Tag: Films

Banshees of Inisherin

Posted on by T. Maxwell-Harrison

The Banshees of Inisherin is a 2022 black tragicomedy film written and directed by Martin McDonagh. The film follows lifelong friends who find themselves at an impasse when one abruptly ends their relationship; Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan also star. It reunites Farrell and Gleeson, who previously worked together on McDonagh’s directorial debut In Bruges.

Starring: Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson

Genre: Drama, Comedy, (Black comedy/tragicomedy)

Directed by: Martin McDonagh (In Bruges)

Highly rated by Rotten Tomatoes at 97% and IMDB at 8.2.

This review is based on a viewing of the movie yesterday. I was looking for something good to watch at the cinema after missing Bullet Train and found the movie called The Banshees of Inisherin starring reuniting stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson who had previously paired up in the black comedy In Bruges – also directed by the Martin McDonagh. I didn’t read any reviews prior to seeing the film and went with an open mind. Having seen the trailer it looked interesting enough.

So, the film starts off pretty quickly and there is no explanation or showing of the main characters relationship before this crisis hits them. Pádraic Súilleabháín (Farrell) and Colm Doherty (Gleeson) were obviously close friends having lived on the island for many years, sharing the same pub. However we are dropped right into Colm telling Pádraic that he no longer wants to be friends, and that he should stop talking to him. This last for some time, about half an hour of the film is this tension back and forth as the Irish men seperate and the locals who live on the island begin to take it seriously.

It is a rather sad and callous action for Colm to cut his friend off like this. But he reasons that it is because Pádraic is dull and talks **** for hours on end. Colm would rather have peace, play his violin and make music that Island will remember. This is occuring on an island off the coast off Ireland during the civil war, some time ago now. As the reality settles in and Pádraic struggles to find the reason, and finds it hard to accept, he is trying to make amends believing he is in the wrong, yet Colm doesn’t want to hear any of this.

After some time, Colm makes the ultimatum that every time Pádraic talks to him he’ll cut one of his left hand fingers off. The hand he plays the violin with. With time, and the two in silence not helping one another, Pádraic makes the mistake of talking to his ex friend, revealing to the pub goers, and island folk that it was no bluff. Despite living with his sister, Pádraic is lonely, and misses his friend, as is his sister. With time the loneliness grows. But Colm is pushed further and eventually cuts all fingers off.

As for the characters; interesting to say the least. The humour is very stark and black but does well in places. The over arching theme is loneliness, despite me thinking it was about something else entirely. The two best friends, now seperated because Colm wants peace, ultimately proves too much for Pádraic who can’t handle it. He’s soon talking to animals and keeping them in the house for company.

It is quite dramatic, yet quite tear jerking because the man can’t move on easily from this relationship. On the way the other island residents soon turn out to be just as callous. But it isn’t this that causes us to connect. We are seeing that the world here on the island is far sinister, it’s isolating. Something that we all can relate to. The friendship that was broken was strong on one end, but revealing on the other. Colm, potentially wrestling with his own demons is clearly not in his right mind to do these things, and neither is Pádraic.

What we are left with is a broken relationship and isolation on both ends. What should have been an amicable departure turns sour. Yes there is humour, but there is more drama. I was left hoping that something good would happen, but it sort of fizzles of at the end of the movie. The ending is abrupt and we have to piece together whether the men are friends again, or simply calling it quits on this fighting. There is some heart touching moments, and yet bitter moments. Characters struggle with the realities and some perish, telling of the high rates of depression among the isolated and indeed in those times – and even to this day.

What I wanted was more comedy, a bit more backstory into the friendship, like a scene of the two friends etc. Without this, it sort of plays out as a very weird, but likeable story. There is more to the men than we realise. There is more to the residents, to the island, to the story. This goes beyond a friendship breakup to the harrowing inner workings of a society held together literally by space and time.

