This is just one of those great film series that just came right the ever living hell out of nowhere and blew everyone’s brains all over the floor isn't it? In an era of franchises and adaptations it’s nice to see that a movie that wasn’t based on anything or had any loose connections to any big intellectual property can just come along, wow audiences and just leave it at that. So here we are with Chapter 3 and once again Mr Reeves has knocked it out of the park. So for some set up; after the end of the second movie where Wick broke one of the cardinal rules of the high table by not only killing one of the ruling crime families of said high table he did so on what’s basically Assassin holy ground. So unsurprisingly he’s a dead man walking with a 14 billion dollar bounty on his head and everybody who is crazy, badass or suicidal enough can have a chance at killing John for the bounty.
With very little time to prepare, almost all of his resources scrubbed and all of his connections getting burned for helping him he has to find a way to stay alive for the sake of his dead wife’s memory. Now if you’ve seen a John Wick movie you know what you’re in for, beautiful and visceral fight choreography, dark humor and enough guns to give an NRA member a throbbing boner. But this time chapter 3 ups the anti by leaving John in such a bare-bones state. Since he’s lost access to the Continental’s arsenal and resources he has to scrounge for whatever weapons and supplies he can find and even then make sure nobody else has to suffer for the sin of aiding a dead man.
What you might not be expecting is that we get a slight bit of insight into John's history. One of his last resources is visiting his old mentor known only as the Director (played by Anjelica Huston) where we get a visual idea of John's training as a child and how he became the unstoppable beast that he is, thankfully not through longwinded flashbacks or anything like that but from what little we see of the theater the audience can piece it together themselves. Another unexpected surprise is Sophie (played by Halle Berry) I won't give away all the details but I will say that she's off the hook for Catwoman. Also for the first time in these movies we have a killer on par with Wick who actually gave our protagonist a reasonable challenge. That being Zero (played by Mark Dacascos), yep Master Eubulon/ Kung Lao is after John Wick's head, awesome!
While the movie is definitely worth your time, in fact I should just tell you to stop reading and go see all three of these movies you whale farts I will admit there are some problems. Most of which is the second act when John punches his ticket and gets to Casablanca where we spend maybe too much down time with Sophie and the whole conversation with Berrada might drag on a bit too long for some people. Also the Adjudicator (played by Asia Kate Dillon) while very intimidating through their actions the character is nothing more than a cypher for the High Table. Which yes is the point but does leave the Adjudicator as a non entity, everything the Adjudicator does is on the High Tables order, all I'm saying is that this "role" could have been filled by calling people on Skype or something and just wearing a mask, they're basically Watari and the High Table is L.
Another concern I have is for the overall John Wick series. Once we see the ending we know what's going to happen next. Without spoilers I'll say that the storytelling engine is starting to run out of steam. If I was being generous I'd say that there is enough storytelling potential for at least one, maybe two more movies considering how Chapter 3 ends. Also I've heard rumors of a spin-off tv series focusing on the Continental.
While I do think that could be interesting it also runs the risk of getting over complicated or explaining too much of how the High Table and this whole organized crime world works. To be honest while I do find the Continental intriguing it's mostly because I don't know everything about it. Its like a comedy or a magic show, the more time you hear the same jokes/ see the same tricks the less entertaining it gets. So all I'll say for the filmmakers is to tread lightly. In any case like I said when I reviewed part 2, go see this movie, its fight choreography is downright textbook and the physical action of Keanu Reeves gives John the prefect blend of super human and physical exhaustion that sells this type of movie.
John Wick Chapter 3 is owned by Lionsgate, 87Eleven Productions, Thunder Road Productions and Summit Entertainment.
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