An intense return to form for both the action genre and Keanu Reeves

Rating: 8/10 (12 February 2015)

I will start by saying i haven't really been a fan of many strictly action films that have come out in the last 5 - 7 years, until now. John Wick is a mostly well paced action film with many really awesome and intense action sequences that actually really surprised me. This film i feel just revived the action genre, well for me it did. It was so fun to watch while at the same time getting increasingly more interesting the more twists the film took. One thing i also loved was that once the action begins, it doesn't really take many breaks, it just keeps going with fight after fight and not one bit of action felt forced, it all made sense in terms of the plot. Lets talk about the plot, at first this movie seems like your average action film about someone who gets something taken from him and seeks revenge. But that quickly unfolds to reveal more and more secrets about who John Wick is and who the people he is hunting are.
The movie felt like to me a perfect mix between 'Taken' and 'Hostel' making for a surprisingly awesome action film. In terms of the performances, i felt that everyone in this film portrayed their characters really well, in a way that felt pretty believable. But the most importantly, this felt like a real comeback to the action genre for Keanu Reeves, he was incredible in this movie, right from the beginning you are really backing his character and are cheering him on right to the end. I believe he can really take over from Liam Neeson and be the new face of badass action if only this film got the attention it deserved. The only issue i felt stood out was that the third act of the film although was still very entertaining and intense felt a little more rushed than the rest of the film. But other than that this film was a very pleasant surprise and restored my faith in the action genre. I love the world they set up in this film and cant wait for the sequel or any other films they decide to set within this world. - 8.1