In "John Wick: Chapter 2" (2017 release; 122 minutes), the 'adventures' of John Wick, a former (?) hit man, are continued. The movie immediately throws us into a car vs. bike chase, and before we know it, our protagonist is rescuing his beloved Mustang from a chop shop in New York City, but not before there are a lot of dead or hurt bodies and cars flying around everywhere. That's all there is in the pre-opening credits. As the story progresses, Wick, who wants "out," finds himself drawn back "in" when an Italian bad guy asks for a favour, which Wick is driven to grant. You'll just have to watch to find out how it all turns out because providing more plot specifics will ruin your viewing experience.
As a result, the simplicity of the first movie is lost, and the slick enjoyment suffers because it feels bloated in scale and struggles to persuade the audience to buy into this unsellable world. At its best, the movie ignores this, opting to focus on smoothly transitioning scenes of expertly planned violence that are expertly directed and executed. Even though it is really violent, seeing it is almost like watching a ballet. Having two cast members from The Raid films has both beneficial and negative effects. The Raid films are able to create stakes and tension in the violence, which John Wick is never able to do. The pace and flow were enjoyable, and I was never caught.
It's challenging to keep interested in since there are never any consequences, and it needs to be cool and sophisticated so that we never make the connection to the real world. For instance, it's challenging to see someone get stabbed at a crowded railway station while onlookers pass by unperturbed. It's still stylish, entertaining, and has well-assembled battle scenes, but it feels bloated and drawn out and could have used a tighter world. I suppose they can't put that back in the box since the second movie ripped it out. Although it is entertaining for what it is, it has several flaws that make it unappealing to watch.
The original John Wick movie was unique because it sort of broke the mould. The hero wasn't a muscle-bound hulk like a Schwarzenegger or Stallone, the action was extremely fast-paced, the plot was straightforward yet incorporated some original elements, and the movie had a little distinctive and stylish feel to it. Cool was John Wick.
Then a follow-up was created. The second movie was less credible, more absurd, and overall less good, but it was still John Wick, and it was still entertaining.
However, this third movie lacks originality and merely recycles the same themes for financial benefit (although, hey, people seem to like it, so I can't fully condemn them). It's just another over-the-top action movie without the magic. They have been forced to use an increasing amount of excessive violence and fight scene gimmicks in an effort to make more films out of what were once the most basic of plots. Even though I'm no wilting rose and this movie undoubtedly has one of the biggest body counts in recent memory, even I was a little uneasy about how casually violent it was. It was so extravagant that it almost seemed comical.
