Keanu's Surprising Come Back

Curiosity can be a terrible burden, sometimes ignored, but never ceasing. Jubilation and lamentation punctuate the landscape as two possible destinations to a journey that inquisitive nature began. I share this joy and affliction with you, dear readers. My viewing of John Wick was one occasion where curiosity lead to a rather unique experience. Ratings sparked my desire to watch this film. Excluding documentaries, Keanu hasn’t been in a well received movie since The Matrix: Reloaded, . Disbelief, confusion and cybernetic unicorns clouded my mind as John Wick stayed above eighty percent on rotten tomatoes even after its theatrical release. I thought, “how is this possible? An action movie with Keanu as lead that doesn’t suck? Can’t be done.” Yet, people like this movie. I’ll try to unravel this mystery.
IMDB
Rotten Tomatoes
Genre: Action, Drama, Thriller, Dark Fantasy, Revenge
Concept:

My limited research revealed no adapted source material which is surprising considering the caliber of John Wick. Narrative complication or superb story-telling don’t lend their rare support this time around. This is a bare-bones revenge flick and that’s ok. Folks tend to bash on simple narratives because skeletons make worse dates than people with flesh and skin and who are alive, but I digress. Narratives need meat (complexity, richness, characters, etc) in order to be compelling; however, basic stories can achieve the same goal, but with different methods. Quentin Tarantino has built a directing career off these methods. Movies that lack narrative can balance out with stylization, visual effects, cinematography, engaging characters or a myriad of other methods. Unfortunately, endeavors involving these methods end in failure or film makers rely on one gimmick, disregarding narrative entirely (looking at you, Michael Bay).

At surface level, John Wick appears another generic action movie. An assassin leaves his profession because he fell in love. Times passes and through a series of events, the assassin is dragged back into an underworld of villains and lies. Dozens of modern movies have this plot enough times to form a sub-genre of action movies. However, two elements separate John Wick from its peers. First, his wife (Helen) is not the vehicle for his return. Second, the setting goes Legion of Doom style. Action thrillers, non B-list ones anyway, tend to be unrealistic in their action sequences, but not the background. A separate and secret society of assassins is presented through the Continental: a hotel where assassins can stay while working and provides them with a myriad of services. Gold coins specific to the assassin trade are used as currency. The Management decrees their hotel is neutral zone, thus no fighting can occur on the premises. It’s not plot-centric and a little stupid, but I like it. Characters:

John Wick (Keanu Reeves)“The man you call to kill the boogey man.” A man so effective at ending human life that the entire underground world fears him. John seems like our typical action hero: silent, brooding, stoic and able to kick major amounts of butt. Yet, aren’t action heroes good people? An evil man falls in love with a woman, yet his evil is not erased. He didn’t kill for country or to protect his loved ones. In fact, it’s never established why John was as a hit man at all. Wick’s character is compelling for these reasons. Usually, anti-heroes start out as heroes and slowly depart from that role. John’s back story is never explored and it’s intentional. By keeping his past vague, the audience is presented with a protagonist they won’t resonate with. Keanu was prefect for this role because Wick doesn’t emote often or have an excessive amount of dialogue.

Dasiy (the puppy)A young dog with the saddest back-story ever written.

Viggo Tarasov (Michael Nyqvist)A Father and Russian mob boss who loves his stupid son despite certain death. I haven’t seen Mr. Nyqvist in many films, but he played this role well. Viggo has a charismatic fatalism. Honestly, he’s probably the most sympathetic character in the film. Viggo is well aware of Wick’s monstrous proficiency at killing people, yet he defends his son with every available asset. Disregarding his family business, he partially fills the role of hero. Yet, he’ll save his own life before anyone else.

Marcus (William Defoe)Friend and fellow assassin, Marcus is an anomaly in the assassin/hit man sub genre of actions movies. Wick doesn’t seem to have many friends in the underground or outside it. Protagonists in revenge flicks rarely have actual friends. Usually, their companions boil down to love interests and/or other assassins with similar goals. Despite killing for living, Marcus and Wick developed a friendship off screen, but the depth of that relationship remains ambiguous until relevant points in the plot occur. Unfortunately, Marcus is used to move the plot forwards which bothers me.

Iosef Tarasov (Alfie Allen)Stupid, spoiled, sporadic and simple describe Iosef; “shit-head” is an acceptable alternative. His actions basically start the plot. Wick’s initial target is Iosef for stealing his car and killing his dog. Beyond being a macguffin and supplying different motivations to Wick and Viggo, this kid has no purpose.

Story:

Concept, characters and story amalgamate together into a successful film. However, that hasn’t always been the case. John Wick challenges my criteria for an excellence in films. I’ve always acknowledged that solid foundations can be built on non-traditional elements, but irregularity kept me from seeing real world examples. John Wick fails in traditional criteria while benefiting from stylization, atmosphere and proper execution.

