From the World of John Wick: Ballerina

Today, while exercising, I finished watching, “From the World of John Wick: Ballerina,” which was theatrically released in June, but on Starz last month. How is this spin-off of the “John Wick” franchise?

Sean Means started his review by criticizing, “The main problem with the “John Wick” franchise is its mythology — a problem that started when the filmmakers decided it needed to have one. Why can’t we just have an anti-hero who shoots, stabs, slices and punches his way through hundreds of hired killers and leave it at that?”

Means continued, “That problem, the mythology, threatens to choke the life out of the first “John Wick” spinoff movie, “Ballerina” — but, thankfully, the mayhem is entertaining enough, in a movie that gets a fair share of mileage out of the charms of star Ana de Armas.”

The mythology here starts with a prologue. Ana de Armas’ character, Eve, is introduced as a little girl (Victoria Comte), living in a beachside mansion with her father, Javier (David Castañeda). Then assassins break into the house, at the request of a crime boss, The Chancellor, played by David Byrne, who wants to punish Javier for trying to escape his cult-like community. Javier fights off the villains but dies in the process, making Eve an orphan.

One person decides to take in Eve: Mr. Winston, played by Ian McShane, who fans of the franchise know as Wick’s protector and the manager of the New York branch of The Continental, the sinister chain of luxury hotels that is a safe place for criminals around the world. Winston offers young Eve his help, whenever she should ask.

Eve is enrolled in a training school for future murderers. She practices her ballet until her feet bleed, learns martial arts, weapons, and other deadly skills. The school’s leader, called The Director, played by Anjelica Huston, gives Eve her first contact – which is how she runs into some of the murderers associated with The Chancellor’s men.

(Means said, “For those paying attention to the details of the franchise, Huston’s presence sets this story within the timeline of the third “John Wick” movie, “Parabellum.” This means that Keanu Reeves’ Wick is still alive — he wasn’t looking to good by the end of the fourth movie — and available for an appearance here somewhere.”)

Eve wants to chase after The Chancellor’s men, but The Director won’t allow it. If someone from her army tried to kill The Chancellor’s men, the weak peace between both sides would be destroyed. However, Eve is determined, so she asks Winston for information – which sets up the last half of the movie.

Means noted, “Director Len Wiseman manages not to gum up the action too much — which means he’s improving from when he directed “Underworld” and the “Total Recall” remake. The real credit should go to the stunt team, a factor that has put the “Wick” movies ahead of the pack, and to de Armas, who throws herself into the fight scenes with an admirable recklessness.”

De Armas’ efforts make their mark in the movie’s extended climax, which is on a mountainside village where apparently every citizen – all the way to the local barista – has deadly abilities and is happy to show them. Means ended his review by saying, “If moviegoers have to endure some mythology to get to a scene with dueling flamethrowers, that’s a price I’m willing to pay.”

As a spin-off to the franchise, I think this movie is definitely worth checking out. If you have been a fan of the franchise up to this point, then you should see this on Starz when you have the chance. You will love this movie because it keeps the action engaging and the story is very good. Eve having the same abilities that John Wick has is just amazing. Check it out and have an edge-of-your-seat enjoyable time.

Thank you for joining in on this review tonight. Stay tuned tomorrow for the continuation of “Halloween Month 2025.”

John Wick: Chapter 4

Tonight, I finally got to see “John Wick: Chapter 4,” which came out theatrically in March and on Starz in September. The only problem is I don’t know anyone who has Starz, so I decided to do something I haven’t done since the lockdown: rent this film from the library. I started to watch this on Thanksgiving Day and I got through most of the movie. However, I was able to finish this tonight and now I will let everyone know my thoughts on one of my most wanted-to-watch movies of the year.

John Wick (aka “The Baba Yaga”) has been through a lot since he was conceived in Chad Stahelski’s “John Wick” in 2014. The original film co-directed by David Leitch saw the retired assassin and grieving widower go back to the underworld of the killer elite to revenge the murder of his dog, the last gift from his wife Helen to encourage him to keep living. Nadine Whitney said in her review, “In comparison to the following films in the ever-expanding franchise it was a stripped back affair that gave Keanu Reeves the chance to create another action legend who could dispatch adversaries with a pencil.”

“John Wick” was a decently straightforward revenge story with moving action directed by stuntman and action choreographer Stahelski. It showed his strong eye for the genre and gave memorable set pieces that would go on to larger and sometimes not better things as the series continued. Whitney said, “By the second and third instalments the audience became aware of an international network of assassins controlled by ‘The High Table’ that appeared to mimic an arcane and even quasi-religious society. The lore built up and soon words like ‘consecrated’ and ‘excommunicated’ became part of the John Wick lexicon. Tokens, tickets, blood markers and other bizarre currencies bled into the action – whether this was for good or not is up to the individual viewer.”

What the John Wick franchise did give was an awesome amount for action and martial legends to get their time in a mainstream American franchise. Mark Dacascos was the highlight as Zero in the third film. In “John Wick: Chapter 4” the legendary Donnie Yen is front and center with Hiroyuki Sanada and often overlooked action star Scott Adkins coming along for the enjoyable ride. In terms of honoring the genre of action, Stahelski walks the walk.

