Bullet Points: John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum
I was asked not too long ago what movie I was most looking forward to this year. Without hesitation I responded with John Wick Chapter 3 and I had three reasons why…
- Track Record: The first two John Wick movies were the kind of pure action movies that would satisfy those who grew up watching action films in the 80’s and 90’s. To borrow a phrase from The A-Team, after watching John Wick movies I am on the jazz… they are an adrenaline rush and I was ready for more.
- Cliffhanger: John Wick: Chapter 2 ended in cliffhanger fashion and the curiosity of how or if John would survive what is next was plenty to build my anticipation for the third film.
- Mark Dacascos: I was pumped when John Wick Chapter 3 was first announced, but I was beyond pumped when I learned that Mark Dacascos was in the cast and he would be playing opposite of Keanu Reeves’ John Wick.
- Escape from New York: The events of John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum pick up right where John Wick: Chapter 2 ended… after breaking the rules and killing his rival Santino D’Antonio on the sacred ground of the Continental Hotel in New York, JohnWick (Keanu Reeves) finds himself declared excommunicado and with a hefty price on his head. But Winston (played delightfully by Ian McShane) the manager of the Continental has a soft spot for John and gives him one hour to get as far away from the Continental as he can get before the price goes on his head. But John finds himself fending off bounty hunters before the hour is even up when he engages in a brutal battle at the New York Public Library against a 7’3″ giant named Ernest (Boban Marjanovic of the Philadelphia 76ers) and the action only intensifies when John makes his way to Chinatown where the blades are flying and eventually finds himself on horseback being pursued by assassins on motorcycles.
- Casablanca: John manages to survive the countless attempts on his life and finds his way to the one person in New York City he believes can help him… The Director (Anjelica Huston). John’s meeting with The Director pulls the curtain back a bit on John’s past… we learn that John grew up under the watchful eye and iron fist of The Director and now he is asking for her help to provide him passage to Casablanca, where he hopes to arrange for a sit down with the head of The High Table (the governing body of the world’s assassins). When John arrives in Morocco, he pays a visit to the manager of The Continental Casablanca, Sofia (Halle Berry, The Last Boy Scout). John helped Sofia in the past and now is calling in his marker with her… John tells her he just wants to have a conversation with her former boss in hopes of getting to the head of The High Table… but Sofia knows there’s no such thing as “just a conversation” when it comes to John Wick, so she brings her two well trained attack dogs along with them for the meeting… Sofia’s prediction rings true and what follows is another awesome action sequence with John, Sofia and the two dogs laying waste to the bad guys.
- Judgment Day: Meanwhile back in New York, a representative of The High Table known as The Adjudicator (Asia Kate Dillon) has come to dole out punishment to those who helped John Wick… namely The Director, Winston and Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne). To help her dish out this punishment, The Adjudicator calls upon an eccentric man named Zero (Mark Dacascos, Only the Strong) and his martial arts students. The Director and Bowery King feel the wrath of Zero’s blade… Fishburne was great here, being absolutely defiant in the face of authority. Winston is spared from any physical harm from Zero… he is asked to step down from his position of power at The Continental… but there’s more bad news coming his way, when John Wick is given a chance to get back in the good graces of The High Table IF he returns to New York to kill Winston!
- Prepare for War: John Wick makes his way back to New York City for the third act of the film and we get a tease of what’s to come when John and Zero have a stare down in the middle of Grand Central Station… John manages to get back to The Continental before Zero can kill him and then it is the moment of truth for John and Winston… will Winston step down? And will John kill Winston? The answer to both is a resounding hell no… which is seen as a declaration of war to The High Table and we are off to the races!
John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum further cemented Keanu Reeves’ status as an action icon. The man has been starring in high quality action movies for decades now and his portrayal of John Wick is my favorite Keanu character.
Mark Dacascos made the most of his role as Zero. Dacascos’ Zero blended absolute savagery with a fan boy like obsession for John Wick and with a sick sense of humor to create a character that is the most memorable John Wick villain to date.
And then there’s the action… my words are not going to be able to do the action that is packed into John Wick Chapter 3 justice. I have not been to a movie that elicited the kind of response by the audience that the over the top violence in John Wick 3 did. From where I was sitting in my theatrical experience, John Wick Chapter 3 was a crowd favorite.
A favorite of the Bulletproof Action crowd are the Bonus Bullet Points…
- Bring Her Back: Halle Berry’s Sofia character was a great addition to the cast and if there is a John Wick Chapter 4, I hope they bring Sofia back and I hope she slaps the taste out of The Adjudicator’s mouth.
- Broken Glass Everywhere: John Wick Chapter 3 may have had more broken glass than any other movie in history.
- Familiar Faces: Quality action requires quality stunt performers/martial artists and John Wick 3 had plenty including Roger Yuan (Blindsided: The Game) and Silvio Simac (Transporter 3).
- Game of Death: John Wick’s final battle with Zero and his students had a multi-level Game of Death vibe.
