John Wick

(Warning: Spoilers ahead! Writing this in real-time as the chaos unfolds.)

As a creature of habit, I usually rewatch the same handful of comfort movies a thousand times. But today, I’m breaking the cycle. It might sound crazy, but I have never seen a single John Wick movie. Since everyone holds this franchise in such high regard, I’m tackling the whole series one by one.

First off: Keanu Reeves is amazing in everything and an overall incredible human. Second, within the first 30 minutes, this movie makes three foundational truths crystal clear:

1. Don't touch a man's dog.

2. You never know what someone else is going through.

3. You never know what someone else is capable of.

Real-Time Observations & Cast Takeaways

We get some fantastic, familiar faces in this line-up:

• Alfie Allen: Stuck playing a character who makes terrible decisions yet again (poor guy can't catch a break).

• Willem Dafoe: Setting up camp as the classic villain... or so I thought.

• John Leguizamo: Always a blast to see on screen. Even with a minor role, you know you're going to love his character.

The action details are hilarious if you pay attention. I love how John explicitly has to reload, while none of the henchmen ever seem to run out of ammo... or maybe they just don't survive long enough to empty a magazine.

Also, Perkins getting disarmed by John and still calling him a pussy right after? The absolute nerve! Meanwhile, Charon, the hotel manager, casually checking in on the phone while John is literally fighting for his life in his room is peak deadpan comedy.

The One Big Villain Flaw

If there’s one thing that bothers me about these high-stakes action flicks, it's villain logic. Viggo knows John has a very particular set of skills and can murder anyone in his path. Why wouldn’t Viggo just eliminate him immediately and be done with it? Why drag it out to "make a point"?

I know, I know—it's a movie, and if Viggo was practical, we wouldn't have five more films to watch. But purely from a pragmatic standpoint: end it now so we don't have a multi-movie body count!

That said, Viggo saying "it's just a dog" earned him every single thing John did to his empire. Zero sympathy.

The Verdict & Standout Moments

Viggo handing over his son wasn't a shock, but John ending Iosef so quickly definitely caught me off guard. No speeches, just straight to business once he got his revenge.

• Favorite Scene: John shooting the guy through the roof of the car as he flies over it. Unbelievably smooth.

• The Final Fight: After all that high-tier gun-fu, the sudden hand-to-hand knife brawl felt a bit drawn out. I fully expected John to just put a bullet in his head from 30 yards away with a pistol. But I suppose letting Viggo taste his own blade has a poetic symmetry to it.

Overall? A solid start to a series I'm way late to the party on. On to the next one...

Be seein' ya.