John WickSometimes the past can't leave well enough alone, and it dredges up the pieces of ourselves we wished to leave buried. John Wick (Keanu Reeves) is an erstwhile hitman with such a heavy rep that his name is whispered in secret, his legend is known by virtually all of the underworld, and those he knew--like his one-time employer, Viggo Tarasov (Michael Nyqvist), leader of the Russian crime syndicate--call him "Baba Yaga"..."the Boogeyman". When John's fragile semblance of a normal life is rent asunder by Viggo's vicious punk of a son, Iosef (Alfie Allen), he returns to his calling like a wraith, clad in black, unstoppable in his quest for vindication.
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John Wick is an action film, but it is also a revenge movie, and deals with themes familiar to the genres; it walks familiar ground with the likes of Dirty Harry or Point Blank. The film is described as neo-noir, evident by the self-aware yet exaggerated style of its predecessors, stylized and distinct. The crooks who strut around are scumbags in tailored suits, who party in decadent nightclubs drenched in neon...places where extended gunfights break out, such as when John attempts to breach the security to eliminate Iosef. Plenty of gunfights are accompanied by rock music selections from the soundtrack, with tightly choreographed gunplay and martial arts, as well as brutal action. Keanu Reeves' role as the cool kung-fu administer of justice recalls Hong Kong martial arts films, which in turn also influenced one of his most famous roles as Neo in The Matrix; a brief gunfight in a lobby--with pillars as cover--feels like a nod to one of the showdowns from that film. The kinds of influences which have inspired John Wick are not exclusive to john Wick; many other films have adopted a similar style, indicating that this kind of film understands its audience and embraces the narrative structure and tropes of the genre to in turn give it its own identity with subtleties to make it stand out from the crowd. One of the more telling comments to this end that I've heard used to describe John Wick is that it is the "thinking person's shoot'em up".
While there is no shortage of brutal and visceral action in John Wick, there is also the sense that the world in which this movie exists is not entirely the same as our own, one where extralegal activities are customary. John is a part of this framework, and his "retirement" is accepted, but never entirely believed, by the people who knew him. As such, there are awkward, unexplained social interactions which suggest that the corruption of crime and violence is so entrenched in this world, that others don't really bat an eye at the chaos. When a local police officer comes to check on a "noise disturbance" at John's house--following a brutal gunfight leaving over a dozen of Viggo's assassin's dead--the cop asks if John is out of his retirement at the sight of a dead body, and more or less leaves it at that. Even when there is a gunfight in broad daylight in a parking lot in downtown Manhattan, cars keep passing by in the background, and sirens are nowhere to be heard. When John hires a team of "cleaners" to dispose of his "rubbish" following his attempted assassination, he pays the corpse custodians in gold coins, a secret currency between those in his profession. There are a surprising number of paid killers in this underground affiliation; they even have their own neutral ground (in theory), a hotel and bar called the Continental, which caters to men and women in the same kind of line of work John had been a part of for so long. John even gets preferential treatment while he stays there, after someone breaks the rules and does try to kill him, which is treated more like a breach of etiquette than an assassination attempt.
John may be an exceptional killer--efficient, methodical, uncompromising--but there is the pervading sense that he takes no joy from it; for John, it is a matter of justice. As shown in the opening montage, John was married to a woman named Helen (Bridget Moynahan), who passed away due to illness after their five years together. It is unsaid what brought them together, but it was enough for John to not only abandon his former life, but also eliminate all of Viggo's competition on the way out--a so-called "impossible task" which John accomplished for love. Shortly after Helen's funeral, a puppy named Daisy is left to him; but before John can even begin to care for the puppy, a trio of scummy Russian gangsters--led by Iosef--invades his house, because Iosef is angered at John's refusal to sell his Mustang to him when confronted at a gas station. The encounter is mere chance, but it is one which must have been fated; John can never truly escape his past. Even when the car is stolen, it is the killing of Daisy which sparks the flames of revenge in John, setting him on a murderous rampage to eliminate the cretin who disrupted his life out of pure spite and greed. John claims that he seeks vengeance because of the symbolic loss of his wife yet again via Daisy's passing, but additionally, John resents the existence of his former life, and especially the gangsters who inhabit it and operate as tyrants in the world, oppressing others without reproach. Perhaps Daisy--like Helen before her--was the only cork keeping John's anger in; Helen's farewell letter advises him that he "needs someone to love". Even before his quest for revenge begins, one can tell that John is like a caged animal, his anger barely contained. His means of blowing off steam is to drive his car around a long stretch at a trucking strip, and narrowly avoid collisions. John is waiting to be unleashed, because like Daisy is with her cage, John is restrained in his domesticity; only for John, he is truly deadly when the locks are released. Even though there is the sense that as a killer, John's own taking of lives makes his mission hypocritical; but John Wick portrays the mobsters who violated his life as such cruel, sadistic creeps whose mere existence is an affront to what is good and decent. Ultimately, John transforms from "revenger" to "avenger"...an avenger of those who are unable to stand up to the likes of the Tarasovs, or others who break the rules.
