Director: Chad Stahelski
Writers: Derek Kolstad (screenplay by), Shay Hatten (screenplay by)
Stars: Keanu Reeves, Halle Berry, Ian McShane
Movie Couple here! We went to see John Wick Chapter Three Parabellum this weekend! Remember we are just a married couple that loves movies! We’re here to tell you if we liked it. Film experts we are not! Just a quick reminder of our rating system.
Mrs. Movie Couple and I, rate films on whether they are worth the cash spent on a night out. we use a 1-6 Dollar Bill system. 1-2 Bills equal a waste of both our time and money! 3-4 Bills equal Meh to Pretty Good, money well spent! 5-6 Bills equal Wow! Well worth the price of dinner, movie and sitter! Please take our money again!
John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum continues the adventures of the World’s Most feared assassin, the Baba Yaga, John Wick. When last we saw the reluctant killer, he was declared EXCOMUNICADO by the order of assassins (The High Table?) and was given a one hour reprieve before essentially every killer in the world would be able to act on an astronomical bounty placed on his head. Not only that, but he now would have no access to any rights and privileges normally bestowed upon those in his line of work (All amply demonstrated in the two previous films). That is all one needs to know about the plot of Parabellum, as the plot starts immediately from the conclusion of Chapter Two. It should go without saying that one should see BOTH John Wick and John Wick Chapter Two in order to follow the various points and characters seen in this movie, but if one is looks for kick ass action and doesn’t care about the setting or plot I believe you could still enjoy this film, but I’m positive you’ll go back and watch the first two afterwards! Keanu Reeves reprises his role as the titular assassin supreme. Ian McShane, Lance Riddick and Laurence Fishburne also return as old allies of Mr. Wick. We are blessed by the appearance of Angelica Houston as The Director, a woman tied to John’s very mysterious past. We are also introduced to new adversaries in Marc Dacascos as Ninja Assassin Zero and Asia Kate Dillion as The Adjudicator who brings new layers to the already deep world of John Wick (Wickerverse?) As you may expect, bullets fly, blood is spilt, head’s explode, knives are stuck! Kung Fu/Karate is utilised! The action is on par with the other Wick films and does not disappoint. At this point the action is the draw, but the world building these movies have managed to create keeps growing and drawing the fans in. This movie sheds some light into John’s past (We don’t spoil here) and continues to build on the franchises unique world. In that aspect it continues to succeed. At other times it leaves us wondering…..Just how many times can we see a person get shot in the head? Directed by Chad Stahelski the movie seamlessly takes us from the end of Chapter Two right into Chapter Three as if watching one long movie, which is the point! The action scenes, especially the first quarter of the film as John attempts to flee New York with his life is filled with one spectacular action sequence after another. Just amazing. Later we meet characters old and new (including Halle Berry in a role that looks to be heading for a spinoff) that extends John’s odyssey across the globe. So now much like the famous John Wick line “Am I back? Yeah, I’m thinking I’m back!” for more Wick! But is it good? Give me your coin, check into the Continental and lets discuss!
So here we go!
Mr. Movie Couple: I love the Wick films and this one did not let me down. The beginning section, as John escapes New York, is all frantic, kinetic chase and combat scenes. Demonstrating John’s ability to improvise and utilise blades just as well as he does guns. In a film full of action combat scenes these were my favourite. The question with all John Wick movies is does one stay invested as John cuts down faceless enemy after faceless enemy? The first film kept us rooting for John’s revenge, the second also had us pulling to see John avenge himself against the smug puppeteer that forced him back into the game. Chapter Three was missing that for me. It has no clear cut enemy to root against. We are all pulling for John naturally, but while the Adjudicator was an interesting addition to the assassin world of Wick, she is of course simply doing her job. Even the Ninja Master assassin Zero, who had a very interesting quirk of being a Wick fanboy while attempting to kill him (which I think could have been played up to an even higher level) was cool but we didn’t yearn for John to drop him. It seemed more inevitable than actually satisfying. That would be my only fault in an otherwise great action flick. Wick Three lacked a villain we just couldn’t wait to see John take out! That and I felt in an attempt to humanise our hero he began to lose that dread that was associated with even mentioning his name that was so painstakingly built up in the previous two films. Some respect seemed to be falling from the Wick persona in exchange to see him as an underdog Still and all a fantastic action film and one I would recommend, but despite being great I found it to be the weakest of the Wick entries were I forced to rank them. Reeves still presents a character to remember for years to come. His John Wick remains a cinema legend in the making
Mrs. Movie Couple: She enjoyed it far more than she expected to! Having only seen Wick 1 and 2 at home (before this Movie Couple endeavour) she knew what to expect going in. Action, especially on the level of a John Wick movie is usually not her cup of tea, but she loved the first Wick with its romance angle and loss of the now famous dog. She nearly teared up seeing John miss his wife in the way he did. The next two chapters , while motivated by those moments, have distanced themselves from them to the point that she misses John’s true motivation in the sequels. This one even more so than the previous. This one has far less heart she said after the film. She likes how these films go out of the way to show that no one innocent are killed. Each and every victim knew the world they were entering and take part in it willingly. She really took notice of the break in the fight between John and Zero that stopped in its tracks as a school bus of children passed between them. Overall she loved Reeves as an actor, falling in love with Theodore Logan oh so many years ago (Be Excellent to each other) and she loves the performances of the Continental staff Mr.’s McShane and Riddick but she found this instalment a bit boring and in her words, did not advance the story enough for her tastes. Overall she didn’t hate it or wish to leave, but it was just OK and a severe drop off from Chapters 1 and 2.
On the way home, we did continue to talk of the Wickerverse, or World of Wick. The Continental(s) and the Adjudicator were the points most discussed. The drive home always clarifies how we felt about a movie. Silence is not golden, silence is bad. We were not silent after Wick 3. I give it 5 Bills, could have gone 6 if a better villain had been delivered. The Mrs. gives it 3 Bills, So we give John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum 4 Bills! I say take my money! I look forward to another visit to the Wick Universe (which sort of is teased)! She says Meh. So we’ll go with an average of Pretty Good! Money well spent.
So until the next date night, which Mrs Movie Couple says will be her choice, so look forward to Aladdin or Rocketman, but I may get a chance to drag her to Godzilla King of the Monsters first so wish me luck! We will see you next time! Movie Coupe out!
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