“John Wick: Chapter 4” is cinematic action done to near-perfection
A Review by Victor DeBonis
The fourth installment of this franchise is definitely a prime example of a series entry considerably increasing its size and creativity in every sense of the word. Keanu Reaves once more excels as a hitman who is reserved on the surface but maintains a huge amount of rage and possesses lethal skills that rightfully establish him as a legend among assassins. Similar to previous entries, his aggressive hits and ability for somehow surviving extremely deadly scenarios speaks volumes about his incredible reputation all by themselves. Laurence Fishburne returns, too, and he is a blast to witness on-screen. He expresses the same wild glee for weapons and blunt truths about death in a booming voice. Although he doesn’t do too much in this movie, Fishburne makes each moment count.
A new character comes in the form of “Mr. Nobody” as played by Shamier Anderson. He is excellent at keeping his eye on his target and, much like Wick, providing a stoic, patient demeanor that hides a vicious killing machine. It is welcome to see him and the strong bond between him and his faithful and very well-trained dog. As a former dog owner and eternal dog lover, I will always be in awe and appreciation of this franchise, simply for how much it loves and respects dogs and recognizes them in their importance as best friends, emotional support, and, in this series’ case, fellow soldiers and comrades on a highly polished battlefield. Rina Sawayama is equally awesome. She somersaults and swipes her blades with purpose and grace. Without any words, one fierce expression from her face delivers whether she loves and respects you or wants to murder you. Honestly, I would love to see a spin-off series with this character.
Donnie Yen plays a new character in this series, and he’s easily one of my new favorites. Yen performs his attacks with rapid fury, and his ability to use his surroundings to take down people, as well as his humorous moments, provided some of the film’s best scenes. As quiet as he is, Yen also knows the impact of a vicious insult towards a foe as well as the importance of a conversation between a fellow colleague and friend. Reeves and Yen are similar in their paths of continuing to fight out of inspiration from someone whom they greatly love in their lives, and this connection and their bond also resulted in one of my favorite parts about this movie.
In fact, the connections between characters, in general, also help this movie and this franchise stand strongly as it does. I won’t hesitate from admitting that my love for dogs and beagles plays a big role in me loving this franchise as I do. When someone hurts someone in grief and kills a dog, any people involved in such a horrible deed deserves what is coming to them. The love Wick carries for his dog and especially his wife creates a more-than-solid motivation for what he does in these films, even if the mentioning of these tragedies gradually stays in the background.
Wick’s connection to his deceased wife makes what’s happening vastly intriguing, and the connections that the other characters from this dark world provide interest in what happens, too. For instance, I love the bond between Rina Sawayama and her character’s father, Koji, played by Hiroyuki Sanada. They both fight with absolute ferocity and discipline, but, in between these scenes, a few exchanges and glances towards each other are all it takes to reveal how much they care about each other. Yen’s character occasionally looks at a photo of her daughter, and, even though these shots of him doing this are brief, they perfectly illustrate the importance of who he is fighting for and attempting to stay alive for in many respects. As ruthless as these assassins are, even they recognize the power of meeting someone so important that they will be willing to go up against any foe and face any bullet or sword because that person (in this hitman world or outside of it) means that much to them. In a complicated and often daunting world, love is often the only thing that provides enough light and strength to find our way through the darkness when everything else is so fragile.
Some losses happen in this movie, and the extent of how much I admired specific characters and places caused sincere shock and hurt when I saw them disappear or die. Since the actors do well in establishing their characters and their bonds with one another, it left me recognizing the reality of the intense stakes involved in this film and the reality of Wick getting more beaten and pummeled than other entry (which, given the ferocious violence in this series, is saying something).