Recommended for: Fans of an action flick which is as familiar as a pair of well-worn jeans, but stylish and distinct enough to wear while going out on the town. Lots of intense and frequent action set pieces will keep you munching the popcorn, transfixed for the fight scenes, racing cars, and gunplay.
While there is no shortage of brutal and visceral action in John Wick, there is also the sense that the world in which this movie exists is not entirely the same as our own, one where extralegal activities are customary. John is a part of this framework, and his "retirement" is accepted, but never entirely believed, by the people who knew him. As such, there are awkward, unexplained social interactions which suggest that the corruption of crime and violence is so entrenched in this world, that others don't really bat an eye at the chaos. When a local police officer comes to check on a "noise disturbance" at John's house--following a brutal gunfight leaving over a dozen of Viggo's assassin's dead--the cop asks if John is out of his retirement at the sight of a dead body, and more or less leaves it at that. Even when there is a gunfight in broad daylight in a parking lot in downtown Manhattan, cars keep passing by in the background, and sirens are nowhere to be heard. When John hires a team of "cleaners" to dispose of his "rubbish" following his attempted assassination, he pays the corpse custodians in gold coins, a secret currency between those in his profession. There are a surprising number of paid killers in this underground affiliation; they even have their own neutral ground (in theory), a hotel and bar called the Continental, which caters to men and women in the same kind of line of work John had been a part of for so long. John even gets preferential treatment while he stays there, after someone breaks the rules and does try to kill him, which is treated more like a breach of etiquette than an assassination attempt.
John may be an exceptional killer--efficient, methodical, uncompromising--but there is the pervading sense that he takes no joy from it; for John, it is a matter of justice. As shown in the opening montage, John was married to a woman named Helen (Bridget Moynahan), who passed away due to illness after their five years together. It is unsaid what brought them together, but it was enough for John to not only abandon his former life, but also eliminate all of Viggo's competition on the way out--a so-called "impossible task" which John accomplished for love. Shortly after Helen's funeral, a puppy named Daisy is left to him; but before John can even begin to care for the puppy, a trio of scummy Russian gangsters--led by Iosef--invades his house, because Iosef is angered at John's refusal to sell his Mustang to him when confronted at a gas station. The encounter is mere chance, but it is one which must have been fated; John can never truly escape his past. Even when the car is stolen, it is the killing of Daisy which sparks the flames of revenge in John, setting him on a murderous rampage to eliminate the cretin who disrupted his life out of pure spite and greed. John claims that he seeks vengeance because of the symbolic loss of his wife yet again via Daisy's passing, but additionally, John resents the existence of his former life, and especially the gangsters who inhabit it and operate as tyrants in the world, oppressing others without reproach. Perhaps Daisy--like Helen before her--was the only cork keeping John's anger in; Helen's farewell letter advises him that he "needs someone to love". Even before his quest for revenge begins, one can tell that John is like a caged animal, his anger barely contained. His means of blowing off steam is to drive his car around a long stretch at a trucking strip, and narrowly avoid collisions. John is waiting to be unleashed, because like Daisy is with her cage, John is restrained in his domesticity; only for John, he is truly deadly when the locks are released. Even though there is the sense that as a killer, John's own taking of lives makes his mission hypocritical; but John Wick portrays the mobsters who violated his life as such cruel, sadistic creeps whose mere existence is an affront to what is good and decent. Ultimately, John transforms from "revenger" to "avenger"...an avenger of those who are unable to stand up to the likes of the Tarasovs, or others who break the rules.
Recommended for: Fans of an action flick which is as familiar as a pair of well-worn jeans, but stylish and distinct enough to wear while going out on the town. Lots of intense and frequent action set pieces will keep you munching the popcorn, transfixed for the fight scenes, racing cars, and gunplay.