I love action movies. Good ones, bad ones, it doesn’t always matter too much to me. Put some fighting up on the screen and I’ll probably be drawn to it.
That being said, with the glut of superhero movies lately, it’s been hard to find more down-to-earth action movies. Watching superheroes beat the snot out of each other is fun, but I can guarantee watching Bruce Willis walk across broken glass in Die Hard is a more impactful experience than watching Henry Cavill get punched through a building in Man of Steel. Visually, watching a superhero fight is certainly entertaining, but it isn’t ultimately relatable.
I was more than pleasantly pleased when John Wick came out in 2014. There is an awful lot I could say about the movie, and I might write more about it later, but what I truly loved was the way the action was done. The style was fresh, and it was all well-executed.
This past weekend I had the chance to see the sequel, and I was nervous. I’m generally not a fan of sequels, and the original had set the bar very high. Again, I could write a lot about the new movie, but I want to focus on the action scenes, which were again beautifully done.
First, steady, long shots. You almost never see these anymore in movies, and I adore John Wick for this. You can actually see the action. It indicates a trust in the actors, the fight choreographer, and the stunt people. I wish more action movies would understand this.
Speaking of stunt people, the stunts in this movie were incredible. All the CGI in the world won’t have the impact of one stunt person (or actor) tumbling down three flights of stairs.
It’s not a perfect movie, by any means, but the action has a number of great moments, and it’s certainly worth a view if you like action movies as much as I do.
Ryan
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