Wickwood

I’ve rewatched my John Wick Blue-Ray enough I figured I should catch the sequel on the big screen (especially since I live near one of those luxury theaters), and John Wick: Chapter Two did not disappoint. I’ve seen enough fight scene critiques (and Kung Fu Film Festival sessions at Comic Con) to appreciate the long action cuts, especially considering Keanu Reeves is over 50. So next time someone asks what to do in the tech industry when you’re over the hill at 35, consider becoming an action film star.

The sequel did feel longer than the original, and occasionally I caught myself thinking about what to buy at the grocery store later while Keanu was in the middle of a gun battle, but I actually like the rather obvious attention to the assassin guild world-building (with the rather obvious look ahead to sequels and maybe other properties — video game?). Still, the backstory recap at the beginning is rather perfunctory — essentially a crime boss explaining they killed his dog and stole his car — so I recommend watching the original first.

And I had a some Deadwood flashbacks with Ian McShane echoing a line or two reminescent of his Al Swearengen character and Keanu Reeves sounds a lot like Timothy Oliphant’s Deadwood sheriff at the end. So I also recommend watching Deadwood to see if you also catch these, and because Deadwood is one of my favorite shows all time. And one of the most profane shows of all time. I’m trying to imagine a foul-mouthed John Wick, now.