Kick Ass Keanu 2

Rating: 9/10 (23 February 2017)

Keanu Reeves is back as John Wick, An unstoppable retired hit-man now with a new pooch by his side. But, when an old debt must be repaid, John finds himself pulled right back into the criminal underworld he has tried to leave behind. The first John Wick was a great, straight up high concept action film, and arguably won the retired-hit-man-comes-back-out-of-retirement movie clash with Antoine Fuqua's The Equalizer. So I went in with rather high hopes for John Wick: Chapter 2... And thankfully the film does not disappoint.
Say what you will about Keanu Reeves' acting ability. Yes his British accent was terrible in Bram Stoker's Dracula and aside from the stoner/ surfer dude character he plays in films such as; the Bill and Ted series and Point Break, Keanu hasn't really pulled off a great acting performance, and I'm not saying his acting is Oscar worthy here either... But Keanu does have something going for him.... Boy can he do stunts. What makes John Wick: Chapter 2, and the series thus far, so satisfying is that it is obvious to us, the audience, that the lead actor is actually performing his own stunts. Keanu is very gun savvy, and he is very believable as an expert hit-man through his physical acting. All that training on all his action movies throughout his career really shine through in this film.
Speaking of stunts, Oh my god the stunt work in this film is phenomenal. Chapter 2 is directed by, director of the first John Wick film, and long time Keanu Reeves stunt man, Chad Stahelski. This man clearly knows his sh*t as proved by his stunt work for such great films as; The Matrix, Point Break, 300, Spider-Man 2 and The Hunger Games 1 and 2. As well as this, Stahelski has also directed 2 brilliantly choreographed and all round great action films. Not only does the film have fantastic fight choreography, but Stahelski positions the camera, in such a way, so that we can actually see and understand what is happening in these sequences. It's very common for an action film to use shaky hand-held camera and rapid fast editing in their action sequences, and this always makes the sequence hard to follow as well as disorientating for the audience. Stahelski doesn't really use these techniques, he instead has the stunts take place in camera in a long shot, so we see Keanu Reeves fight about 4 or 5 guys in a row all in one take. This is very refreshing to see in an action film and it is obvious that Stahelski knows what is good and bad in stunt choreography as well as presenting that choreography to an audience through his direction. I would also like to applaud the sound guys on this film as a lot of the heart pounding action is attributed to the films earth shattering sound.
The films story is also rather interesting as it unearths the underworld within the John Wick series. This film is a mafia film of sorts, filled with criminal bosses, organised crime on an international scale, and of course, Italy. The film does everything a sequel should do, it expands on the world established in the original Film, while also staying true to what made the original film so good. Chapter 2 tells another high concept, hero-pulled-back-into-their-old-life and revenge story, filled with excellent action sequences, as well as expanding the John Wick universe in the form of a mafia movie. This film just simply does everything expected of it and more.
Overall, John Wick: Chapter 2 is a movie sequel that should go down in history, as it is a perfect example of a sequel doing everything it should do. Brilliantly directed by Chad Stahelski, a well written script by Derek Kolstad, great sound, great stunt work and a decent performance by Keanu Reeves. What more can you ask for? John Wick: Chapter 3 that's what.