John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum

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It's interesting to reminisce on this whole 'John Wick' thing getting started, when people so often suggested that Keanu Reeves was the action hero that the world needed. This was largely due to his "gun-fu" skills (that's a combination of exactly what you think), and we had already seen him as a good action hero in the 'Matrix' films. 'John Wick' kinda resurrected him in a way, and it's nice to see that he isn't just that go-to action guy because of it. He's kinda just John Wick now, and that's more than enough.

Excluding things like Marvel films, I'd say these films probably are the biggest action titles from the past decade... Yeah, I know it started in 2014, but show me a better mainstream non-fantasy action series between 2009 and now. These are kinda the new 'Die Hard' films, in my opinion.

'Chapter 3' has John Wick (Keanu Reeves) on the run after the events of the previous film sent him over the edge. Now, he has a massive amount of hit men and hit women after him, with a $14 million bounty on his head. This turns the tables for John, making this a survival action film as opposed to the revenge action films we're more familiar with. For as much as I love these movies, the second one really is just an extension on the first (I know, duh, but hear me out), offering more of the same, but with deeper dips into the whole International Assassins Guild. It's still ultimately a revenge film though, just like the first.

Offering up a survival story here helps make John feel more vulnerable and fallible... I almost said that with a straight face... anyway, it's a nice change. You can still find everything you want in a 'Wick' movie here though. In fact, I highly compliment the action sequences in this one. I loved how John used his environment to his advantage. My favourite was probably the use of a horse's back legs. I know that sounds weird, but just check it out. I actually laughed out loud when I saw it.

Beyond that though, we also get into some really neat fight sequences that don't just stop at a shoot-off. There's also a great knife fight in this, a fight involving dogs and Halle Berry (as Sofia - someone who helps John out once he's declared excommunicado) in her best role in a very long time, and a fight where we get to see just how durable John Wick actually is. You'll know the scene when you see it. That's just to name some of the action through this though. What you want from John Wick movie, you'll get here, and probably even more. For my money, this is the most solid action trilogy I've seen in quite a while.

5/5

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