John Wick: Movie Review

 From Point break to Constantine, Devils Advocate to Dracula, Keanu Reeves has consistently starred in movies I’ve thoroughly enjoyed throughout my life and John Wick is no exception.

 This movie centres around ex-hit man extraordinaire, John Wick. After the untimely death of his wife, he’s dragged out of retirement by the hands of 3 Russian gangsters, who violently break into his home to steal his car, unbeknownst of his identity. After waking up from the horrific home invasion, he finds out the main attacker is none other than the son of his former employer. When the big league mobster obtains the knowledge that his sons victim was former employee John Wick, he has no other choice than to put out a hit on him, in the pursuit of protecting his sons life, whilst John has no other option but to come out of retirement and seek vengeance... One bullet at a time.

 Firstly, what struck me about this movie was it’s pacing. From the get go you’re engulfed in the tragic flames that have set John Wick’s life on fire and by the time you become emotionally invested in the character, the plot develops and the action really starts to kick in. Secondly, this movie is very stylishly shot, the action sequences are nothing short of incredible; the last time I remember being so impressed by a movies fight choreography was Chan-Wook Park’s Oldboy. Keanu Reeves did the majority of his own stunts for this, which I always like in an actor. This movie also sounds great (Stand out track being: ‘Killing Strangers’ by Marilyn Manson), which mixed with natty little details such as, how the Russian subtitles are displayed, makes for a wonderfully shot, fast paced, dark, stylish action movie.

This movie is so much more than your stereotypical straight to DVD action flick. With an excellent lead performance by Keanu Reeves, accompanied by an array of beautifully shot driving scenes, outstanding bullet fuelled fight sequences and a dark stylish ambience, which makes Chad Stahelski’s and David Leitch’s directional debut a really intense, enjoyable action movie, with the possibility of becoming a franchise.

If you enjoyed this movie check out: Vendetta, Old boy(2003) & Lucky Number Slevin.

                                                  

My Rating: A solid 8 out of 10.

Joshua White
Fire Write With Me.

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FIRST LOOK: Jason Momoa as Aquaman.

Get excited.

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My Film Recommendation: Enemy

In 2013, under the direction of Denis Villeneuve, Jake Gyllenhaal (one of my all time favourite actors) released ‘Prisoners’, a movie I would go on to adore and encourage anyone and everyone to see. A year later, under the same direction, Enemy was created and its safe to say it evoked the same reaction as it’s predecessor, if not a little more.

Chaos is order yet undeciphered.

 This movie centres around history professor Adam Bell. A rather refined character, he appears to lead a very routine orientated life. He goes to work, comes home, sleeps with his girlfriend and repeats. One night whilst watching a film recommended to him by a co-worker, Adam is shocked to find out that an extra in the movie looks exactly like him. Intrigued by this, he decides to rent any movie he can get his hands on that stars this alluring doppelgänger. He soon finds out that the man in question is Anthony Claire, a married actor of limited previous roles, who resides within the same city. After eventually meeting, it becomes clear that the two are identical. This sets off a dark, downward spiral, where their lives become entwined, a path Adam may of wished he had never originally crawled down.

 I loved this movie. From it’s opening scene to the very last, I was completely captivated by this Hitchcockian nightmare. Enemy roamed around my subconscious for days, I saw it again twice and spent countless hours online scrolling through other peoples’ interpretations of the story. Jake Gyllenhaal delivers yet another outstanding performance as both Adam and Anthony. Despite being the same actor, in the scenes when they’re together you truly feel like there is two different people in the room. This movie is also shot to perfection and it’s score creates an air of tension, which complements the visuals and plot perfectly. Much like previous work by David Lynch, Enemy doesn’t follow your stereotypical film structure and it uses different methods and ways to get the plot across, something I personally really enjoy from a cinematic experience.

