Keanu's dog day

Rating: 7/10 (3 September 2015)

Although I will never forgive Keanu Reeves for ruining Coppola's Dracula with a legendary terrible performance, he is not an inherently bad actor. Like a well-honed tool , Keanu is fine if put in the right place; if misplaced (say, as a 19th century upper-class Englishman), he is disastrous.
Here Keanu is ideally cast as titular assassin John Wick; the part exploits his wiry physicality and doesn't stretch his limited range, requiring him to project deadly efficiency as he slaughters Russian mobsters who killed his dog. The latter may sound stupid but it's actually the smartest decision in the movie, as it places the story firmly in comic book territory, which fits the hyper-stylized violence seen here.
The script also features a few clever touches, like golden coins used as currency for special services in the criminal underworld (such as corpse disposal) or a hotel known as a truce zone for killers; again, an appropriate comic book feel.
Director Stahelski uses his experience as stunt coordinator to craft energetic set-pieces, peaking in Wick's attack to an underground pool. There is a great moment when the camera pans laterally showing the silhouette of a mobster shot against a blue panel, then follows another thug until Wick takes him down, all while the music throbs in the background.
The cast also includes Willem Dafoe, Ian McShane, Adrianne Palicki and Michael Nyqvist; the latter steals the movie with a combination of sharp malevolence and detached sense of humor, like when he recalls Wick killing three men with a pencil then walks next to one of his henchmen and casually mimics a stab at his throat.
As far as revenge/power fantasies go, this one at least is competently made.
6,5/10