Review of John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017) by Andrewmakatsari — 11 Feb 2017

John Wick Chapter 2 is fast-paced, brutally efficient and giddily entertaining throughout, a classy follow up to a surprise hit of 2014, that took the action world by storm, in Chapter 2 , the creator trio of Director Chad Stahelski, Writer Derek Kolstad and the leading man Keanu Reeves prove that not only have they taken the action world by storm but they can also grip it and expand on the things that made the original so great.

Much like what The Raid 2 was to the first Raid, the sequel waists no time, picking up directly after the first film, it is not afraid to introduce and show the mystery of the protagonist once again, but does it in a way that doesn't feel forced for fans of Chapter One or confusing for the newcomers. Without getting into details of the story, which were mercifully left open by the trailers too, the story is a lot more focused, and grander in scale, as expected the vastly intriguing and surprising underworld of the first film, is developed into an international organisation, following the same code and rules of the Continental establishment, with added features and elements that make it stand out once again. Keanu Reeves is the perfect catalyst and guide for the audience as we traverse through territories both foreign and old. The emotional pull of the first film is lacking however, and while we still root for Wick, mostly due to Reeves' stoic, straight-faced and utterly badass portrayal in all scenes he's in, the gravity of the situation is more of a "forced mission" rather than "wilful revenge", which makes the film a little tamer and less hard-hitting in its plot. The supporting cast is great again, small roles given to talented actors, with Ian McShane's Winston, having a larger role in this one, more fatherly than anything to John, While Riccardo Scamarcio, plays a cheeky, but overall not as strong of a villain here, when compared to the humorous, cynical and respectful Viggo from the original, played brilliantly by Michael Nyqvist. However the villains' bodyguards, played by Common and Ruby Rose, respectively are excellent, both of them unique in their own ways, Common's assassin Cassian is seen as more of a equal to John, and their first showdown is nothing but a gigantic western homage of the 70s, while Ruby Rose, is a mute, who speaks with sign language and still manages to joke around, exuding a playful attitude, she's just as good at smirking and winking as she is with knifing and punching. Which brings us to the aspect of the film, that had me laughing like an egotistical maniac seconds before pressing a button to launch a nuke at Russia, had the whole audience fill the theater with "OOOOOOOHHHHH **** !!" " HOLY **** ME" and a lot of other swearing( I think we swore more times than the film itself), the action. Mixing Hong-Kong action film style gunplay and martial arts, former stuntman turned Director Chad Stahelski, directs the ultra-violent, kinetic action sequences with long takes, minimal editing and a lot of suave energy that never gets boring, manages to escalate, works well constantly, a whirlwind of bullets, broken bones and more than one pencil kills. The cast is right there with him professionally, trained to look as real, cool and natural as possible during those long-takes, gun-fu, now a signature action/fighting style of these films is once again endlessly inventive and the times when Reeves twists and rolls, utilises many upon many Jujutsu and Judo moves, while the camera moves with the action for ultimate highlights of kills and takedowns, it is VERY HARD, IM-****ing-POSSIBLE not to have a reaction equalling an orgasm again and again. The Score is fantastic as well, lovers of the tune and the set-piece of the original's Red Circle club need not worry, as the sequel delivers a blistering set-piece during a concert in Rome, with music just as great, if not better. Stahelski is also very inspired himself by action films of the yore, which he makes apparent in what was pretty much a more savage, gunplay oriented finale of Bruce Lee's "Enter The Dragon" mirror house finale, or the Buster Keaton opening signifying a stuntman's dream movie has come to life. John Wick Chapter 2 may not be as good of an all-around package with the story taking almost too ludicrous turns out of reality even for its own established reality, the action sequences and the performances make it one of the most accomplished, compelling and thrilling action films I've ever seen, and to me......... that means everything.