Acting is super, and I didn’t expect less from the Irish pair Colin Farrel and Brendan Gleeson. It was a welcome reunion, and you can see that the pair on on form, at the top of their game. But they’ve always been good actors, this is just a very different acting style, almost like watching a play at the theater. The island location is beautiful, the decadent decaying homes of the farmers run down and revealing of their hearts desire. A movie I’d like to watch again. Although the dark air to the film is a little unsettling. Some genius somewhere will decode all the symbolism and things to tell us the real meaning and happenings in time.

This is far from a comprehensive review: so, thank you for reading! I give it generous: 4/5 because I like these sorts of movies, small places, tight acting, stringent storylines and potent drama.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

We All Wish To Be, Peter Pan

Posted on by T. Maxwell-Harrison

After watching that most bittersweet of children’s tales, Peter Pan, tonight I found myself taken back by that inner desire to never truly grow up, to live in a world full of vast imagination and seemingly eternal happiness. The boy who never grew up. The adult who wishes to be the boy again. The conflict of good and evil and its heroic shaping of the human heart. I watched Peter Pan (2003), starring Jason Isaacs as Hook and Jeremy Sumpter as Peter. It’s an amazing movie and I remember watching it when it first came out.

Why do we all wish we were this boy who never grew up? I suppose any child at some point questions whether they will ever grow up or stay a child forever, that innocence of not-knowing their own fate. In the world of the adults, we have villains and we have something even more intimidating, responsibility. A child, most of their time, will not realise what such external pressures and life forces await them once they hit the adult phase. Bills, more bills, work, social commitments (God help us with this one), personal accountability, education (If they so choose, after school), the horrors of the media and news (If not already watching it), the vast internet, the magic of illicit substances, drinking and smoking, culture and the ideas of classes in society and the divide between rich and poor, the motivation behind their own desires, the temptation to overwork or not to work, a world full of completely awful things.

If that child is so fortunate to be shielded or have a moderately good upbringing in a fairly well-off family, they might not be exposed to reality for the majority of their childhood or teen years, sometimes beyond, or quite possibly, never, if they have the wealth. We all deep down in our adult hearts wish to be in a simple time, a place with no responsibility and where we had the glow and shine of being children. A timeless story and one which can be told anywhere and to anyone. Did you ever have thoughts as a child or never growing up? How do you feel now you have, is it that daunting?

I wish sometimes to understand what has happened to me. But, through the course of my life have come to the answer myself. I will never have the answer. Why did I go through this? Why would that feel so long ago, yet, it is not that long ago? Did you ever find yourself not wanting to wake up from that dream? Do you feel younger in dreams? Oh, how the dream has long played a role in our lives.

The haunting reality of the world is extremely disturbing even to the strongest willed of us. The attempt to blanket that with the use of fairy tales, and to provide entertainment and life lessons, is quite popular. One only needs to look at Disney (Who also made an animated Peter Pan) to see the attempt to shield children from the world and to make it look colourful and full of love and happy endings. Over the years, movies have changed slightly, not all of them are happy endings and ‘live forever after’ in love. But, it is not for people to make such movies, because children do need love and good to conquer evil and fear, otherwise what is being taught to them? Peter Pan, the boy who never grew up, a desire of many men, yet, the envy of a lot of adults. To see beyond what is presented and to understand why the story is significant is important, ironically, to becoming an adult.

Please like, comment and follow if you found this post interesting. I would be glad to hear your thoughts on this, particularly, which characters did you connect with as children. Did you ever find yourself wondering, just how long ago was I an 8 year old kid, in love with children’s movies, oblivious to earth and your own ultimate fate?

The Batman: Movie Review!

Posted on by T. Maxwell-Harrison

IMDB – 8.5

Rotten Tomatoes – 85%

Total run time – 2 hours 56 minutes!

Release date – UK 4th March

Director: Matt Reeves

I watched The Batman last night. Got into the cinema and sat down by 7pm. Film started 20 minutes later after a couple adverts, not many. The film ran from that time to about 10:10pm! So, from the beginning of this review, you should know the new Warner Bros. DC movie The Batman is long and it is dark and there is actually more to this than first meets thee eye.

I will highlight firstly that this seems and appears to be a direct continuation of the franchise in that Batman is established and he is not going through any type of renewal. This is a key word in the movie, renewal. He refers to himself at the start of the movie as vengeance. He is also called vengeance throughout by others.

