John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum (2019)

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Once again, I'll start by reminding everyone that this is part of a singular story unfolding in four films, each one a different chapter. So, with that said, to give some half-decent insight on 'Chapter 3' here, I'm gonna get into spoiler territory when it comes to how 'Chapter 2' ends. So, if you're not interested in knowing anything you might not want to, feel free to skip down to my rating. For everyone else, allow me to provide a brief recap of what's happened so far, all stemming from John Wick (Keanu Reeves) seeking revenge.

John's revenge begins when a Russian mob boss's kid shoots and kills John's puppy and steals his car. The puppy, it is important to note, was the last gift he received from his late wife before she succumbed to a terminal illness. John succeeds in his vengeance and takes down a Russian mob boss in the process. Still, in his attempt to return to a retired lifestyle, he is disrupted by a reminder of a blood oath he has yet to fulfill, which will ultimately ruffle the feathers of the Continental Hotel and the High Table, a council of twelve underworld authority figures who represent different criminal organizations who run the Continental.

The Continental is a chain of hotels located in cities worldwide where assassins and the criminal underworld can go as a neutral ground with a set of strict rules - no conducting business on the grounds (i.e., killing one another) being the most stringent of them. When John becomes a massive target for other assassins with an eventual $7 Million bounty on his head, he does what he needs to survive, but this also leads to him breaking some of those rules mentioned above and finding himself "excommunicado," cut off from any underworld resources, and suddenly having the whole world target him with his bounty doubled, now up to $14 Million.

With the new bounty on his head, John finds himself on the run, and this film picks things up from the cliffhanger 'Chapter 2' provided us. As far as the all-around plot goes for this one, however, I've pretty much explained it - John Wick is on the run after finding himself "excommunicado" from the Continental, which means he's cut off entirely. Now, a whole bunch of other assassins are after him in an attempt to earn that bounty. John must now use whatever means he can to seek the help of old friends and try to return to some semblance of normal life.

Among said friends who offer John a bit of help, usually reluctantly, are new faces like Sophia Al-Azwar (Halle Berry), the head of the Casablanca Continental Hotel, and old faces I've failed to mention already, like The Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne), who seems to almost get amusement out of helping John with what he needs - generally weapons of some sort. Some old friends end up turning foes, like Winston Scott (Ian McShane), the head of the Continental in New York, who happens to be the one to give John the news of his excommunication.

It's hard to believe, but as far as these movies go, they make up for a damn-near-perfect series of action flicks that suit the modern mind who doesn't wanna see the same things over and over again. It's admirable how they manage to keep things the same for each movie, in terms of that instant classic "Gun Fu" action style, while at the same time offering something very new and original. 'Chapter 3' actually has more than one great example of this, but particularly, I loved the use of a horse's back legs. Sounds weird, I know, but trust me on this. It's not only unexpected but hilarious and awesome at the same time.

I'd generally consider 'Chapter 3' the point in which audiences begin to understand what they look for when they see a 'John Wick' movie, with "must-haves" like amazing fight choreography, one-liners from Keanu that are both cheesy and awesome and action sequences that flow more smoothly than your average shaky-cam action. It's amazing, but this series has made it three for three in terms of quality at this point, and John Wick has become a name synonymous with modern action. What's even more mind-blowing is there's still a 4th, really good one that follows this! How often (not including 'Toy Story') does a series go four for four!?

5/5

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