Kind of breaking from the traditional closeness of the chapters following each other in real-time, John has been hiding out with the Bowery King, reprised by Laurence Fishburne, long enough for both of their scars and wounds to heal since what transpired in the last film. John is now out for revenge against the High Table. He travels to Morocco and puts a bullet in the head of the Elder, reprised by George Georgiou (the only one who stands above the High Table), who put him in a weak situation in the last film. Meanwhile, the Harbinger (Clancy Jones) desecrates Winston Scott’s (Ian McShane) New York Continental Hotel. He and Charon (Lance Reddick) are brought to meet the Marquis Vincent de Gramont (Bill Skarsgard in complete 19th-century groovy mode) who has made it clear that it is not only time to get rid of John Wick finally, but to kill the very idea of John Wick. The New York Continental exploded in broad daylight. The Marquis has the backing of the High Table and is not doing things by halves.

“John Wick: Chapter 4” continues its traveling adventures. John is hiding in the Osaka Continental under the protection of his old friend Shimazu Koji, played by Hiroyuki Sanada, who is the manager. His daughter, Akira, played by Rina Sawayam, is the concierge. The Marquis’ team is led by Chidi, played by Marko Zaror, attack. For both John and Shimazu, there is a surprising addition to the Marquis’ team, their once close associate, Caine, played by Donnie Yen, a blind assassin who has been pulled back into the eye of the High Table under the threat of them killing his daughter.

“Rules and consequences” are part of the lore of the franchise. For every act, there is an estimate. Despite the High Table having to stand by a secret set of rules, they also have little problem with bending them as they fit. The rules take John to Berlin where he needs to be reinstated with the Ruska Roma so he can challenge the Maruqis to a single fight. When he arrives, he comes across Killa, played by Scott Adkins in a fat suit and a ridiculous accent. Even though the scenes in Berlin are heavy with action, there is a certain softness that takes over the narrative. Stahelski has realized just how much the franchise looks like a video game and has gone in that direction. Whitney said, “It looks amazing (the films always do) but it feels a little like a cut scene that you have to watch before you can get on with the rest of the game.”

Everything ends up with the final fight in Paris at the Sacre-Coeur, but there are some incredible scenes (one shot entirely from above that is worth seeing the film) to make you realize why the John Wick franchise is the best mainstream action franchise.

Whitney mentioned, “There are numerous call-backs to the previous films, so it is a good idea to be aware of what has come before. Keanu Reeves makes the most of his near monosyllabic hero and utilises everything he has to provide a compelling performance that knows how over the top it is.” Donnie Yen is just excellent, and Ian McShane gets some of the best lines in the film. The supporting cast including Natalia Tena as John’s adoptive sister Katia and especially Shamier Anderson as Mr. Nobody the tracker/bounty hunter (and the man with a dog) give the film both the gravity and humor that keep it going. Bill Skarsgard’s arrogant Marquis is a brilliant addition – the fact that Stahelski’s introductory shot of him is his eye twitching is a certain type of intelligence.

Whitney noted, “We come to John Wick films for the action, and it is high octane and perfectly shot. The fact that most of the actors do their own stunts is one of the major drawcards in the franchise. Keanu has proven his mettle as an action star in The Matrix films (Stahelski was a choreographer and stunt double for Neo – there is a full circle aspect to the franchise) and the inclusion of some of the world’s greatest martial arts/action practitioners as leads and supporting characters makes JW4 the very best of the sequels.” You might have seen some of it before, but it has never been as big and hasty as it is in this sequel.

This is, hands down, the best of the sequels. Despite the fact that this film is nearly three hours long, it is nonstop action at its finest. You will be on the edge of your seat the entire time waiting to see what will happen next. They upped their game in this sequel and you will enjoy it. If you haven’t seen this yet, and you have Starz, see it. This is one of those films that is not to be missed by any fans of the series. I’m so surprised at how Reeves has changed from a boring, one-note character actor into one of the best action stars we have seen. You have to see this film to see where the franchise will go. Especially the ending which may leave you wondering what is going to happen. There is a spin-off film that will come out next year and a fifth film in development.

Thank you for joining in on this review tonight. Stay tuned next month to see what I will end the year off with.

John Wick

Today I went and saw the new John Wick movie, but before I get to that one, I would have to talk about the previous movies in the franchise, starting with the first “John Wick,” released in 2014.

At first, there is a handful of stuff in this movie’s story that we have seen before in other films.

However, directors David Leitch and Chad Stahleski still are able to create an adrenaline non-stop action film with Keanu Reeves not playing the same boring, bland character that we have seen him play in every movie he has been in to date. The story starts with an injured John Wick (Keanu Reeves), who watches a video on his Smartphone of his late wife, Helen (Bridget Moynahan).

The movie then shows the audience that Helen had passed away due to cancer.

John is at the peak of his mourning process until he a puppy named Daisy arrives at his front door, gifted to him by Helen who did not want him to be alone.

When John is at a gas station filing his classic 69 Mustang, John meets with Iosef, played by Alfie Allen, who wants to buy John’s car, but John tells him no.