The movie uses a gothic castle as his home! Finally. This is brilliant. The overall aesthetic of the movie is dark and gothic it is brilliant. The architecture being used it old as opposed to new or modern. Even the subway system looks outdated.

It starts with Batman revealing how he operates, how criminals are afraid when they know he may be out in the night, how he fights but cannot tackle every problem. Understandable. Robert Pattinson is also a good look for Batman. He wears black eye makeup a lot of the time, even with the suit on. He is tall and slim. Muscle isn’t really there in one of the scenes where he exposes his torso. I don’t know if anyone else has an issue with this but the suit in the film does give the impression his quite strong and muscularly, although with the suit you can still see that slimness. But he knows how to fight, he uses those skills effectively, being able to take on 5 or 6 fearlessly.

We go to a murder, specifically in this big mansion. It leads us onto the topic of the movie. Why was he killed, who did it and why? We soon learn at the crime scene that there is more to this. It appears there is a card addressed to the batman in which is a riddle. That’s right. The Riddler is back at his sick games. Batman, coupled with commissioner Gordon, is trying to track him down all the while dealing with an elusive and mysterious woman who dresses in black at night, and has lots of cats – catwoman? We never get that information but clearly, she is. Who recalls Halle Berry in that awful 2004 movie? What about Michelle Pfeiffer in 1992 Batman Returns? Zoe Kravitz is now catwoman. And, we get to see the workings of some dark club in which a lot of police, corrupt DA’s have been hanging out.

The club forefront man, is none less than the Penguin. (This movie should have done more with him). But the Penguin, although known, is on the backburner. Played by an unrecognisable Colin Farrell. The club is a mafia run joint. It’s basically a long journey from this point of trying to figure out who the Riddler is couple with trying to expose the corrupt cops. All the while Alfred is hospitalised after an attack and more.

But in terms of character we can see that stories of the past and particularly Bruce Waynes parents death has crept back into the fold, supposedly being some sort of trigger for renewal. I should also mention that at the beginning of the movie, a group of thugs has the face paint of joker. Although it doesn’t have any attention drawn to it, when looking at the Joker movie starring Joaquin Phoenix, it is significant. Even more so when comparing with the death of Bruce Waynes parents. You see movie makers, Warner Brothers and writers should all be familiar with previous films stories. In Joker it is suggested that Thomas Wayne is the Jokers father, and the Jokers uprising is responsible for the death of Bruce Waynes parents. In this film, the Batman, it is suggested that the mafia boss or the Riddler is responsible. At the end of the movie, we see the Joker in Arkham Asylum, so we know throughout the movie that his far reaching affects are still taking place because of the Joker impersonators. This supposed disregard to what the Joker did in the previous movies makes me wonder why they ignored it.

It is all about detective and chase work. The Batmobile makes and appearance as a loud and obnoxious vehicle with huge engine and flaming turbine on the back. It’s small but not quite fast enough. It comes in good use when Batman suspects the Penguin of being an elusive rat with wings that the Riddler is hunting. It is downplayed but the movie operates at a level of genuine sophistication and Batman genuineness. It is true to the character. He is not perfect, he is still not supported 100% by Gotham police department aside from commissioner Gordon. He is still the Dark Knight, just in a more reclusive way. Bruce Wayne is in the negative spotlight throughout as the city want blood for the billionaires corrupt dealings.

This battle is lost and Batman cannot figure out the Riddler’s last clue until it is too late. The city is in jeopardy. It is a laboured love but the movie shows and demonstrates that key element which makes us all love Batman to begin with. He gives the city hope and is a light of positivity. Although the Riddler wasn’t quite as eccentric as Jim Carrey in 1995s Batman Forever, he is still a bad guy and its fun to watch the pursuit.

The run time does seem excessive. It could have been cut down considerably, which I suspect is what already happened. Maybe they could have given us 2 hours 30 minutes? Seems reasonable to say at least 20 minutes of combined footage is not needed, a city shot here or there, or the sound of engines revving.

