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Why the action of the “John Wick” saga is overrated (in my opinion)

John Wickthe muscular return of Keanu Reeves

In 2014 I discovered John Wicka beautiful series B worn by Keanu Reeves. The story follows a depressed ex-murderer after the death of his wife. Before she died, the latter had a puppy delivered to her to help her get over the loss of her. Slowly, John begins to find hope. Until a gang of thugs breaks into his house, beats him, kills his dog and confiscates his car. John, very upset, take up your weapons and go hunt down Iosefthe leader of the gang and son of a mafia boss.

Keanu Reeves - John Wick ©Metropolitan FilmExport
Keanu Reeves – John Wick ©Metropolitan FilmExport

The concept of John Wick it is effective and tasty. What could be more gratifying than seeing this seemingly ordinary man transform into a bloodthirsty killer feared by the entire underworld? The presence of Keanu Reeves, brought back to the fore with this film, also contributed to the success of this work directed by Chad Stahelski and David Leitch. And from this “low budget” feature film ($20 million) a great action saga was born.

Each successive film emphasized more and more action and stunts (Chad Stahelski was himself a stuntman originally). So much so that the story and the universe have become secondary, putting themselves in the service of these increasingly long and complex sequences. For this, the saga was recognized. Nevertheless, the action of John Wick is it really that successful?

How to film action well?

Obviously I understand that the saga John Wick please and there are obvious qualities in it (see our review of John Wick 4). It should also be highlighted the hard line approach by Chad Stahelski, who chose to do it film the action without gimmicks (see our close-up). For this, the director mainly uses wide shots, without camera movements and with minimal editing. Except that this method used by Chad Stahelski precisely prevents causing what is most important to me into action: sensations.

John Wick 2 © Metropolitan Film Export
John Wick 2 © Metropolitan Film Export

To feel, as a spectator, the power of the blows in an action scene, editing is decisive. Because these sequences require rhythm, dynamism. To deliver that optimal sensory experience. perhaps one of the most eloquent and above all popular examples would be Jackie Chan.

The example of Jackie Chan

In addition to performing impressive stunts, the actor has had it since the very beginning of his career a cinematic vision of the action. He knew how to let the viewer feel the action. We can see in some of his films scenes that are not too cropped and that use wide angles. In this, John Wick may be related to “Jackie Chan cinema”.

Jackie Chan - Thirst for Justice ©Golden Harvest
Jackie Chan – Thirst for Justice ©Golden Harvest

However, Jackie Chan also had this understanding of editing as evidenced by the video Every fame a painting dedicated to him (see below). A fascinating analysis that shows, among other things, the tendency of American cinema to poorly edited action scenes. Like cutting too early in the edit, before a shot is given. And as explained at 5min28, the fact of “doubling” the same shot (i.e. showing the same impact from two different angles) increases visual power.

Unfortunately the saga John Wick does not fully apply these rules. Often the camera does not accompany the shots. And the “lack of editing” makes it impossible to make everything dynamic. I have become all the more aware of this flaw because John Wick observing two great influences of the saga: the movies The raid AND Raid 2.

The references The raid AND Raid 2

Performed by Gareth Evans, The raid is an Indonesian action film released in 2012 anonymously (particularly due to piracy). It was only later that he acquired cult film status with some. We follow a team of police officers who go to a building run by the Jakarta mafia to arrest the boss. But the entire unit is trapped, attacked by all the thugs in the building.

The Raid 2 ©The Jokers / The pact
The Raid 2 ©The Jokers / The pact

The main interest of the film is the violence proposed by Gareth Evans in the fights they oppose martial arts specialists – including Iko Uwais, revelation of the film. Raid 2, the sequel, goes even further with bloodier and dirtier scenes in various settings. We then witness brawls in the mud, in the disco, on the subway or in the kitchen of a restaurant, with bare hands, with a baseball bathammers or sharp blades.

It’s in it the excerpt above, the speed of the fighters that impresses. But staging is no exception. With a moving camera but which maintains a visible image to highlight the choreography of the fights. The assembly is also judicious, since it enhances feelings when blows are given or bodies fall to the ground or are thrown against a wall. From then on, this 5-minute long sequence builds in power and never bores the viewer.

John Wicknot at the same level

Chad Stahelski does not hide the influence of The raidgoing so far as to employ two of the fighters in John Wick: Parabellum. Yayan Ruian (The raid) and Cecep Arif Rahman (The Raid 2). Both face Keanu Reeves in the third installment of the American saga. We can then see difference between the two sequences in terms of staging and therefore feeling.

At the house of John Wickthe camera stays on a wide angle, avoid being close to the body and use light movements just to keep everything in frame. It will also be noticed a writing problem, which will be more and more evident as the episodes progress. Here, at 50 seconds, for example, we can see one of John’s opponents offering himself a futile shot in the middle of a fight. Her gesture doesn’t make sense from a script point of view, but it only serves to make it fill a voidto bring movement into play and bring a semblance of energy to the scene.

Keanu Reeves - John Wick Parabellum ©Metropolitan FilmExport
Keanu Reeves – John Wick Parabellum ©Metropolitan FilmExport

Finally, there is the question of the assembly. This is essential and all the more important when one of the characters falls to the ground. At 2min10, when John Wick sends Yayan Ruhian flying, Chad Stahelski films this pass from above to show the impact this time around. Unless the cut is done too soon and shoots from another angle, with a shooting range that is still just as wide, at the same time hiding the fall and therefore the power of the shot.

We finally have with this sequence (and others in the saga) both a loss of coherence in the gestures of the antagonists (they seem to deliberately miss their shots) and just a feeling of dynamic actionwhen in reality all of this remains a bit soft for me, though of actors who give themselves.

A similar observation in the shootings

Unlike inside The raid and its sequel, the saga John Wick it is more concentrated the shootings. Only these scenes are filmed the same way, to highlight the course taken by Keanu Reeves and his ability to quickly reload his weapons. At this level, there’s nothing to say, the actor is great. But Chad Stahelski’s creation never manages to make the impact of the bullets felt, nor the sensation of recoil from the weapons, and therefore the power of the whole.

The director compensates for the visual boredom multiplying the opponents, bringing them into the frame in large numbers, again without really paying attention to the coherence of the script. In the above excerpt from John Wick 2at 1:48, we can then see opponents lunging at John with a firearm instead of just shooting him.

Taking all of this into account, John Wick ultimately it’s not a great action saga for me, cinematically. A certain efficiency is present in the first work, which is tighter. But it is paradoxically the will to do more in the other films, to lengthen the duration of the sequences, which causes the saga to lose intensity. It remains no less a beautiful tribute to stuntmen and choreographers. And for that alone, we can congratulate Chad Stahelski and Keanu Reeves.

Source: Cine Serie

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