"John Wick" (David Leitch and Chad Stahelski, 2014)

ONE, TWO, JOHN WICK’S COMING FOR YOU by Mo Shaunette

Above: Keanu Reeves as the notorious John Wick

 

On a rooftop in New York, in the wee hours of the morning, feared mob boss Viggo Tarasov (Michael Nyqvist) makes a threatening call to chop shop owner Aurelio (John Leguizamo) regarding a past grievance.

“I’m told you struck my son,” Viggo says.

“Yes I did, sir,” Aurelio admits.

“Why?” Viggo asks.

“Uh, because he stole John Wick’s car, sir, and he killed his dog.”

“…oh,” Viggo says. He then hangs up the phone.

I could probably go into a more detailed synopsis, but that exchange pretty much sums up the bullet points.  John Wick (Keanu Reeves) is a retired hit man so dangerous that he’s known as “the Boogeyman.”  Now, his ’69 Mustang is gone, his beagle is dead, and he’s on a rip-roaring rampage of revenge against the punk kid (Alfie Allen) responsible.  And no amount of goons, mooks, thugs, or hired killers is going to stop him.

“John Wick” is the directorial debut of stuntmen/coordinators Chad Stahelski and David Leitch, who manage to pull off a stylized action flick in the vein of “Drive” or “Looper.”  What’s interesting about it is how different the before and after of John’s life are.  His retirement in suburban New Jersey is shot with a blue-gray filter, quick-cut editing, and almost no score at all.  Then, things kick into high gear once John returns to his old gangster haunts, which are infused with lush colors, lurid music, and more deliberate, measured shots.  Appropriately, the fight scenes are fast-paced and energetic, with John shooting and stabbing (but mostly shooting) his way through every bad guy in the Russian mob with ruthless efficiency.  He knows how his enemies fight, he knows how to counter them, and Mr. Reeves makes you believe this is a man to be feared.

The supporting cast is an interesting mix of familiar character actors.  New York’s underbelly is populated by people like Willem Dafoe, Ian McShane, Dean Winters, Adrianne Palicki, Lance Reddick, and the aforementioned Messrs. Nyqvist, Leguizamo, and Allen, who all elevate the roles that are written in Derek Kolstad’s script.  However, the star of the show is Mr. Reeves, who comes off as very capable as the titular character.  His…shall we say, “subdued” style of acting works perfectly for Wick as he drifts disaffected through retirement after his wife’s death until events force him to wake up and be a human being again.

“John Wick” is unlikely to change anyone’s life.  For all its flourishes, the story isn’t revolutionary and you’d be forgiven for describing it as being paced like a video game (the final “boss fight” against Viggo has Wick shooting bad guys from behind the wheel of a muscle car like he’s playing “Grand Theft Auto”).  But it’s a fun little action romp and a good first outing for new directors.

There are worse ways to spend 101 minutes.