Congratulations to Robert Pattinson for doing a decent job of making Batman dark, strong and genuinely a force to be reckoned with. Acting is superb. The dark theme, overall gothic tones and a huge amount of visual close up fighting, with little special effects. It is so difficult to rate though.

RATING: 4.5/5

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

The Fast and The Furious: Remembering Paul Walker

Posted on by T. Maxwell-Harrison

The first movie in the franchise, The Fast and The Furious, was released in 2001, 20 years ago. It was a high octane racing thriller and captivated youths all over the modern world. Everybody wanted to be either Vin Diesel or Paul Walker (Dom and Brian). A film that spawned the biggest grossing series in the world, with the first movie ranking in $206,512,310!

What really kickstarted the series was Paul Walker, an undercover FBI agent. See, he’d starred in other movies, but the Fast and the Furious films were what he was and is still known for. First starring alongside Vin Diesel in the first movie, then being the star of the second, and reuniting with Vin for number 4. Film 4 and 5 was where we start to see a competitiveness between the actors to be the lead. Vin had vanished for movie 2 and made a brief appearance at the end of movie 3, Tokyo Drift. The 3rd movie, Tokyo Drift, was never my favourite, I preferred the first 2 movies. At the time though it didn’t matter, you liked it and you were cool, didn’t like and you were living in the past of the first movie.

The movies could arguable be the reason for video games such as Need for Speed: Underground released in 2003, and Need for Speed: Underground 2 released in 2004. Don’t forget Burnout, released in 2001. I played all 3 and I preferred Need for Speed, simply because of the car customisation which was a huge part of the first few Fast and Furious movies. They went from being crime films full of octane chases and races, to more of action thrillers where the cars customisation took the backseat. I still like the movies and for me number 7, Paul Walkers last movie, was my favourite. I still have to see the 9th movie!

So, what happened? Obviously Paul passed away in 2013, after the release of Fast and Furious 6. Making a digital appearance for number 7. It was known that he loved cars in real life as well as being in the Hollywood success series. The 6th movie also introduced Dwayne Johnson, which was a surprise. What was a bigger suprise was that he stayed on in the following movies. Going from antagonist to friend of the group.

See, Paul Walker starred in the first few movies, helping to build up the franchise and make it what it is today. Sadly, not everybody wanted that. He brought to the series a likeable character. Overshadowed by one person and pushed to the back seat a lot of the time, which we start to see in 2009 releases Fast and Furious.

We can’t change the past, but we can appreciate that Walker played the main character, Brian O’Connor in the first movies and added that undercover cop magic. The series grew, so did the income, so it was really not a surprise to see more recognisable faces showing up, like Dwayne Johnson, like Kurt Russel. The excellent spin off movie, still a part of the franchise, Hobbs and Shaw, starring Johnson and Jason Statham! Yes, an epic combination and to be honest, one of the best films I have seen in terms of action and plot. It still retains that Fast and Furious seal of approval, the upgrading of vehicles, the car chases. The crew of the series did well to integrate this spin off. See, Jason Statham, if memory proves correct, made a brief appearance at the end of one of the Fast and Furious movies. I think it was number 7, and then then film ends. So, to bring him back in film 8 (?) been a while since watching, was a good idea. An ideal villain. Anyway the spin off was good.

Back when the franchise was starting Paul and Vin were the only big stars in the movie that people cared about. There was Michelle Rodriguez though, who turned heads. She stayed in the series until film 4, Fast and Furious, in which she was killed and the plot evolved around Dom trying to avenge her. It was a rather emotional entry in the series. But fear not, she magically comes back in a later movie and sticks around. Rodriguez did go on to star in films like Resident Evil.

If the series continues, and no doubt it will, because of the money, then lets hope they go back to a time when the film was about the races, the upgrading of cars, and the neon lights on the streets of Los Angeles. The movies still have cars and fast chases, but the original movies were about racing. They lined up, some women in tight shirts would wave the banner and then they race. There was nitrous, there were crashes, and there was winners and losers. It felt very real. The newer movies don’t feel quite the same.

This has been a remembrance of Paul Walker’s contribution to the franchise, without whom it would not be where it is today. For the sake of clarity, I like the movies.