 From it’s metaphorical use of spiders, to it’s intricate placing of B-movie horror posters, Enemy is a smart film. Denis Villeneuve really understands how to grip an audience and through the medium of Jake Gyllenhaal, has created a dark, brooding and continuously tense drama that I’ll be no doubt talking about for many moons to come.

If you enjoyed this film check out:  Lost Highway, Prisoners, Synecdoche, New York

 My Rating: 9 out of 10.

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Valentines Day Special: Blood & Roses.

The feast of Saint Valentine can be a disconcerting dish for all and everyone involved. From the single lady struggling to chew loneliness, that she’s been goaded into eating by Hallmark, to the young man with petrol station flowers, who’s meals usually come served in a tray, not sure which overpriced meal to order for him and his newly found lady. Luckily for you, your film choice need not be so complicated this February 14th, as I’m about to list for you my top 3 favourite Valentine’s Day flicks (with a twist).

Natural Born Killers.

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This movie was always going to be my number one pick. The plot centres around Micky and Mallory Knox, two lost souls with similar traumatic childhoods, who go on to become lovers and psychotic serial killers, whilst their stories get glamourised by the media and told by the singular victim they let live at each and every crime scene.

I must of watched this movie over 50 times. I’ve owned it on every format possible, bought it’s soundtrack and in the days when I wrote music let it’s main protagonists find their way into my songs. Often disturbing and consistently hypnotic, Oliver Stone’s satirical look at 90’s America and it’s obsession and desensitised attitudes towards violence may seem a strange pick for Valentine’s... But for me, the love shared between Micky and Mallory is something special and eerily heartwarming, so for that reason its my number one.

Wild At Heart.

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It is closely followed by visionary director David Lynch’s tale of a forbidden romance ‘Wild At Heart’. A story of two lovers, Sailor Ripley and Lula Fortune. Upon leaving prison, the couple decide to ignore Sailor’s probation and hit the road to California. Driven insane by the thought of them being together, Lula’s psychotic mother hires a hit-man to track down and kill Sailor. Blissfuly unaware of this the couple enjoy their time together, until witnessing a road side crash, in which the direction of their journey changes.

In my personal opinion, Wild At Heart would be a great introduction to Lynch for anyone new to his work. In comparison to films such as Inland Empire, it drives down a much more liner path, which in turn makes it easier to follow, although that’s not the reason I adore it so much. Typically surreal and accompanied by an incredible soundtrack, with constant outbursts of extreme violence, hilarity and romance, this movie takes you on an incredibly stylish, romantic road trip with two characters I really grew to adore (and their snake skin jacket).

True Romance.

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Probably the most heartwarmingly violent movie ever made. During his annual birthday visit to the cinema, Clarence Worley, a comic book store clerk/avid Elvis fan, meets a beautiful blonde by the name of Alabama. From the movie theatre, the two get better acquainted over coffee and pie, in which leads to an evening spent in each others arms. In the middle of the night Alabama tearfully confesses that she’s a call girl who’s been hired by his boss for his birthday... And that she also thinks she’s fallen in love with him. With the feelings being mutual, the newly found couple decide to get married the next day. After this, Clarence decides to pay her old pimp Drexel a visit to collect Alabama’s possessions, a journey that will lead to bloodstained hands grasping a suitcase full of cocaine. From here, the lovers set their sights for Hollywood, with the intention to quickly sell the newly acquired narcotics, with its original owner hot on their trails; angry, locked and loaded.

Out of all the aforementioned movies above, True Romance is the one I identify with the most. With incredible lead performances by Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette, Clarence and Alabama are two characters you can’t help but find yourself falling in love with. With some truly iconic scenes, notably ones involving Garry Oldman and Dennis Hopper, this movie is bursting with iconic imagery and endlessly quotable dialogue. Accompanied by a truly charming soundtrack, Tarantino’s take on the romantic genre is one that speaks to me in volumes and in my opinion, a truly classic piece of cinema that looks so cool, so cool, so cool.

What will be you be watching this Valentines?

Joshua White.

Fire Write With Me.

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