Iosef and his gang later break into John’s house, really pull a number on John and killing Daisy before stealing his car.

The movie then shows the audience that John is one of the best assassins, currently in retirement.

John goes out to retrieve his car and avenge Daisy by fighting Iosef’s father, Viggo Tarasov, played by Michael Nyqvist, who John had worked for previously.

A desperate Viggo tries to stop John but nothing can stop John, who is out for pure vengeance.

The movie also includes a star-studded cast in small roles that leave a mark like Willem Dafoe, an assassin colleague who is John’s mentor and friend, John Leguizamo as a garage owner who is friendly with John and his car, Adrianne Palicki as an assassin named Ms. Perkins and Ian McShane as a hotel owner who isn’t bothered by murderers performing their jobs in the hotel.

Lots of action, lots of violence but the directors do include some dramatic moments.

S. Indra Sathiabalan said in her review, “Reeves, on his part, does a good job playing the title character, reminding us that he has displayed some acting chops in the past before his deadpan persona took over.”

Sathiabalan continued, “In fact, he holds his own in scenes with Defoe and Nyqvist, which is no mean feat.”

Overall, this is an enjoyable film that everyone should watch.

If you were a big fan of the first movie, then you will definitely want to watch “John Wick: Chapter 2,” released in 2017.

Keanu Reeves reprises the main role that really helped out his career with a huge leap. By performing most of the action scenes himself in this violent action thriller, Reeves is proving that he can still perform these action scenes, similar to Tom Cruise.

The movie starts with John killing more villains, and it appears that his vengeance is not over, as Abram Tarasov, played by Peter Stormare, the brother of Viggo from the first movie, has John’s car and he wants it back.

After so many car crashes, shooting, damage and murder, John drives off in his precious car hoping to let bygones be bygones once again.

However, the problems come to him through ex-associate Santino D’Antonio, played by Riccardo Scamarcio, who visits him with a marker that means the debt John still owes him.

We see that Santino had helped out John leave this job behind him and marry the late Helen (Moynahan appears in flashbacks).

Now, Santino wants John to kill his sister Gianna, played by Caludia Gerini, who is now the leader of their Italian crime family. John does what Santino asks to return the favor, only to find out that Santino has put out a contract to kill John.

Returning from the first movie are Ian McShane as Winston, the great manager of the hotel that gives murderers rooms, Lance Reddick as Charon, the concierge, and rapper Common as Cassian, John’s enemy who was hired to protect Gianna.

We also have new people in the cast like Ruby Rose as Santino’s deaf female assassin and Laurence Fishburne (Reeves co-star from “The Matrix” trilogy) as a suave crime lord.

Sathiabalan is right when she says, “The action is great, which helps viewers to overlook the many holes in the plot.”

The door is open for more John Wick movies to come out which fans should be ecstatic about. That does happen with the latest installment, “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum,” released last month.

This movie starts immediately where the second film left off, where famous hitman John Wick is running with his dog after being called excommunicado for killing a crime lord on the central grounds of The Continental Hotel.

This means that John has lost everything to these crime resources.

He also now has a huge money contract out to kill him, with every other assassins’ guns pointed right at him.

Sathiabalan said, “In a last-ditch effort to survive, he calls in all favours owed to him over the years, so that he can get a chance to plead his case to the head of the High Table, the shadowy organisation that sets up the rules for all assassins to follow.”

However, he quickly sees that “forgiveness” comes to him with a huge cost.

The violence really is increased in this movie compared to the last ones, and many new characters are added into the movie.

A few manage to really leave their mark, such as Halle Berry as the assassin Sofia who owes John a favor, and Angelica Houston as the Russian mobster who helps John travel quietly to Casablanca.

However, the real ones here are Mark Dacascos (host of “Iron Chef”) as the murderer Zero, who likes John but still wants to kill him for the reward and the glory, and Asia Kate Dillon as the Adjudicator, a member of the High Table with the job of dealing with those who help John.

Another standout is McShane who returns as Winston, the owner and manager of the Continental Hotel who gave John time to escape.

The fight scenes are great, despite that some look over the top and go on for a long time. Sofia’s attack dogs are really amazing though.

Make sure to spot Indonesian actors Yayan Ruhian and Cecep Arif Raham (both from “The Raid”), who play John Wick fanboys who sadly have to kill him.

Sathiabalan noted, “This movie may lack the brilliant premise of the first, but fans who can’t get enough of Reeves will not be disappointed.”

Seeing how this movie ends, there appears to be another movie being made.

I will be honest, the middle of the third movie felt slow and boring. I guess that was making me feel sleepy, or it was the Father’s Day lunch I had today. However, I still think each “John Wick” movie got better and better, so if you haven’t seen any of them, watch them. If you don’t like how Keanu Reeves plays the same character all the time, this is a welcome change. See the first two first before seeing the third one, because you will be left out if you don’t. For those who have seen the first two, see the third one if you haven’t, you will love it.

Alright, thanks for joining in on my review tonight. Stay tuned Friday for the next installment in “Parody Month.”