John Wick at 10 and the resurrection of Keanu Reeves

Ten years agone this month, John Wick deed theaters and gave Keanu Reeves a comeback for nan ages. But it’s easy to hide that nan movie wasn’t a immense deed retired of nan gate. An $86 cardinal worldwide return astatine nan container agency is hardly memorable, moreover erstwhile considering nan film’s humble $20 cardinal to $30 cardinal budget. It took clip for action fans to latch connected to John Wick erstwhile it had its post-theatrical merchandise connected location media. But erstwhile they did, John Wick became nan commencement of a franchise that is still going a decade later.

To observe nan 10th day of John Wick, we’re looking backmost astatine nan movie itself and really it brought Reeves’ profession backmost to life aft a agelong downward spiral pursuing his stint successful The Matrix and its sequels.

John Wick revitalized Keanu Reeves’ career

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Before we get into nan movie itself, it’s worthy taking nan clip to retrieve that Keanu Reeves had mislaid a batch of his prima powerfulness successful nan industry. By 2014, it had been complete a decade since nan 3rd Matrix movie, The Matrix Revolutions, and Reeves hadn’t had immoderate comparable hits successful that timeframe. Reeves still worked regularly, but John Wick wasn’t a big-time awesome workplace release. Everyone extracurricular of nan movie assumed it would conscionable beryllium different low-budget action flick pinch a erstwhile prima successful nan lead.

Reeves besides deserves in installments for helping screenwriter Derek Kolstad reshape nan characteristic of John Wick to much intimately statement up pinch Reeves’ on-screen persona. Excess speech was chopped, and nan movie relied connected Reeves’ look and assemblage connection to convey what he was going through, alternatively than having him authorities nan evident retired loud. That went a agelong measurement toward making nan assemblage consciousness for illustration they knew John, because he seemed truthful akin to Reeves.

The title characteristic is instantly compelling

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John starts successful a very quality spot astatine nan opening of nan film, and nan assemblage meets him while he’s grieving nan decease of his wife, Helen (Bridget Moynahan). Before she died, Helen arranged for John to beryllium talented pinch a puppy he could return attraction of, and he accepted that canine into his heart. But successful nary clip astatine all, Russian mobsters break into John’s home, bargain his car, and execution his puppy earlier leaving him for dead.

Unlike nan immense mostly of moviegoers, John didn’t request to activity alleviation from nan police. As a erstwhile assassin, he recovered from his injuries and group retired connected a bloody way of revenge. Ironically, John’s desire to avenge himself and his canine resonated pinch moviegoers and proved to beryllium much absorbing than simply avenging his wife, arsenic truthful galore action heroes had done before.

The action is incredible

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Aside from Reeves’ capacity arsenic nan title character, nan large tie of John Wick is its action. Former stuntmen Chad Stahelski and David Leitch co-directed John Wick, though only Stahelski was credited owed to DGA rules. Regardless, Stahelski and Leitch brought an knowing of action that nan Michael Bay schoolhouse of filmmakers lack. They didn’t trust connected speedy cuts aliases incomprehensible editing to convey action. Their attraction was connected longer takes and well-choreographed fights.

Even nan gunplay of John Wick featured stylized action that separated it from nan films that came earlier it. Once John Wick was discovered by action fans, they embraced its unsocial touches which were pushed moreover further successful nan sequels.

John Wick takes nan clip to create its ain underworld

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Compared to nan films that came aft it, John Wick is intelligibly group successful thing that resembles our reality. This was agelong earlier audiences learned astir nan High Table and nan arcane rules of this world of assassins. Having said that, John Wick sets nan array — truthful to speak — for each of those things by introducing The Continental hotel, which is an oasis for killers and criminals to roam freely without fearfulness of violence.

This movie besides revealed that nan rate of nan underworld isn’t strictly cash. Instead, it revolves astir golden coins that are worthy much than specified money, and they tin bargain entree to The Continental among different services that can’t beryllium legally acquired.

The supporting formed gives awesome performances

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There are 2 scenes successful nan movie wherever characters slap nan sensation retired of nan rima of Iosef Tarasov (Alfie Allen) for being stupid capable to onslaught John Wick, bargain his car, and sprout his dog. John Leguizamo’s Aurelio does it, and he’s soon followed by Iosef’s father, Viggo Tarasov (Michael Nyqvist). The logic why those scenes are truthful effective is that they group up nan mythology of John Wick himself, arsenic expressly laid retired by Viggo. Without immoderate flashbacks, nan assemblage learns that John was 1 of nan astir feared assassins successful nan underworld. The supporting players hype up John for nan assemblage earlier nan movie shows what he’s tin of doing.

Two of nan different supporting characters, Winston (Ian McShane) and Charon (Lance Reddick), were truthful memorable that they’ve been successful each sequel to date. McShane successful peculiar commands nan surface arsenic Winston, and he adds a batch of spirit to nan movie. Willem Dafoe and Adrianne Palicki besides person awesome turns arsenic Marcus and Ms. Perkins, respectively. They helped soma retired this world and they gave Reeves intriguing characters to play against.

It wasn’t intended to beryllium a franchise

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Three sequels and one TV miniseries later — pinch a spinoff movie, Ballerina, to travel — it’s easy to hide that John Wick was a standalone movie. It didn’t extremity connected a cliffhanger for illustration nan 2nd and 3rd films. Instead, John’s communicative is vanished erstwhile he yet gets his revenge, arsenic good arsenic a caller logic to support connected living. That was John’s happy ending.

Of course, erstwhile John Wick became wildly successful successful its location release, plans were drawn up for much movies and nan rest, arsenic they say, is history. Even though John Wick: Chapter 4 went retired of its measurement to seemingly extremity nan communicative erstwhile and for all, there’s still talk astir a imaginable John Wick: Chapter 5. Sometimes, Hollywood conscionable doesn’t cognize really to fto a franchise spell and won’t fto characters scope their conclusions. It’s nan benignant of reasoning that sewage america The Matrix Resurrections, different Reeves action franchise that mislaid show of what made nan movies earlier it truthful entertaining.

Surprisingly, John Wick isn’t presently connected immoderate of nan awesome streaming services, but that should alteration arsenic we get person to Ballerina‘s merchandise adjacent year. And yes, Reeves has already filmed his cameo quality for that movie.

Rent aliases buy John Wick on Prime Video.