John Wick

Starring: Keanu Reeves, Michael Nyqvist, Alfie Allen, Willem Dafoe, Dean Winters, Adrianne Palicki, Omer Barnea, Toby Leonard Moore, Bridget Moynahan, John Leguizamo, Ian McShane, Bridget Regan, Lance Reddick
Directed by: Chad Stahelski, David Leitch (uncredited)
Rating: R
Genre: Action, Thriller
2014

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: After the death of his wife, an ex-assassin (Keanu Reeves) seeks vengeance on thugs who killed his dog and stole his car.

Review:

Tim: John Wick succeeds because it delivers an exceptionally crafted, entertaining action thriller. It doesn't try to revolutionize the genre, it just exceeds expectations by its effectiveness. The movie might not quite reach the level of greatness desired, but it's a very enjoyable, memorable film. I was thoroughly entertained.

We've seen these kind of revenge stories before. They can be extremely effective when done well. While the basic story is the same, the way the story is told is what elevates this film. First off, this is a very, very violent movie. I'm not sure I have ever seen so many head shots. John Wick kills people quickly and with abandon. While he often finds himself in hand-to-hand combat, he seems to prefer moving through a room, shooting people to death quickly. It makes for very thrilling sequences and on many occasions, I wondered about the death toll (somewhere between 70-90 I've read). A ton of bad guys die and we sit back and watch. There's something fascinating about a hard-boiled killing machine- and that's exactly what we get here. Yes, the story might be a bit predictable, but much of that is forgiven when we get to watch well crafted action scenes.

I've always had a soft spot for Keanu Reeves, even if all my senses tell me I shouldn't. I still like him even though I have to admit he's just not a great actor. He doesn't convey much emotion and whatever he says always seems like it's a struggle for him. There were countless opportunities here for him to act better than he did. That being said, he does have this bizarre appeal about him. In roles where he doesn't have to do too much, he works wonders (if that's not setting the bar low, I don't know what is). Despite his limited acting ability, he's actually fairly decent in this film. He comes across as a cool person and he makes John Wick someone you can root for and support.While my eyes and ears tell me I'm crazy, I had great fun watching Reeves in this role.

The supporting cast was fairly exceptional, using a number of lesser-known actors to great effect. Michael Nyqvist makes a very good antagonist. I liked how his character was somewhat sympathetic for much of the movie. You kind of felt for him, even though you knew he was the "bad" guy. His performance was strong. I like Alfie Allen due to "Game of Thrones" and he once again plays an excellent unlikeable character. There's something about him that makes you want to slap him in the face and he brings that to this character. Willem Dafoe is the biggest name in the supporting cast and delivers a solid performance. I like him in just about anything, though. Dean Winters is hard for me to see as anything other than the Mayhem guy on those commercials. Maybe someday I'll believe his performance in something else, but I am not sure about that. Adrianne Palicki gives a good supporting performance. I enjoyed her in "Agents of SHIELD" and it was fun seeing her play a villainous character here. John Leguizamo has a criminally small role. I wish he had more screen time. Ian McShane was good, but he didn't have nearly enough to do. Still, the movie is better because of his presence. The same could be said for Lance Reddick- very strong actor, but is given a throwaway part here. While there's not a ton of A-listers in the cast, the movie does make decent use of them. The cast is a big plus for this film.

While I'm a big fan of superheroes, comic book movies, science fiction, and fantasy, there's something so appealing about watching a good old fashioned action thriller. Hollywood isn't making enough of these anymore and the quality films are even more scarce. That is a big reason why I enjoyed John Wick so much- it felt like a nice throwback to the 90s action movies, but it brought 2010s sensibilities and intellect. Yeah, this might not be a great movie, but it's very strong and a movie I'd recommend.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The Matrix trilogy, Jack Reacher, The Equalizer