John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023)

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This might bother a lot of the fans, but from my perspective, 'Chapter 4' marks that particular point in time where John Wick began to feel like a farce of itself. Don't twist that to mean more than it does, though, as it all boils down to Keanu's acting and delivery of his one-liners, and there's even a slight comedic aspect when it comes to the action sequences at this point. 'Chapter 4' is a film that's made fun by how over the top it is, but in the best, most expectant way - we WANT it to be fun and over the top at this point.

At this point, let's keep it simple. One day, John Wick (Keanu Reeves) loses his puppy, a gift from his late wife, at the hands of the son of a Russian mob boss, triggering John to kick it into high gear and go full revenge mode. By the beginning of 'Chapter 2,' said revenge is ultimately successful, but John is pulled back into work, owing a blood oath. John ends up breaking the rules of his sanctuary, the Continental Hotel, an underground neutral zone, and 'Chapter 3' has John playing a game of ultimate survival, as the whole world ends up after him, and the $14 Million bounty on his head.

The third film ends with a cliffhanger involving John joining forces with The Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne), someone who has recently helped John out with the weaponry he needed and who also has a grudge against the High Table, a council of twelve important crime bosses, who are at the top and conduct their business through the neutral grounds of the Continental Hotel chain. Over time, John has found his place in the criminal underworld to be inescapable, and as a result, he is ready for all-out war with the high table if it means regaining some semblance of a normal life.

At the risk of saying too much, the film opens with John seeking out the Elder (George Georgiou), the "one who sits above the Table," with the belief that this will ultimately mean cutting the head off the snake that is The High Table. It further demonstrates John's fearlessness and serves as an intimidation tactic to those who seek him out at the High Table. It doesn't work, however, as the High Table sends the Marquis Vincent Bisset de Gramont (Bill Skarsgård) and whatever he needs to complete the task of killing John.

Things start to get a little wilder here than ever before, as the Marquis takes his position with an abusive stance, stripping Winston (Ian McShane) and Charon (Lance Reddick) of their positions at the New York Continental and bringing in a retired assassin, and old friend of Johns named Caine (Donnie Yen) who is considered among the best - even as a blind guy. To motivate him, the Marquis threatens his daughter's life. John's battle for survival and to be done with the High Table once and for all ultimately leads him to a dual that will sell his fate, one way or another.

To be clear, this is a series of high-octane action movies, each one doing something a little different, that doesn't have much of a weak point throughout its execution. If there ever was one, I might claim it to be this particular chapter, but at the same time, and as mentioned before, for as cheesy and almost ridiculous as this movie gets, there's something about it all the audiences are eating up at this point. It's all great, popcorn action, but in the best way possible, and surprisingly, never the same thing, time and time again.

The 'John Wick movies are one of two examples I can think of in which it has a four-movie count, and every single movie within it is fantastic in its own right. The other is 'Toy Story,' but obviously for very different reasons. The 'John Wick series finds itself unquestionably among the most incredible action series of all time, offering up just about anything an action movie junky could want, ranging from high-octane gun fights to martial arts to car chases to using swords to fighting using the environment to kick-ass one-liners to killer explosions; the list just keeps going. These movies are, in my books, action movie perfection!

5/5

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