survived, John goes to meet Winston, who reminds him of the penalty for breaking the rule of never breaking a marker: death. John finally agrees to accept the marker, which Santino identifies as his sister Gianna, who will inherit their father's seat at the High Table, which is a council of twelve high-level crime bosses. 

       So, John heads to Italy, where the Continental in Rome helps set him up for everything he needs. John confronts Gianna, reveals who sent him, and ultimately steps into a bathtub and slits her own arms, ending her own life. After she dies, John puts a bullet in her head, and is confronted by her head of security, Cassian, who goes after him. John is also hunted by Santino's men, including a woman named Ares, but he is able to allude them, killing most on his way through a set of catacombs. Cassian catches up with John, and the two end up at the Continental, where they're reminded of the rule against conducting business on the premises. The two talk at the bar, and each makes sure the other knows what will happen at their next meeting: a professional courtesy. 

         Back in New York, Santino puts an open contract out on John, this time in the amount of $7 million. So, upon his return, every major assassin and mercenary is after him. John, realizing he needs help going after Santino, seeks the assistance of the Bowery King, who agrees to help him by giving him a gun with seven rounds. John goes after Santino, takes his goons out, has a brief scuffle with Ares that ends with her death, and confronts Santino in the lounge at the Continental, killing him in violation of the one major rule of no business on hotel premises. After giving him a chance to rest, Winston has John summoned, informing him of how fucked he really is. The contract Santino put on him is officially doubled by the Camorra, is effective worldwide, and John is officially deemed "excommunicado," forever barring him from the Continental and all of its services. However, as a last favor, Winston gives John a head start of an hour. 

           Okay, so in my opinion, John Wick Chapter 2 takes all of what worked about the first movie and improved on it. I thoroughly enjoyed the increase in screen time for both Ian McShane and Lance Reddick. Keanu Reeves absolutely kicked ass as John Wick, and the action scenes we're top notch once again. I also liked how the movie picked up with him tying up one last loose end from the first movie by getting his car back, and what a grab getting Peter Stormare as Viggo's brother Abram. Seriously, I'm a huge fan of Peter Stormare, and I'm glad he showed up for even a small role in this movie. 

          As far as our main antagonist goes, Riccardo Scamarcio is really good as Santino. Ultimately, he's very different from Viggo, as Santino is willing to use the rules to his advantage, as opposed to offering more money for an assassin to break them. Santino, on top of that, also sees John as a loose end, and is willing to forgo a rule to tie said loose end up. I also enjoyed the likes of Ruby Rose as Ares (nice touch having her communicate through sign language, by the way), Common as Cassian, and Claudia Gerini as Gianna. However, my favorite new addition was Laurence Fishburne as the Bowery King. This guy adds a whole new layer to the world of assassins that this series sets up, and I love it. 

          Definitely stepping things up, I'm giving John Wick Chapter 2 a rating of 5/5. 

         Alrighty then, now we come to the third film in the series: John Wick Chapter 3 - Parabellum. Released in 2019, we see the returns of Keanu Reeves, Ian McShane, Lance Reddick, and Laurence Fishburne, along with newcomers like Angelica Huston, Halle Berry, Asia Kate Dillon, Jerome Flynn, and Said Taghmaoui. 

        So, picking up where Chapter 2 left off, Parabellum starts off with John Wick officially on the run from the High Table, as every assassin in the world now wants to kill him and cash in on the $14 million contract. Knowing he needs safe passage elsewhere, John goes to collect some things to gain said passage with help from a woman called "The Director," who agrees to get him safely out of America and all the way to Casablanca. It also here where we see Rooney, a ballerina who is, herself, training under the Director to be an assassin. 

         Unfortunately, the High Table has sent an Adjudicator, who hires a man named Zero, to deal with those who went against the Table: Winston, Bowery King, and also the Director. The Director has her hands stabbed, the Bowery King is cut up several times for refusing to abdicate from his position, and Winston is being forced to resign as manager of the Continental in New York. John, meanwhile, meets with an old friend, Sofia, who is now manager of the Continental in Casablanca. Cashing in on a Marker, John has Sofia take him to her predecessor, Berrada. John asks for one thing: the path to finding the Elder. Who is the Elder? Well, the Elder is a figure who stands over the High Table. So, Berrada gives John directions into the desert, and John traverse the dunes on foot for several days, until he ultimately is collected by the Elder and his men. The Elder forgives John of his transgressions on the condition he returns to New York, kills Winston, and swears allegiance to the Table. Ultimately, John cuts off his ring finger and gives the Elder his wedding ring as a sign of fealty. 

        John returns to New York, finds himself in the crosshairs of Zero and his students, and the two fight their way to the Continental, where Charon the concierge reminds them of the neutral status of the Hotel. John and Zero are then brought inside, where Zero admits to being a fan of John and his work. Charon then takes John to Winston, and the two speak of what's going on at this point. It's here where he gives John a choice: kill him and be a slave to the Table, or not and live as a man who found love with Helen years before. Ultimately, the Adjudicator arrives, and as both Winston and John refuses to abide by the orders of the Table, the Adjudicator declares that the New York Continental is now no longer neutral, and business can now be conducted on the premises. 

        John, Winston, and Charon work together to fight off Zero and his students, along with several other assassins. Winston and the Adjudicator agree to a parley, and Winston swears fealty to the Table once more. John shows up, and Winston shoots him without killing him, and John plummets to the streets below. Winston resumes his job as Manager of the Continental, and John is secretly taken to a bunker where an injured Bowery King is waiting. Ultimately, the movie ends with the two deciding to team up against the High Table. 

          Okay, so what I really enjoyed about Parabellum is how much it expands the world of John Wick in interesting new directions. The idea of just how far the Table's reach is goes to show just how high the stakes really are. And I love the concept of The Elder, who was played quite brilliantly by Said Taghmaoui, who I've enjoyed in movies like Wonder Woman and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. 

       I also really enjoyed Mark Dacascos as Zero, as well as Halle Berry as Sofia, and Jerome Flynn as Barrada. All of them bring a lot to their roles, despite how minor or brief those roles are. Asia Kate Dillon is definitely an interesting antagonist as the Adjudicator. And I loved the returns of Ian McShane as Winston and Laurence Fishburne as the Bowery King. 

        But seriously, everything about this movie was kickass. Keanu Reeves: kickass. The action: kickass. The stunts: kickass. The gun fights: kickass. The fight choreography: kickass. Honestly, this is just one kickass movie. So, no surprise here, I'm giving John Wick Chapter 3 - Parabellum a rating of 5/5. 

       Now, I honestly enjoyed the John Wick franchise. It's taken a while for me to get into it, but now I finally see what everyone is talking about with these movies. Seriously, Keanu Reeves is absolutely kickass as John Wick. And not only am I more excited for John Wick Chapter 4 coming up this March, but also for an upcoming spinoff of John Wick called Ballerina, which will star Ana de Armas as Rooney, the ballerina from Parabellum. So yeah, I definitely am looking forward to seeing how this franchise unfolds. Honestly, this series shows me exactly the kind of action I want to see in a Marvel Studios produced film based on The Punisher. Heck, I even think that John Wick director Chad Stahelski should direct a Punisher movie for Marvel. That would be pretty cool. 

        Anyway guys, that'll do it for now. Join me this Thursday for another review of a classic Disney film: Mary Poppins. This is Chuck signing off, and I'll see you guys next time.