Somehow, it matches the quality of the first; beautifully brutal.

Rating: 9/10 (21 May 2018)

'John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017)' is one of the rare sequels that matches the quality of the first. I don't think it's better, but it's at the same level and that alone is an achievement. It is a highly entertaining film with amazing fast-paced action that's perfectly choreographed and beautifully brutal. It manages to raise the stakes in a natural, if predictably and unavoidably slightly contrived, way while maintaining a unique narrative and story structure. The action set-pieces find new ways to keep fresh even when they don't need to and its ability to open the world while also deepening it is impressive. The character is at the heart of the piece still and it is also notable that they manage to keep him feeling suitably 'legendary' while being markedly human. There are some crowd-pleasing moments, too, and some slightly outlandish segments that shouldn't work but just do. Lawrence Fishburne is especially charismatic in his slightly smaller role and keeps things delightfully fresh just when they threaten to perhaps become not so. Plus, the piece keeps you on your toes with a few fairly genuine surprises. It keeps you smiling just like the first and also promises a third entry that has the potential to truly excel, whilst also standing on its own feet as a staple of modern action cinema. 9/10