Becoming The Muse

John Wick: Chapter 4 is a 2023 neo-noir action thriller film directed and co-produced by Chad Stahelski. It is the fourth instalment in the John Wick Franchise and a sequeal to the 2019 movie  John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum.

The movie follows John Wick on his epic quest to break free from the obligation to the High Table and earn his freedom or die trying.

The Good

Its John Wick. The End.

Keanu Reeves once again stars as John Wick the hitman’s boogeyman with an almost indestructible capacity to take a beating, bullet and stabbing while dispatching obstacles with a ruthless efficiency.

The cinematography is epic, they had a generous production budget and you can see it, from the stunning set pieces to the filming locations expanding the John Wick World from Japan to New York to Berlin and then to Paris…

Old favourites came back such as Laurence Fishbourne as the Bowery King, Ian McShane as Winston Scott and Lance Riddick as Charon the concierge at the Continental Hotel in a last role that felt almost tributary to the late actor.

…Such is life

Charon

The movie brings in new characters to the story who raise the stakes and introduces an interesting dynamic to the plot. Donnie Yen as Caine, a blind High Table assassin almost steals the show and Shamier Anderson as Mr. Nobody is as enigmatic as his name and keeps you guessing.

A blind man, a guy with a dog, and John Wick walk into a bar and take a seat at the table. This sounds like the beginning of a stupendous joke or a most profitable opportunity….

— ~B 🇿🇼 (@Beatonm5) May 31, 2023

The Bad

The John Wick World is a fantastical world of violence and death, filled with nameless characters serving no purpose except as fodder for the boogeyman. Its not something you watch for its captivating dialogue, of the four John Wick movies I think Keanu Reeves has the least dialogue in this installment.

 Then of course the suspension of disbelief at the world of John Wick, I mean you will have an epic battle royale in a jam packed club and no one notices the mayhem… Bullets flying at a recognisable tourist location and cars just drive past no one stops to look and where are the police?

Also what the heck is his suit made of?????

A man has to look his best when it's time to get married. Or buried.
-The Bowery King

The Ugly

With a running time that’s ten minutes shy of being a 3 hour blockbuster, the movie kinda over stays its welcome… there is only so many fight sequences you can have until it all becomes repetitive and tired… We are almost sympathetic to John Wick’s plight  to just end it all and be done with it…

After a while you too cant help be like, can we just move this along… and you will get to a part where you too are like “Come on guys… really” because it means having to do this all over again.

Hopefully this is the last in the franchise…..?

"Those who cling to death, live. Those who cling to life, die."
-Caine

Final Thoughts

John Wick: Chapter 4 was initially set to be released on 21 May 2019 on the same day as The Matrix Resurrections on what should have been an epic Keanu Reeves Day celebration however COVID disrupted things… and finally two years later we got the fourth John Wick movie.

Fun Fact: Did you know that the director Chad Stahelski used to be Keanu Reeves‘ stunt double on The Matrix?

For John Wick fans the movie is a glorious orgy of violence which has been the trademark realm of the John Wick movies. The movie has a bit of an ambiguous ending that lays room for yet another sequel in the franchise or maybe a spin-off series….

Have you watched John Wick?

~B