“John Wick – Chapter 3 Parabellum” (2019
release; 125 min.) picks up right where John Wick 2 ended: Wick is a marked
man, declared “excommunicado” by the High Table, and with a $14
million bounty on his head. As the movie opens, Wick is on his way to the New
York Public Library to retrieve a couple of high value items that he hid in a
book. At the stroke of 6 pm, the bounty hunt is declared open, and immediately
attracts the attention of bounty hunters. An Asian gang is the first to track
Wick down… At this point we are 10 min. into the movie but to tell you more
of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you’ll just have to see for
yourself how it all plays out.
It is extremely hard for a film franchise to maintain its
intensity. That is not true for John Wick. As unbelievable as it might sound
but Chapter 3 was even better than Chapter 2. The one thing that has faded
however is the story.
Chapter 1 had the fullest plot with Wick seeking revenge
for the desecration of the memory of his dead wife. Chapter 2 was about
following the rules of the assassins’ world Wick lives within, and then
ultimately breaking them. The story was thin at best in that chapter, but made
up for it with some amazing action. Chapter 3 you would expect would be more of
the same, but it wasn’t. I have never heard as many oohs and ahhs in a movie
theater as I did opening night of John Wick Chapter 3. The director took the
action to an unbelievable level.
The theme of this chapter is consequences. Again, like
Chapter 2 things begin where the last movie ended. Wick has been excommunicated
by the assassins for breaking the rules and was given a one-hour reprieve by
the head of the New York Continental, Winston played by Ian McShane. He must
find a way out with a whole city after him. That chase scene that goes through
various locations had some of the most incredible fight scenes put to film. The
choreography and just ingenious methods they employed will blow your mind.
Wick then goes to various countries and locations
searching for a way to escape the consequences of his actions in Chapter 2. Of
special note is Mark Dacascos as Zero hired to kill Wick. He added new
dimensions to the classic villain with the hilarious lines and situations they
put him in. The ending scene inside the New York Continental where Wick has to
ascend a series of stairs before getting to Dacascos I’m sure was inspired by
Bruce Lee’s last and posthumous film, Game of Death. Amazingly there is even
less of a story to this chapter than the previous one and yet it was actually
better.