Let’s tackle atmosphere first. Great action movies must have good pacing. Transformers Four took pacing and sacrificed it on the altar of Cthulhu. Thankfully, this film doesn’t make that mistake. A concise montage, less than fifteen minutes, provides a chronology for how Wicks’s wife passed away. Scenes include when she falls ill, her death and the funeral procession. It ends with Wick and Marcus having a brief exchange of dialogue. Prior to Wick seeing Marcus, there was silence. Yet, all the relevant emotional depth is displayed. We know Wick cared for his wife and her death has destroyed him. Death by disease adds an extra dimension because terminal illness is often accompanied by severe pain. This montage establishes atmosphere for the remainder of the film.

Iosef’s actions probably wouldn’t rattle a man like Wick under normal circumstances; however, throw unbearable grief into the cauldron and poop will collide with the fan. The former hit-man doesn’t lose his mind, rather as Amon Amarth says, “Only vengeance will set my spirit free.” Iosef becomes the target of Wick’s inevitable revenge. Prior association among most characters creates a heaviness that lingers through the film. It’s established that Tarasov used Wick’s talents to solidify his control of the city. Viggo granted Wick a way out by giving him an “impossible” task. Every act of violence Wick enacts on Tarasov’s organization feels personal, nameless guards and other personnel become victims in a titanic blood feud. Violence isn’t celebrated. I am incredibly desensitized to fictional violence, yet John’s actions made me uncomfortable. It would have been easier handle if John took pleasure in killing Tarasov’s men, but his cold and distant aura when ending human life was unsettling.

Notice that I and others have labeled John Wick a thriller. There are better thrillers like Argo or Gone Girl. However, this film builds tension and releases it properly. In the beginning, Wick is mourning for his loss. A puppy is delivered to house to be physical companion and last gift from his wife. Just enough scenes are show for a developed emotional connection between Wick and Dasiy. I almost thought the synopsis for the film was wrong due a lack of action. Then Iosef and his buddies break in and steal Wick’s car and kill his puppy. Tension is still building because Wick doesn’t immediately go after them. He buries Daisy in the back yard mulls around a little more. Iosef tries to sell Wick's mustang to Aureilo (John Leguizamo) who turns him down. The chop boss then informs Viggo of Iosef’s actions. Keep in mind, tension is still building. Viggo explains to his son who John Wick is and his actions were foolish. While he’s speaking, we cut back to Wick using a sledge hammer to break the floor of his garage open. This execution is excellent.

Thrillers make deal with their audience: eventually this tension has payoff, a promise fulfilled. Where other films like Jack Reacher or Godzilla (2014) failed, John Wick succeeds. Every character, excluding Iosef and Ms. Perkins (Adrianne Palicki), show visceral fear and/or respect for Wick. The film promises: Wick is going to make a sea of carnage, but you got to wait first. I waited and this movie delivered; Wick destroyers the crime empire he helped build . That’s proper thriller execution in a nut-shell.

Stylization might be paramount to John Wick’s success. A combination of lighting, sound effects and long camera shots build on what on atmosphere created. Dark visual tones dominate the color scheme. Wick wears an entirely black suit looking like a slick undertaker. While the color symbolism is obvious, it works to make death and John Wick synonymous. Scenes that have light in them are often still bathed in darkness and gloom. All the gun shots thud and resonate. It’s almost like the audience can feel Wick’s hatred every time he fires his gun. The soundtrack augments the atmosphere by playing the relevant genre depending on where Wick is; it’s almost too synchronized. Sometimes the music is slow and menacing, others times it’s unhinged and psychotic.

Yet, lighting, music and sound effects aren’t enough me, until I consider the camera work. Most modern action films use that choppy-shifting to different angles quickly style (clearly I’m a film student *cough*) to give fight sequences urgency and the illusion that the fighters are moving faster than the audience’s eye can perceive. John Wick utilizes traditional long shots where the action is seen from a sedentary position. Fights seem slow, tortuous and drudging which is perfect for this film’s atmosphere. John can kill a man quickly, but he’s not Bruce Lee fast in melee combat. This feature genuinely separates this movie from its contemporaries. Awesome Has an Expiration Date

Like all other films, the flaws can’t be ignored. Marcus’ fate is most problematic to me because it’s contrived, like the writers were saying, “Oh, we need a reason for Wick to kill Viggo. Let’s use Marcus!” From a narrative perspective the decision makes sense, but fails aesthetically. Marcus is reduced from a character to a plot device which is half-assed and stupid. He’s portrayed as a senior to Wick, not just in age, but in experience as well. Surely Marcus realized Viggo would come after him. Where’s the batman style contingency plan? I feel like a veteran of the assassin world would have an escape in case clients got rough.

Poor Daisy provides another problem. One hand, a revenge tirade starting at the death of puppy is awesome, but hard to deliver. To the film’s credit, Daisy is present from his wife and an embodiment of hope for Wick as he grieves. However, not enough of Wick’s relationship with Helen is shown for Dasiy’s death to really mean anything. A simple solution would have been a few flash backs at different periods in their past. One is briefly shown, but no characterization is accomplished.
Score: 7/10

Ultimately, John Wick is a well executed revenge flick and nothing more, otherwise I would score it higher. This film surprised me and turned my expectations. I understand why people liked what they saw. I definitely suggest watching this at first convenience. As a bonus, we get to experience Keanu actually showing emotion. However, if extreme violence disturbs you don’t bother and don’t let children near the dvd. They could have done better in certain areas, but those can be ignored for viewing pleasure. 

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