‘John Wick 4’ Review: What’s The Cost Of Freedom From The High Table?
Keanu Reeves is back as John Wick in John Wick 4. The tortured soul has wanted nothing more than his freedom from the High Table. In this three-hour film, we see all the bloodshed it takes on the journey there.
Without giving anything away for those who haven’t seen Chapter 4, Wick is just as nonchalant and stoic as he’s always been throughout the films. You’re sure to hear a lot of “yeahs” muttered under his breath after he just butchered countless men, all while wearing his special ballistic-chic suit. After all, “A man has to look his best when it’s time to get married… or buried.”
Of all the films, the fourth installment provides the most epic action sequences we’ve seen thus far, keeping you entertained for the entirety of the three hours. Yes, the fight scenes seem comical at times, but that’s what makes us love the John Wick films! The absurdity of this world when it comes to death and surviving it all is what captivates an audience to the point of bewilderment, awe, and amusement. The cinematic violence is uplifted through the use of light, or the lack thereof. Pops of neon colors and electronic music get us amped up for who is coming after Baba Yaga next.
Reeves continues to push his body to the limit, surviving point-blank shots by holding his jacket up Dracula-style and falling to what would be imminent death for anyone else. Bill Skarsgård plays the Marquis de Gramont, the High Table’s very French frontman who has no shortage of funds or assassins to kill Wick. Meanwhile, Hiroyuki Sanada stars as Shimazu, the manager of the Continental Hotel in Osaka, Japan, and Wick’s good friend. Donnie Yen stars as Caine, a highly-skilled blind assassin who is also a friend of John’s. The friendship between these three men is crucial to the emotional world of the film and gives it layers.
Laurence Fishburne Returns
Laurence Fishburne returns as the Bowery King, providing Wick’s size 42 ballistic suits and armory. Shamier Anderson portrays a tracker named “Mr. Nobody,” accompanied by his sidekick attack dog. Singer Rina Sawayama plays Shimazu’s daughter, Akira. Scott Adkins plays the German hustler, Killa. Ian McShane reprises his role as Winston, the man who shot Wick and let him live in Chapter 3 – Parabellum. The late Lance Reddick returns as the beloved friend and concierge, Charon.
Chapter 4 brings viewers on a trip around the world: the Wadi Rum Desert in Jordan, New York City, Paris, France, Osaka, Japan, and Berlin, Germany. As for the armory this time around, the list is vaster. We know Wick’s choice of weaponry is his 9mm pistol, but he will pick up and use anything one of his dead bodies is carrying. Not to mention his excellent Jujutsu skills. We get to see some modern bow and arrows, swords, shurikens and nunchucks.
The final chapter is reminiscent of the original John Wick. In some ways it surpasses it, and at other times, the absurdity is too comical to take seriously. Wick does what he’s best at in all four films: he gets revenge. But as we know, the Table will never stop. It only takes life and it only gives death.
John Wick: Chapter 4 is now in theatres. Watch the trailer below:
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