Director: Chad Stahelski
Date: 18 March 2020
jamesintexas Rating: ***
It was said by someone wiser than me that the original John Wick was the Citizen Kane of head shot movies, and the third in the series, John Wick: Parabellum, while no Kane is certainly loads of fun and style and dogs. I watched it early in the morning in several pieces, trying to avoid Corona Virus news, and it provided a ballet of death with Keanu Reeves as the maestro, centerpiece, and eponymous hero. I never would have expected Ted Theodore Logan to have become the icon of our times, but it is well-deserved, and times like these call for Keanu. Times like these call for John Wick.
John Wick must flee right from the beginning, which picks up at the end of John Wick 2, having broken the rules and been "Excommunicado," a word that the film lovingly states time and time again. Violence and mayhem follow him, starting with an innovative use of horse kicks and culminating with a brutal fight in the New York City Library, a highlight, as he faces off against a gigantic enemy. Wick must appeal to the other powerful forces in the city, one being The Director, the great Angelica Huston, always a welcome sight, who leads Wick through a ballet studio-wrestling center that seems straight out of From Russia With Love. Wick has less to say here, and the story is pared down to its basics. A trip to Morocco links him with Sofia (Halle Berry), the ruler of that country's version of The Continental, and her acrobatic attack dogs. Wick must, of course, fight his way back to respectability and New York City, which he does with typical (and no less astounding) aplomb. It cannot be stated how calibrated and capacious the attacking and violence is within the John Wick universe. It is gargantuan.
The background of the film is filled with the regal Winston (Ian McShane), the graceful Charon (Lance Reddick), the crafty Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne), and the laser-focused, lethally-sharp nemesis of The Adjudicator (Asia Kate Dillon). Some of Wick's enemies come across as fans of the man. "Guns, lots of guns," Wick announces of his needs, and the film delivers a feast of firepower that would make Neo blush.
There is a meticulousness to the edges of the film: the stylized announcements of when it is permitted to kill someone, the arcane rules of territory, and the shiny edges of mirrors and lights. This film, like its predecessors, seems like an incredible and fun challenge to film, and Stahelski and his crew have done stellar work again here. The film even has the wonderful Jason Mantzoukas as Tick-Tock Man, who plays a pivotal role in guaranteeing there will be a John Wick 4. If you want peace, the title tells us, prepare for war, and I have no doubt that there will be another unwieldy title to look forward to whenever movies start back up. For now, we have three John Wick films, a marvel of a cinematic universe of its own.
And for the record, there should be an Academy Award for Best Stunt Performers.
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