Dawn of the Dead (1978): Movie Review

Posted on by T. Maxwell-Harrison

A long awaited review, following my book review of Dawn of the Dead, so here it is. After all these years I am finally reviewing this iconic movie. Released in 1978, with various cuts and special editions, this review will focus on the 2 hour and 7 minute movie. That is the version I have on DVD and have had for years, the blu-ray is expensive and very sought after. Rated by IMDB at 7.9 and Rotten Tomatoes at 93%. Directed by George A. Romero. 

Following an ever-growing epidemic of zombies that have risen from the dead, two Philadelphia S.W.A.T. team members, a traffic reporter, and his television executive girlfriend seek refuge in a secluded shopping mall.

Here’s the trailer: https://www.imdb.com/video/vi215942681?playlistId=tt0077402&ref_=tt_ov_vi

Starring an unknown cast at the time, which adds a fantastic authentic feel to the movie, following Night of the Living Dead and proceeding Day of the Dead, Dawn stands tall as one of the greatest movies ever made and probably the best zombie movie made. David Emge as Stephen, Ken Foree as Peter, Scott H. Reiniger as Roger and Gaylen Ross as Francine. The cast are very good actors and the acting is just very real, I didn’t think to myself on the first watch, ‘I’m watching a movie,’ I thought, ‘this is a great adventure.’

Ripe with consumerism symbolism, and selfish greed, we see our characters survive as they battle to take back the giant mall from the dead whilst enjoying the excess luxury all the shops have to offer. Our first encounter with the characters is Francine, in a memorable chaotic scene at the start of the movie inside an overwhelmed and understaffed news station trying to get the news out to the world that the zombies are taking over. It’s not long before they are all on-board the chopper off to the mall.

Things were slightly unsettling and disturbing before reaching the mall, and then Tom Savini (make-up, fx) brings us some dire zombies elegantly directed by Romero. The shopping mall really does take on a claustrophobic feel, and with the continued use of red, it’s easy to get scared. First time I was! Of course, our heroes are temporarily safe and they begin to enjoy the luxury.

Each store becomes their haven, they over indulge, taking a lot of things to make home their small storage room. This is some genius directing and plot, because we know that all this materialism will not save them in the end. The threat of the zombies soon goes, and the survivors become the zombies, in and out of the shops.

Then we get to the end of the movie, the biker gang. Their attack unsettles this fake paradise that our survivors have built, and they don’t like that. The gang attack, zombies are unleashed on the mall and our group is left with 1 option…escape! The finale was and is an epic and uncharted case of movie making. Today, motorbike gangs in zombies films are probably overdone, but back then, it was cutting edge, along with Savini’s special fx. There are wide camera shots of the bikers in the mall, long shots of our survivors running around and over the shoulder shots for some brutal kills. Legendary moment: Tom Savini as the biker who machete’s a zombie in the head!.

The ending, the bikers leave having unleashed carnage on the mall, and ignorant of what life truly means. The zombies are back and our remaining survivors are forced out by the dead in a chilling end scene, one of the most iconic in movie history also.

If you are a zombie fan, horror fan, comedy fan or just want to watch a relevant movie, then Dawn of the Dead is for you.

MY RATING: 5/5

And that is rare to get a 5 from me. Take care.

Mission Impossible – Fallout: Movie Review

Posted on by T. Maxwell-Harrison

Potential spoilers

12A, 2 hours & 27 minutes, 2018, thriller adventure movie. Tom Cruise returns to grace us with his latest mission, teaming up with Henry Cavill (Superman), Ving Rhames (Dawn of the Dead, Mission Impossible) and Simon Pegg (Mission impossible Rogue Nation, Shaun of the Dead).

Grossing $791.1 million and directed by Christopher McQuarrie.

This film in my opinion was not as good as Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation. It did not deliver the thrills or as much action. There is a good, speedy and action filled start, but then the story turns to the past, taking previous characters and unnecessarily bringing them back. Henry Cavill was a welcome addition and turning out to be the bad guy made it so much better. The acting overall by all the cast was average. The stunts, of which it appeared there were few, were not as mind blowing as you’d think. A motorbike chase scene and skydiving scene into a giant party were the highlights along with the helicopter chase at the end of the movie.

