John Wick: Chapter 4 Movie Review by Reyim

Wonderfully over the top, in content and length

E verything about John Wick: Chapter 4 is over the top. Not just the fights, the violence,
the gore and the deaths. It is also relentlessly awash with camera movements, pounding
music and flashing lights, all stylishly incorporated into the movie.
The only thing that there’s not a lot of in Chapter 4 is dialogue. But Keanu Reeves has such
a stern and mesmeric presence as the hitman that there is little need for words when he can
just use his fists and a weapon instead. Considering Reeves’ astounding career, and his
performances in The Matrix and Bill & Ted films, it’s remarkable that John Wick is now
probably his most identifiable character.
For Chapter 4, after being condemned to a life on the run by the High Table in the previous
film, the protagonist has now gone into hiding as the price tag for his assassination continues
to rise. After his safe haven is exposed and overrun with assassins, Wick finally discovers a
way to defeat the High Table, and its new ruler the Marquis Vincent de Gramont (Bill
Skarsgard).
To achieve this he has to travel from Japan to New York to Berlin and then to Paris, all the
while encountering some of the deadliest assassins in various underworld settings. One
person keeping track of Wick is the blind assassin Caine (Donnie Yen), an old friend of Wick’s,
who has been forced out of retirement to ensure the safety of his daughter.
Once again directed by the former stuntman and co-ordinator Chad Stahelski — who has
now overseen all four instalments — there’s an assuredness and control to this chapter
that means that, despite the blatant extravagance, the film never becomes overwhelming.
Just when you fear it might, a fight will be punctuated with a slapstick joke or brutal kill to
show that you’re in the right hands.
It’s also clear that, following the huge success of the franchise, Lionsgate gave Stahelski and
Reeves carte blanche to do exactly what they wanted. The rumoured budget for John Wick:
Chapter 4 was $100 million and you can see every cent of it on-screen and in its numerous
luxurious locations. Wick chases his foes through a desert on horseback, and then does
battle with them through a hotel, museum exhibition and a nightclub, all of which
progressively ups the ante and makes the film wonderfully watchable.
ut all of these sequences pale in comparison to the concluding 45 minutes in Paris. Once
again the fighting is utterly remarkable to behold, especially since it takes place at a famous
landmark, before its final scene changes speed, and is all the more engrossing because of it.
John Wick is that rare franchise that gets better and better with each instalment. Chapter
4 takes the series to new heights and is undoubtedly its best film yet. It embraces the chaos,
style and relentlessness that made its predecessors so popular, before pushing viewers to
their limits. It’s the sort of movie that you’ll walk out of feeling exhausted. Most of all,
though, you’ll be incredibly satisfied and pining for the next chapter.
Director: Chad Stahelski Rating: 4/5
Stars: Keanu Reeves*, Laurence Fishburne, George Georgiou etc.
Hollywood Movie Review @ reyim’s™ Entertainment News

* (Kay Ah Noo Reeves) [Hawaiian origin – meaning Cool Mountain Breeze]