★★★
Chapter 2 of John Wick spins in place rather than move the saga forward. But if you liked the first one, you’ll like this one.
It has the same cool, choreographed, over-the-top violence that the first one had, and director Chad Stahelski again throws everything at the screen to keep us looking. We get some pretty images of Italy, but it’s the sequence at a huge dance party on the edge of catacombs that’s the money moment as John fights not only through the strobes of the party but also the spotlit catacombs themselves. The sequence echoes that at the Red Circle nightclub in the first John Wick, but the editing and action isn’t quite as crisp here. The hall of mirrors sequence also keeps us attentive as John battles through a reflective environment that is someplace between Bruce Lee and the Lady from Shanghai. In addition to the stylized gun-fu, some visuals are just arresting in themselves. The office that processes bounty contracts is sepia-toned and populated by women dressed in pencil skirts and sleeveless blouses. They're wearing their hair in a bun, and they’re tattooed. Their office is old-style operator switchboards, but vacuum tubes get paper notes from one office to the next while old computer displays distribute the messages widely. It’s a fascinating, steampunk set. Stahelski also keeps us attentive because we never sure who will be the next person to attack John Wick. In keeping with the film’s exaggeration aesthetic, it begins to seem that everyone in NYC is a bounty hunter.
But there are differences here that make this John Wick slightly less compelling that the first. While the fan service here is generally integrated well into film, writer Derek Kolstad opts for lots more exposition in the first part of this film than he did in the last. Not only does this leave Keanu Reeves to try to hit a sweet spot of acting that explains information but maintains his artificial reticence, but this choice also diminishes the stylization that made the first outing such unique fun. There was nothing of reality in John’s character in the first installment, but the script moves Reeves close to that at places here. The cinematography, too, is weaker here than before. Dan Laustsen’s lighting is more garish and edgy than Jonathan Sela’s rich screen was, and the camera here is less fluid than in the first.
For all this, John Wick: Chapter 2 has some outrageously fun sequences, and this sequel largely avoids the sophomore slump. Here’s hoping that the hinted-at third installment doesn’t see the series falter and ossify into a formula.
Chapter 2 of John Wick spins in place rather than move the saga forward. But if you liked the first one, you’ll like this one.
It has the same cool, choreographed, over-the-top violence that the first one had, and director Chad Stahelski again throws everything at the screen to keep us looking. We get some pretty images of Italy, but it’s the sequence at a huge dance party on the edge of catacombs that’s the money moment as John fights not only through the strobes of the party but also the spotlit catacombs themselves. The sequence echoes that at the Red Circle nightclub in the first John Wick, but the editing and action isn’t quite as crisp here. The hall of mirrors sequence also keeps us attentive as John battles through a reflective environment that is someplace between Bruce Lee and the Lady from Shanghai. In addition to the stylized gun-fu, some visuals are just arresting in themselves. The office that processes bounty contracts is sepia-toned and populated by women dressed in pencil skirts and sleeveless blouses. They're wearing their hair in a bun, and they’re tattooed. Their office is old-style operator switchboards, but vacuum tubes get paper notes from one office to the next while old computer displays distribute the messages widely. It’s a fascinating, steampunk set. Stahelski also keeps us attentive because we never sure who will be the next person to attack John Wick. In keeping with the film’s exaggeration aesthetic, it begins to seem that everyone in NYC is a bounty hunter.
But there are differences here that make this John Wick slightly less compelling that the first. While the fan service here is generally integrated well into film, writer Derek Kolstad opts for lots more exposition in the first part of this film than he did in the last. Not only does this leave Keanu Reeves to try to hit a sweet spot of acting that explains information but maintains his artificial reticence, but this choice also diminishes the stylization that made the first outing such unique fun. There was nothing of reality in John’s character in the first installment, but the script moves Reeves close to that at places here. The cinematography, too, is weaker here than before. Dan Laustsen’s lighting is more garish and edgy than Jonathan Sela’s rich screen was, and the camera here is less fluid than in the first.
For all this, John Wick: Chapter 2 has some outrageously fun sequences, and this sequel largely avoids the sophomore slump. Here’s hoping that the hinted-at third installment doesn’t see the series falter and ossify into a formula.
