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John Wick 2’s brutal action goes international, and finally gives America its own Bond

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When John Wick came out back in 2014, I was pretty uninterested. Keanu Reeves had starred in some great movies over the years, but he hadn’t done anything that would warrant my attention in some time, and the dark tones and action sequences I saw in the trailer felt like just another disposable action movie we’d all forget about until it showed up on Netflix a few months later.

But as is so often the case, I was wrong.  The movie successfully accomplished what so many others have attempted to in recent years; it established an entire universe that was as logical as it was fantastic, showing us that Keanu Reeves and a hand gun could somehow make for a better super hero franchise than everything the DC cinematic universe had to offer.

The action sequences were quick-paced and brutal without relying on the Jason Bourne/Transformers film methodology of mixing shaky shots with close angles that relay emotion at the expense of the ability to really follow the scene.  The dark tone took itself seriously without rubbing your face in it like Zack Snyder’s repeated attempts at becoming the new Michael Bay.  And best of all, it gave us a protagonist we can really root for.  John Wick’s deadly calm, pleasant demeanor, and nonchalant way of walking away from scrapes with death gave us a look at the future of action movies: as troubled heroes who are capable of violence mirror our own perceptions of the modern world, and of America’s place within it.

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  • Avatar
    Joni S

    Sorry, I could not resist clip from my favorite show….. BBT… “I’m Batman!”
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVOr76jxS3c

  • Avatar
    susanmarie24

    You and me both Craig. I hear that a young actor by the name of Dylan O’Brien is set to play the role. Of course, anybody reading the books has an idea of who their version of who Mitch Rapp would be but I have to tell you after looking him up he is not who I envisioned. Hopefully I will be pleasantly surprised–or not. Tom Cruise sure didn’t fit the bill playing Jack Reacher!

  • Avatar
    Alex Hollings

    I agree completely. I actually wrote a paper in school about American culture as reflected in Batman movies that speaks to your point. In the 80’s we had a badass Tim Burton Batman that blew up factories and rarely questioned his own resolve. In the 90’s, we lost Batman to the over the top showmanship of our up-beat culture – the next time we saw the caped crusader was in Nolan’s trilogy, which shared Wick’s dark tones and the stresses of trying to be a hero in a world that isn’t black and white. Batfleck’s murder spree in BvS is a continuation on that theme: our heroes are more brutal than ever, but tempered with the darkness that brutality conjures. Arnold could dispatch a hundred guys with a cigar in his mouth and still draw a laugh, now deaths can be exciting, even awesome, but they’re rarely celebrated. Everything is heavier, because it reflects the cultural weight we’re carrying.
    Or… I might just watch too many Batman movies. Could go either way. haha

  • Avatar
    Joni S

    I would love to have an Eleanor. yes… one day…maybe..

  • Avatar
    Kristie G

    I have always wanted an Eleanor. I had a chance to get one recently and passed on it because I live in the land of HOT and HUMID … maybe one day