John Wick (2014)

*** ½ out of ****

Now this is what I'm talking about.....

Suspension of disbelief can be extremely fun at the movies. John Wick, Keanu Reeves' return to the action flick, is exhibit A. In brilliantly choreographed shoot-em-up scenes, Reeves always comes out on top, no matter how many highly trained henchmen he has to go through. Violent beyond words and gleefully insane, the action is relentless and almost too much fun to watch.

Did you ever see “Last Action Hero” with Arnold Schwarzenegger? His character in that movie once said “They killed my second cousin. Big mistake,” as a tongue-in-cheek homage to how ridiculous some action movie character's motivation is. In “John Wick” they go even further (without a trace of irony, which is why it is so fun); he needs to avenge his pet beagle. Hee hee hee......

Reeves is John Wick, a former assassin for the Russian mob who has retired. To win his freedom he'd been forced to rub out all of the Russians' competition, and they are still riding that high years later. Wick's wife has recently passed away from natural causes, and she had arranged for a puppy to be delivered to Wick after her passing so he wouldn't be alone. Wick naturally sees this dog as his last tie to his wife.

A chance encounter at a gas station with a youthful Russian mobster gets a bit heated, as the mobster wants to buy Wick's '69 Mustang, and Wick refuses in a fairly blunt fashion. The mobster and his cronies break into Wick's house that night, beat him senseless and kill his dog for whining too loud. So silly it's laughable – how awesome is that? The mobster turns out to be the big boss's son, and once the big boss (played by Michael Nykvist) finds out who was involved, he knows that the shit is about to hit the fan. Wick is coming, and hell hath no fury like an assassin on his way back from the pet cemetery.

While the film never puts the silliness of the plot or action directly in your face, they treat it with the playfulness it deserves. It never tries to play on your emotions and never takes itself too seriously. Side characters, usually former associates of Wick, contribute great merriment to the story as both allies and villains and one of the sets, a “no assassinations allowed” hotel in New York called “The Continental”, add to the entertainment.

I won't say this is a great movie, but will insist that it is great fun, and as enjoyable a time at the movies as you could reasonably ask for. It might even be the most fun action movie I've seen since “True Lies”.  I have never been a big fan of Reeves (I enjoyed him more in the "Bill and Ted" movies than in any of his action films), and he is his usual wooden self here, but luckily that is what this role calls for - an unemotional robot taking out the trash.  If you love a good "guy movie" this the surest bet in years.