Visually, the fourth chapter absolutely blew me away. This entry ventures to deserts and cathedrals and the streets of Japan and other parts of the globe, and the level of detail and sheer size of the scope of these locations is astounding. Neon lights intensely radiate along street corners and in subways, and this movie is covered in splashes of fierce red, bronze, and other colors. For a world inhabited by killers, it looks amazing and alive. If I was closer to an IMAX theater, I would return to see this again, partly to witness the terrific cinematography on display.
The action is once again top-of-the-line. In “Chapter 4” it provides probably the best of the fights and shooting sequences thus far. Director Chad Stahelski shoots (no pun intended) scenes in which the camera will carefully peek around the corner during intense gun battles and, in one of the best sequences in the movie and possibly the series, film an elaborate, overhead shootout up and down the floors of a crowded apartment building that was very reminiscent of “Minority Report.” Stairwells, nun-chuks, and even cars, among other items, are put to exceptional use as items of painful and deadly damage, and this franchise further pursues its understanding of the significance of a fighter’s surroundings to his situation in combat. For most of the action sequences, I was grinning wide and felt like a kid in a candy store if, in place of chocolate bars and lollipops, there were impressively choreographed sword and gun battles on display.
Everyone will have their favorite action sequence from this movie, and, for me, it’s probably a scene centered around one of Paris’ most famous sites. I can’t imagine the amount of stunt work and trial-and-error that was undergone to bring this scene to life, and, throughout this scene, I felt my jaw drop at the level of danger and variety of ways in which people were trying to take each other down on display. The stunt work and fight choreography, as a whole, is incredible, and I give all the kudos to the people involved with stunts in this movie. Without their great involvement and assistance, several people might’ve experienced greater pain or worse in real life, and this is one of those films responsible for heightening my already-deep appreciation for stunt people only more. While no action sequence was even remotely boring, there were a few that lasted on way longer than I expected them to, and it honestly left me wondering if another sword battle was going to immediately follow the one that came before it. Overall, however, I was witnessing some of the best action scenes I had viewed in a movie in a while, and anybody seeking a wave of superb fights involving weapons and other objects will not be disappointed here.
I’m currently conflicted on some of what happens in this movie’s ending. On one hand, I can definitely see what the mindset was in planning certain events in the conclusion, and everything else about the ending absolutely works. However, on the opposite hand, what happens in the conclusion causes me to ponder if it is simply set in this way to lead up to different events. I remember reading a review that the late-great Roger Ebert did on the awesome “Thelma and Louise” back in 1993, and he stated that the one and only thing that kept him from giving it a four-star review came from the last two minutes of the movie. I couldn’t help but feel a similar way to parts in the conclusion of “John Wick 4.” By no means did I hate this ending, and I enjoyed it, overall. The purpose of why specific events play out as they do is just what puzzles me. It will probably make more sense to those who see the movie.
“John Wick: Chapter Four” follows further down the path of what seals this as one of my favorite film franchises. It brings the right actors to deliver the correct amount of humor, humanity, and physical intensity. The movie is visually remarkable and could practically be displayed on a wall with how fantastic it looks. It knows exactly when to take itself a little seriously and when to embrace the foolishness of its bizarre fights and outlook on death always remaining one bullet or sword swipe away.
The connections that keep these warriors going is never overstated, and it expresses their love and bonds through the right words and exchanges. Reeves maintains the same stoic nature and humanity and ferocious aggression that maintains his character’s status as one of the most legendary action heroes in cinema. Action scenes, despite going longer than expected, are among the best provided by mainstream blockbusters in these parts and give competition from other franchises with physical battles a serious run for the money.
I can’t say for certain, yet, if this is my favorite entry from the series. The first one still holds a special place in my heart through setting the ground for this franchise so well and connecting to me as a brief yet almost perfectly told tale of a warrior overwrought by grief and being unfairly yanked back to his former ways, due to the hurt inflicted by foolish ones surrounding him. However, “Chapter Four” is undoubtedly my favorite “John Wick” sequel by a long shot.
Any action-movie lover who hasn’t seen this or the others in this series seriously needs to remedy that.
A