John Wick Is A True Action Flick

When I first heard about John Wick, to be honest, I was a bit uncertain.  Keanu Reeves has always been something of an unknown quantity.  When I heard one of the advertising tag lines of "the best role from Keanu since The Matrix," my first thought was well that wouldn't be too hard.  John Wick is, however, really a good,  classic style action flick.


The key for Keanu has always been not to give him too much to say.  It's not really his skill to deliver lines that hurts his performance.  It is just that for as long as he performs, his voice will always be tagged as a part of Bill and Ted.  I know, it's an unfortunate thing to happen, but it is also the way it is. John Wick is a retired hitman.  He is actually more of a hitman's hitman.  He is the killer according to Russian bad guy, Viggo, that you send to kill the bogey man.

The movie starts with the retired Wick mourning the passing of his wife, the woman who got him out of being a hitman.  From there, of course, a series of events cause John Wick to come out of retirement and go after the very bad people which he once worked for.  It is a revenge story.  The central bad guy Viggo Tarasov is played by Michael Nyqvist.  He has an unruly son, Iosef, played by Alfie Allen.

Into the mix we add fellow killers.  One we are none too sure if he is a bad guy or a good guy.  He is Marcus performed by William Dafoe.  There is also Ms. Perkins played by Adrianne Palicki who is a definite baddie.  The movie has a few twists and will easily hold your attention.

After we spend just a little time  at the beginning of the movie getting the sad and silent John Wick story, the movie kicks off.  The action sequences are quick with over-the-top violence.  It is a continuous shoot 'em up and far away from realistic.   They are frequently juxtapositioned with ironic or funny moments.  The timing of these scenes brought open and delighted laughs from the audience.  It is the kind of movie that you can root for the ruthless anti-hero because he is also the legendary action hero.

 John Wick is rated "R" for violence and language.  I enjoyed the movie. If your looking for a true action movie that hasthe right elements and something that isn't terribly deep but just fun storytelling, then John Wick will easily fit the bill.