John Wick
2014
**
Director: Chad Stahelski
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Michael Nyqvist, Alfie Allen, Adrianne Palicki, Bridget Moynahan, Dean Winters, Ian McShane, John Leguizamo, Willem Dafoe
John Wick is an ex-hitman. When the reckless son of a Russian mobster steals his car and kills his dog, the last gift from his dead wife, John must come out of retirement and wipe out the entire crime family. Chad Stahelski is a former stunt man. His monotonous directorial debut follows in the footsteps of Taken and other similar revenge fantasies. This is an old school action movie without a single properly drawn character. The bad guys are stupid and evil, and the hero is an emotionless badass. They have one thing in common: they are all unpleasant and charmless. Inventive action scenes would help, but there is nothing new at display. As far as I can tell, John's special skill is shooting in the head from point blank range. Followed by three sequels.
