The John Wick franchise is one of my favorite franchises of all time. John Wick 1, one of my favorite films, was such a pleasant surprise, with some amazing action sequences. John Wick 2, albeit not as good as the first one, had some great world-building and the action was once again top-notch. Now, the third chapter of this Keanu-led action-heavy franchise is back! Even though I won’t spoil the events of Parabellum, I have to give a SPOILER WARNING for the ending of the previous movies. You have been warned!
This movie picks up just minutes after the shocking end of the second film. Because he conducted business on the Continental ground by killing Santiago, Wick now has exactly one hour before he becomes excommunicado, meaning the services of the Continental will soon cease for him. In addition, there is now a $14 million bounty on him and all the assassins in New York want a piece of that. Wick has to do #WhateverItTakes (sorry I had to) to survive.
Positives – Ok, we really can’t talk about anything else before first showering praise on the fight sequences in the film! There are so many visceral, heart-pounding action scenes, with excellent choreography and gorgeous set-pieces. In the first 20 minutes alone, Wick finds different ways to kill assassins, including a wonderful-yet-gruesome knife scene. Altogether, the current estimates of the body count land around 160-170 people… just insane! Keanu Reeves, often proclaimed to be the ‘nicest man in Hollywood’, is once again great as John Wick and is willing to go the extra mile to actually do his gun-fu scenes to make them feel more authentic. Halle Berry, who plays Sofia, is also really good and brings a lot to the physicality of the role. There is one fight scene in Casablanca with both Wick and Sofia fighting side-by-side with her (dangerous and fierce) K9 dogs, and oh boy, they kill over 50-60 people in that scene alone. The supporting characters from the first movie, like Winston and Charon, have a little more to do this time around and do get a couple of scene-stealing moments. Even though it’s quite shallow, the movie does attempt to raise a dilemma for its titular character – “what are you fighting for?”
Negatives – Even though the fight scenes are extremely well-choreographed and intense, I was a little fatigued after a point. Some of the fight scenes, like the Casablanca one, drag on for quite a while with no end in sight. An action scene, devoid of any emotions or drama, is simply “visual noise.” What made the first movie so good is that you were emotionally invested in the character and the fight scenes were “emotionally-charged.” In the (still-enjoyable) sequels, however, there are fight scenes for the sake of having a cool fight scene. Once again, there is quite of world-building and we learn more about the High Table. However, the intrigue of this clandestine organization is starting to wear off on me. Without delving into spoilers, there is a choice that Wick makes in the third act, which renders the entire High Table-focused second act pointless. In addition, the character of John Wick is slowly starting to feel like a superhuman, especially during the third act. Yes, he is the Baba Yaga “man you send to kill the boogeyman” and he does get hurt a lot, but he survives a heck of a lot.
Rating – In summary, John Wick 3 delivers on its promise – non-stop action with stellar choreography and beautiful set-pieces. However, the filmmakers should add some more emotional beats in the inevitable fourth chapter, to avoid the audience feeling franchise-fatigued. 4/5.
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