Because this seemed like the perfect choice for a Valentines’ Day movie, LOL. While my parents saw another, significantly more holiday oriented movie (we all decided randomly to catch a mid-week film down at the local cinema), I hopped into this one despite not having seen the first installment. I distinctly remember not seeing the first John Wick movie because in my head, a guy raising hell just to get his dog back was a little bit too familiar of a story.

Anyway, here’s my roundup of stunt coordinator-turned-director Chad Stahelski’s (John Wick) John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017).

Please note that there may be spoilers.  Read at your own risk.

THE STORY:

The story picks up with John Wick (Keanu Reeves – 47 Ronin (2013)) beating the crap out of a bunch of Russian mobsters in order to get his car back. After succeeding and killing a crap ton of people, he makes “peace” with the head of the mob and he heads back home to continue to live out his retirement. John soon finds out that peace is an elusive thing when Italian crime lord Santino D’Antonio (Riccardo Scamarcio – Burnt (2015)) knocks on his door, demanding that John repay a blood oath that John owes him.

THE GOOD:

1. The hand-to-hand fight scenes were really, really I like that they put little to no music over those scenes because beautifully choreographed brawls didn’t need anything to enhance their intensity.

   

2. They made the assassin world look like such a classy place. I find myself very intrigued as to how their whole operation works. Who funds them? Does everybody pay a membership fee? And I love the thought that there are women dressed in pink shirts answering calls and working as operators for assassins. It’s such a weird and cool idea.
3. Ruby Rose is super pretty but she actually looks tough enough to be a professional bodyguard.
4. Keanu Reeves is 53 years old. Let that sink in for a bit.

   

5. Ian McShane because he basically lit up the screen every time he was in it.

   

6. Laurence Fishburne!!!!!! Because I had no idea that he was going to be in this movie and cheeky nods to previous blockbuster hits are always welcome.

THE BAD:

1. The low angle shots. There doesn’t seem to be any reason for it and if the director was gunning for a “cool” look, the effort was wasted. Keanu Reeves is already taller than most guys in the room so there was no real need to make him appear more menacing.
2. It’s kind of ridiculous that he never seems to reload his guns. I mean, considering the number of people he’s killed and that he usually shoots them twice – once in the chest and once in the head – how does he not run out of ammo?

THE UGLY:

1. There’s no way that he’s going to survive that international contract on his head, right? No matter how good John Wick is, he cannot possibly fight all of those goons off even if he does have that one-hour head start. In my head it’ll be a maximum of five hours before he and his dog get killed.
2. It doesn’t seem like John Wick is that keen on retiring. For somebody who’s supposedly hell bent on putting his gruesome past behind him, he does keep a lot of memorabilia lying around in arm’s reach. With the secret basement full of guns and the safety deposit box full of guns, it was almost like he was expecting to be called back into the assassin’s world pretty often.

All in all, Stahelski’s John Wick: Chapter 2 was a fun movie. While the plot was relatively simple, the action sequences really made up for the lack of a complicated story. I didn’t see the first movie but if I understand it correctly, they’ve focused more on the rules and regulations of the assassins’ world in this one. I really enjoyed that because it’s such a cool thing to watch a bunch of brutal killers bowing down to the protocols that almost make them gentlemen. Performances were okay all around but the mere presence of the supporting cast was enough to elevate this sequel to a new level.

THE VERDICT: 7.5/10

*All photos are lifted from the film’s IMDB page.