Bloody, Brutal and Beautiful, It's Ninety Minutes' Worth of Style Without Substance

Rating: 7/10 (22 June 2015)

Keanu Reeves plays the Liam Neeson role in this slick, sharp, vicious little bout of revenge fantasy. With support work from a whole mess of "I know that guys" and a blow-away effects budget, it's a real riot to watch, not to mention one hell of a tech demo for the masterminds behind the fight scenes. Like those Neeson kill-em-alls, though, it's as straight as an arrow and shallower than the kiddie pool. In some ways, it's refreshing to just dispense with all the stereotypical origin trappings and get right into the firefights, but at the end of the show it just feels like one long, easy excuse to watch a whole mess of cool stuff without any extra justification. Lust-worthy cars, ferocious weaponry, powerful western-styled physicality, stereo-thumping tunes, magnificent cityscapes, the list just goes on and on. Escapists delight, for John Wick has come to deliver a dream. Cinephiles, well just sit back and try to let the sheer, celebratory brutality beat your conscience into submission. It won't be too difficult.