This was fucking awesome. I watched the first three for the first time this week and managed to go into this one spoiler free. The evolution of the series is incredible and it’s also amazing how much it makes me fall in love with characters I know virtually nothing about John has a lot of great bits, but I could watch a feature length supercut of him running out of bullets and throwing his gun at someone’s head and never get sick of it My sole complaint with 4 is that Caine said “see you in the next life” to John before the duel instead of “be seeing you”
This might just squeeze past Chapter 2 for my favorite. I had heard the finale hour was insane, but I truly was not prepared for an extended frogger fight scene at the Arc de Triomphe or the staircase. John falling down the staircase was one of the funniest things I’ve seen in a movie ever. Just pure genius. The duel was great too. Like Chapter 3, it gets a little too bogged down in the convoluted rules of the world, but I think it keeps it a hair simpler this time around. And all the non-action scenes are thick with tension that pay off so, so well. I loved that poker scene. No two action sequences felt the same. I loved all the new characters too. Donnie Yen fucking crushed it. I felt a strong emotional connection with him and John that had me rooting for both of them. I loved Mr. Nobody too. He’s probably the easiest character to write out of this and not lose much, but I’m glad he’s in it. Having a guy trying to get into the world was a nice twist. And his dog was a real good boy. Skarsgard was a perfect hateable villain. Losing Lance Reddick so early hurt to watch though. I walked out of Chapter 3 having a good time, but thinking it’s probably time to wrap this series up. I walked out of this one thinking I could watch a dozen more.
It was a good way to utilize the character and kick off the story, but I couldn’t escape the real life context when watch it. Obviously, it’s not a fault of the movie, but it was sad nevertheless.
better on repeat for me. stuff i had some issues with aren't as nagging for me this time. i love how it all still manages to surprise me even when i've seen it already
Still need to rewatch three and catch this again, but having just rewatched the first two back to back, they're near-perfect counterparts
Lol I thought this was going to just have ambiance then just bullets and punching noises for the 10 hours
Saw this again today. Bear with me because I've almost done a complete 180 on some of my prior opinions in this thread lol. The first film really is the best imo. It really could have just been a random Redbox action title, but because of its premise, its performances, its execution, it's so much more than that. "You can either hand over your son, or you can die screaming alongside him" is the best moment of the entire franchise, and it's not even an action sequence. I love what they go for in each of the sequels, but John never really gets a chance to speak like that and show that much emotion again. Chapter 2 is special for being the first sequel and really defining what a John Wick film can be -- there are lots of moments I adore that I've already mentioned, including the fight with Common, the art installation, and John shooting Santino in the Continental, which is a close second favorite moment in the franchise. Again, not an action sequence. "Johnathan, what have you done?" Parabellum is so much better than I gave it credit for, just really cranked up to 11. Some of the action sequences drag on, which carries over into Chapter IV, but yeah, the horse stuff, the knife fights, the library, John getting thrown through all of the glass. It's brilliant. And brutal. Like, notably more so than any of the other films. Berry is excellent. And that brings us to Chapter IV, which is overstuffed, indulgent, and a perfect sendoff for the series. It combines the vibe of the last two films, delivers on the memorable action sequences we've come to expect (the roundabout, the aerial shot), gives us a great villain in The Marquis, but most importantly, it brings the theme of family back absolutely nails the ending. I wish John spoke more and we got more than two seconds of screen time with his dog, but those are minor complaints. Could the ending be read as more ambiguous than I first thought? Sure. But I don't think it is, and I really, really hope they don't go back to that well. It's a perfect ending. Even if he didn't die, he's out. He's at peace. Let him be and give us an Akira spinoff. TL;DR I love these fucking movies, literally all 9/10s and basically perfect for what they are. Just in awe of how consistent they were, how well-directed and choreographed they were, how much heart there was both in front of and behind the camera. Final ranking would be 1>3>4>2, but again, that's splitting hairs.
Finally saw it yesterday and loved it. Everything I wanted, from Fishburne yelling at the beginning to the final action. Funny because I actually was in Paris last year including Sacre Coeur. I actually went on those stairs so I felt the pain that was coming. The rolling down all of them though, why haha, so goddamn silly What I'm pretty unsatisfied with was the ending. They played it safe. They must have made a deal to leave just enough ambiguity for his death to be optional. And instead of giving it finality and proper impact, with full closure, they played it quick and dry. So weird that that's the compromise they chose. Should have left him alive if was to be unclear.