John Wick: Chapter 4 review

JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 4: 

FOURTH “WICK” MOVIE GOES OUT WITH A BLOOD-SOAKED BANG! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: **** out of 4

LIONSGATE

Keanu Reeves in John Wick: Chapter 4

 

            Keanu Reeves (Bill & Ted trilogy, Speed, The Matrix franchise) is back in John Wick: Chapter 4, the fourth and final installment of the John Wick series that all started in 2014 with a movie about a man getting revenge on the people who killed his dog. Given how convoluted and complex the series gets over the course of the sequels, it’s quite impressive that it began as a simple revenge film just under 2 hours and now we’re at the fourth film that’s nearly 3 hours.

            Despite missing the first two in theaters (As previously mentioned in my John Wick: Chapter 3 review), I’ve really enjoyed the John Wick films with the first being a fun revenge movie with very well-choreographed and exhilarating action scenes and an engaging performance by Reeves at the center of the bloodshed. The second film I love even more than the first as it expands upon the world of John Wick, introduces other deadly legions of assassins and conspiracies surrounding the organization John worked for, and of course even more high-octane action that surpasses its predecessor. 

            I did see the third one in theaters which is often considered the weakest in the series, but it’s still an expertly-crafted adrenaline rush with some of the best action sequences in the series up until that point and an interesting premise with Wick on the run from pretty much every single assassin in the city. While it loses a bit of its momentum during the second act where Wick is in the desert, it gets back on track rather quickly and delivers some of the most energized and testosterone-filled action since Mad Max: Fury Road. 

            Which brings us to Chapter 4 with Chad Stahelski (Bruised, Day Shift) once again in the director’s chair and Reeves donning the suit and guns (lots of guns!) one last time. And boy, what a movie for this series to go out with? Just wow! 

            In a year where Shazam! Fury of the Gods is only decent and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is a huge disappointment, John Wick: Chapter 4 is the most fun I’ve had all year and I’ll even go on record by calling it the absolute best in the series. Which is saying a lot because I love every single entry in the franchise, but more on that after the plot. 

            The film follows professional hitman and assassin John Wick (Reeves) preparing to exact his revenge against the High Table council. The High Table sends Marquis Vincent de Gramont (Bill Skarsgård-Atomic Blonde, It 1 and 2, Barbarian) to lead a charge and have John Wick dealt with. 

            With help from Continental manager Winston (Ian McShane-Coraline, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Deadwood) and former underground crime boss The Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne-Event Horizon, The Matrix 1-3, Ant-Man and the Wasp), John must shoot, slice, and stab his way through barrages of assassins including a blind High Table assassin known as Caine (Donnie Yen-Iron Monkey, Ip Man franchise, XXX: Return of Xander Cage) in order to reach the High Table and literally duel for his freedom. 

            The film also stars Hiroyuki Sanada (Ringu, Mortal Kombat (2021), Bullet Train) as Shimazu Koji, Shamier Anderson (Wynonna Earp, Race, Destroyer) as the Tracker/Mr. Nobody, the late Lance Reddick (The Wire, Fringe,Bosch) reprising his role as Continental concierge Charon, singer Rina Sawayama as Akira, Scott Adkins (Undisputed 2-4, Ninja 1 and 2, The Expendables 2) as Killa, and Clancy Brown (Highlander, The Shawshank Redemption, SpongeBob Squarepants) as the Harbinger. 

            Overall, John Wick: Chapter 4 delivers what fans love about the series while somehow managing to find new ways to top everything done by its predecessors both on an action level and on a character one as well. Keanu Reeves is as charismatic as ever and much like his performances in the earlier films he’s able to turn his familiar line delivery and mannerisms into a shtick similar to what actors like Christopher Walken and Jeff Goldblum did which adds to the charm of both the actor and character. 

            Bill Skarsgård who already shined as Pennywise the Clown in the It film adaptations is excellent as a ruthless, sadistic, and all-around powerful member of the High Table who will stop at nothing to eliminate John Wick by any means necessary, a perfect villain you just love to hate and he’s having a ball chewing the scenery…while impaling a man’s hand with a knife. Donnie Yen is also a standout in the film as this blind, samurai/martial-arts assassin who constantly butts heads with John while simultaneously showing sympathy and respect for his sometimes enemy, sometimes friend, and incorporates a lot of finesse in his movements and fighting styles. 

            Even Shamier Anderson has plenty of moments to shine as practically the wild-card of the group who is not only armed with his fists and weaponry, but also has an attack dog that is often used during the action scenes. 

            Speaking of which, calling the action sequences in John Wick: Chapter 4 “Fantastic” would be a huge understatement. So, I said that the action in John Wick: Chapter 3: Parabellum was some of the craziest and most adrenaline-fueled action I’ve seen since Mad Max: Fury Road, but the film has that second act where it sort of takes a dive…not the case here. 

            John Wick: Chapter 4 is 2 hours and 45 minutes of action-packed chaos throughout with each sequence topping the last. From an intense shoot-out and slaughterhouse in the Osaka Continental to turning the streets of Paris into an all-out assassin war zone to John fighting a barrage of assassins while climbing a large flight of stairs, and even a long, continuous aerial shot of John and several assassins fighting each other inside a building. 

But unlike something like say, a Michael Bay Transformers sequel, you don’t get tired of it, and it keeps you exhilarated from the opening up until the closing credits. This is action movie filmmaking done correctly as it’s more than just throwing in as much sh*t as possible into a scene, but how they’re shot, choreographed, and edited together to make for an unforgettable experience whether on the big screen or in your living room. 

Seeing Keanu Reeves, Donnie Yen, and Shamier Anderson actually fighting endless strings of assassins in various ways with practical effects and stunts will always be more impressive than a bunch of CGI robots or superheroes fighting other CGI monsters in “Green-Screen Land” because you know everything that they’re doing in this movie is happening in front of the camera. To the point where I’m calling John Wick: Chapter 4 this year’s Top Gun: Maverick and if it doesn’t get at least an Oscar nomination for film editing, I’m going to stab every single one of the Oscar judges with a pencil (LOL, JK!).

John Wick: Chapter 4 caps off the successful action movie series in style with adrenaline-pumped action scenes and a surprisingly emotional swan song for both Reeves and the character. A satisfying conclusion to the franchise and my pick for currently…the best film of 2023.