Welcome Back, Mr. Reeves! Welcome Back!

Rating: Null/10 (28 November 2014)

Absolutely remorseless, purely unadulterated & downright violent from start to finish, John Wick is possibly the most stylishly crafted, feverishly paced, seamlessly executed, intensely entertaining & immensely satisfying action flick to come out from Hollywood after a very long time which, apart from marking a welcome return to action for Keanu Reeves, also triumphs as one of the biggest cinematic surprises of the year, not to mention the coolest by far.
Very refined in its visual presentation, taking a no-holds-barred approach with its content & providing heavy doses of pulse-pounding entertainment that many viewers will want to revisit again n again, John Wick is amongst the most impressive looking motion pictures of the year that takes its simple premise to an unexpected high, thanks to its kinetic direction, breathtaking action, neat cinematography, slick editing & a magnificent lead performance from Keanu Reeves.
The film tells the story of its titular character who used to be an ultimate assassin but retired to take care of his dying wife. Losing her to cancer, he receives a posthumous gift from her in the form of a puppy, with whom he eventually connects. Things are set in motion when few Russian thugs invade his home to steal his car but also end up beating him & killing his dog. And so the ex-hit-man comes out of his retirement to unleash carnage on the gangsters who took everything away from him.
Produced & directed by the first time filmmakers in Chad Stahelski & David Leitch, who until now had worked in the film industry as stunt coordinators, John Wick marks a stunning directional debut for both of them & is a spectacular start to their filmmaking careers. And Derek Kolstad's screenplay doesn't waste much time in setting up its premise or introducing its characters & gets right down on business from the start by telling just enough about Wick to get the plot moving.
Technically, there is a lot to admire about John Wick as the film exhibits an otherworldly setting for a revenge thriller that makes minimal use of elements not relevant to the plot. Camera-work makes its mark in the close-combat sequences for it provides a clear view of the carnage & isn't ruined by excessive editing or shaky cam. Editing paces the story with vicious velocity while its cool soundtrack further enhances the experience by remaining in tone with the film's events.
Coming to the performances, the film features a capable cast in Keanu Reeves, Willem Dafoe, Michael Nyqvist, Alfie Allen, Ian McShane, John Leguizamo & others, amongst which both Reeves & Dafoe end up impressing the most. With a character that's tailor-made for his talent & combined with his magnetic screen presence, Reeves delivers a swashbuckling performance & easily steals the show. Dafoe follows him close & despite his short role, manages to leave his mark.
Yet the best thing about John Wick remains its action sequences that are stupendously carried out. With its debutant directors already well-versed in the field of action choreography & stunt work, the two manage to add new freshness to the combat sequences by nicely blending its gunplay with grounded martial arts to single-handedly elevate John Wick into the league of cinema's finest action entertainers to come out in recent years.
On an overall scale, John Wick is a smart, sophisticated & incredibly well-polished cinema that nicely balances its high-octane action & finely enacted drama to succeed as a potent, kinetic & relentless entertainer. Helmed by two new directors who understand what great action is about, boasting a script that knows where to draw the line & spearheaded by Keanu Reeves' badass performance, John Wick is an instant classic that comes as a must for every action film fanatic out there.
Welcome back, Mr. Reeves! Welcome back!