Derek Kolstad’s script for John Wick must have been an exercise in brevity: bad-ass thugs kill a retired hitman’s dog and steal his car, hitman takes excessive and very bloody revenge.
Director Chad Stahelski and producer David Leitch deliver a textbook lesson on how to convert this wafer-thin plot into a sleek cinematic product that never stumbles or loses its momentum. In their debut feature, Stahelski and Leitch put to good use their solid background in performing/coordinating stunts and action scenes for the movies — Stahelski was, in fact, Reeves’ stunt double in Constantine and two of the Matrix films.
We meet John Wick as a grieving widower who welcomes a gorgeous beagle puppy sent by his dead wife Helen (Bridget Moynahan) to keep him company after she is gone. A random encounter in a petrol bunk with young Russian punk Iosef (Alfie Allen), leads to the dog being killed, Wick being beaten up and his prized black '69 Ford Mustang stolen.
Turns out, Wick isn’t a nobody — he was a legendary hitman and the film has great fun in establishing his near-mythical prowess. “John wasn’t exactly the boogeyman. He was the one you sent to kill the boogeyman,” notes Russian mob boss Viggo Tarasov (Michael Nyqvist).
In an improbable but essential circularity of events, Wick used to work for Tarasov and the canine-killer Iosef is Tarasov’s son. An inevitable, escalating war of retribution ensues.
The plot sounds like meat-and-potatoes fare, but what gives it gourmet flavour is the sheer stylishness of its presentation from Reeves’ tailored suits to the almost balletic fight scenes that are perfectly choreographed.
Despite the violence and spatter, everything is chic in the alternate world into which Wick is drawn back, such as the boutique hotel where hitmen can safely hang out or the special mop-up service unit that takes care of the dead bodies.
And then there’s Wick himself — a sharp return to form by Reeves. Like the immensely successful Matrix franchise, this film plays to Reeves’ strengths. He is not called upon to act, just to do his thing of looking detached yet haunted, and hanging onto his Zen-like cool while dispatching the bad guys.
Small characters are given heft and interesting texture by some clever casting — John Leguizamo as Aureilo the fence; Ian McShane as Winston, the arbiter of law in his underground hotel; Willem Dafoe as the uber sniper Marcus; Lance Reddick as the endlessly resourceful hotel concierge; Adrianne Palicki as the really evil assassin Perkins.
If you are in the mood for some high-energy bang-bang with an even higher bodycount, John Wick delivers with precision and style.