It would have been better to use a more real threat. Nuclear bombs are at the heart of fallout, and to its detriment. At least in the previous films, they have used biological weapons to good success because they can be release often and more easily, whereas a nuclear bomb can’t simple be thrown around. Tom Cruise is no longer young, he is still doing his own stunts, considering how much he gets paid that’s a good thing, but I can’t help see his huge ego blocking the action because he just happens to be cocky in everything he does. I used to like his mission impossible films, but now, I say end it there.

There is a sequel planned for 2021 and supposedly another movie after that! Let’s hope the next movie is more fulfilling than this. It’s not awful, it’s just boring for long stretches with very stiffly acted scenes that add little to the plot. So, when action scenes takes effect, we are recovering from sleep, at least I was. As a long time fan, I thought the movies got better and better, but the peak is and will be Rogue Nation for me.

My Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Mr Mercedes: Television program review

Posted on by T. Maxwell-Harrison

This review contains spoilers

I write this review feeling pretty good about the series Mr Mercedes, a real riveting and thrilling ride and excellent adaption. It brings everything you could want to screen and more, including great acting from Brendan Gleeson, great tension and near perfect dialogue.

IMDB rates it 7.9 and Rotten Tomatoes 93%. I would say these are both accurate. I am going to do something different and give you the rating I personally think Mr Mercedes is worth first: I rate this series highly at 8/10. Not bad. It’s up there with some of the more thrilling legends of our time. It’s tense, dramatic, lovable and scary all at once. There are shocks where you least expect it.

So, Bill the retired detective is in a cat and mouse chase to find Mr Mercedes, Brady Hartfield. The series dives into the backstory of the famed Mercedes mass killings. It then soon takes a dark turn as we learn Bill now has to face off against him again, this time he is determined to catch the killer. The acting is superb and Brendan Gleeson really was terrific. Although at times, the dialogue was not my cup of tea. I was particularly fond of Bill’s obsessive compulsive sidekick, Holly. The first series takes us on a roller coaster as Bill closes in and the ends with a dramatic finale that viewers will not forget.

The second season is also a brilliant, thrilling watch as the Mr Mercedes is now in a coma and Bill is at last glad, but not convinced that Brady is gone. This is where the supernatural suspense of Stephen King’s work comes in. Brady in a coma is able to make his victims commit atrocious acts. I found this very frightening and awesome. It is a twist that has never been done before as far as I am aware. Of course, the second season is slower and I hoped that Brady would wake up sooner, but in the end, it was just as interesting as the first. I could not stop watching this, I binged the entire series in a week.

Now, season 3, still good. But instead of focusing on the Mr Mercedes, as he is gone, the show moves onto another story. One about Bill Hodges and a murdered writer. Apparently his unpublished manuscripts are worth a fortune so some crazed people want them, but a boy has taken them. I didn’t like the 3rd season as it diverted from the Mr Mercedes storyline. There was the trial throughout, whether Brady Hartfield’s killer should be imprisoned, but it wasn’t enough to make me go “wow.” That’s just television for you, starts off well and then gets worse.

I think the series is worth watching if you like thrilling detective stories and Stephen King adaptions. King features in an episode and is actually a producer I believe on the show? Correct me if I am wrong.

So there you go, 8 out of 10. That’s pretty good, so hey, if you are needing some new television this is worth the watch! I watched this on the Amazon Prime channel called Starzplay and have no idea if it is available elsewhere.

John Wick 2: Review

Posted on by T. Maxwell-Harrison

Legendary hitman John Wick is forced back out of retirement by a former associate plotting to seize control of a shadowy international assassins’ guild. Bound by a blood oath to help him, John travels to Rome where he squares off against some of the world’s deadliest killers.

Rotten tomatoes – ‘Average Rating: 7.2/10′ (https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/john_wick_chapter_2/) 

Imbd – ‘8.2/10′ (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4425200/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1)

Keanu Reeves is back, and bolder than the first as he takes to the streets and underground of Rome. The film certainly delivers on the action and stunt front, but leaves a lot to be asked about the character development and story line itself, which seem hollow and lacking in depth. It’s hardly a masterpiece to use the theme of revenge in a movie as the main drive for the protagonist, which has been done countless times. It exercises no part of the actor’s ability, nor does it show any real skill from the director. Although the reviews have been largely positive, I can’t help but feel it’s due to the degrading of the film industry standard, which is now nothing but violence and bad acting.

At first, John Wick seems to be enjoying his retirement, much the same as the first movie, so already there is the same story arc and boring predictable outcome. But only after an explosive opening sequence do we get to the main story line.

Wick soon bolts into action in one of the most intense car crash derby’s I have personally seen in an opening to any movie. It was however, hard to determine the relevance of this, as it does not in anyway relate to the rest of the film. The directors may have wanted to show of Wicks skills, but after the first movie, fans should be pretty aware of this, making the initial action practically pointless in terms of plot. It also threw John Wicks love for his car out the window, and had some close combat, but in terms of quality, it was something I’ve seen ten thousand times before.

After a slow start to the movie, taking something like 30 minutes to actually introduce the main mission, Wick is visited by his gangster type boss, whom blows Wicks house up because Wick refuses to be bound by a blood oath, something that is half crucial to the film. Unfortunately, the acting by Keanu Reeves was poor,and ultimately made it seem like a cheap b movie. The dialogue was mundane and the was Reeves pronounced it just sounded god awful, as if he was trying too hard. Thankfully, he wasn’t talking much and most of the movie was centered on shooting, with impressive accuracy, and some good fight scenes, showing the strength of the film – the choreography.

As Wick battles through the first half of the movie – to assassinate the sister of his boss – the film soon leaps into another explosive action sequence set in the underbelly of Rome. It was an intense and a somewhat unrealistic set. Wick appears to take multiple hits to the chest from hand guns and machine guns alike, and although the jacket is bulletproof, it takes absolutely damage, having no basis in reality. He is the equivalent of superman, and that in turn makes it impossible to die, and also makes his enemies redundant. This sort of thing is constant throughout the movie, so prepare for the most outright ridiculous survival situations. He can shoot enemies in the head with 100% accuracy, which makes you wonder why he shoots the torso first, why not just shoot them in the head first?

Soon he is escaping the underground, and finds himself in a long and drawn out fight against an equally skilled opponent. The fight itself is good, with good choreography and talent by the men involved. However, when they are fighting in close quarters on the train, the director must have fell asleep because the extras sitting on the train simply looked on, as a bloody fist fight broke out followed by a knife fight. That was not realistic, for one, they would have been cowering for life and phoning police. Instead, the train arrives at the station an it is empty. For a moment, you get the feeling he is human when fighting. The fight comes to a cease in the most politically correct manner and deters from the killer instinct of John Wick. Wick and his opponent casually have drinks in a bar, really bringing the mood of the fight to a sad  close.

Wick soon finds himself in the second part of the movie: the survival from the 7 million hit for which it seems 90% of the population can take part.

I won’t go into detail on the entire movie, but it concludes with Reeves battling it out in a very creepy all mirror reflection chamber. It has tension, it has reason, it does not though seem likely that Wick will survive the multiple assassins set on him. But Wick prevails and trails back to the hotel, where all the hit men women seem to congress throughout the film making it seem too administrative. It ends just as suddenly as it started. But sadly, his unrealistic skills and accuracy of shooting make the idea of a third film ridiculous, as no doubt he will kill everyone AGAIN.

The strong points in the acting were the appearances of Ian Mcshane and Laurence Fishburne, who acted very well but were let down by Keanu Reeves lack of emotion and character.

Overall the film delivers on only mindless violence and action, so absurd it is laughable. Couple that with Keanu Reeves terrible acting and lack of character development, and you have a one off film, never to be indulged again, unless you like to live in fantasy land and watch delusional directors direct garbage.

Action/fighting – 3.5/5

Acting – 2.5/5

Story – 2/5

Overall – 3/5