Are you a fan of kicks and combats? Is your favorite genre thriller and action? Then, my friend, John Wick 2 has to be the movie you should go for because this intense, fast-paced movie will surely set your heart racing.
The last time we saw John Wick or the man who it is said once killed three men in a bar with a pencil (a pencil!), he had just wasted eighty to a hundred fools in a beautiful, bloodbath of vengeance. And, like normal self-respecting action heroes, he was walking off into the sunset with the best kind of companion, a dog. So if I may, all was well.
John Wick: Chapter 2 successfully surpasses that theory.
Plot
John Wick is forced out of retirement by a former associate looking to seize control of a shadowy international assassins’ guild. Bound by a blood oath to aid him, Wick travels to Rome and does battle against some of the world’s most dangerous killers.
The beginning
It picks up within minutes after the first one ended, which, like its assassin hero, came out of nowhere. The movie, unlike others, doesn’t qualify as a good action- movie binge, rather, I’d say it has rightly booked its spot on the best movie of the decade list. And the amount of fans that gathered just to witness its symphonic bedlam has only grown in the two years since its release. You can begin chanting a silent prayer of thanks now, because John Wick: Chapter 2 is thought-evoking, stands out, and well, (no offense to nachos) it’s pure joy.
In a catchphrase, the notion is that sequels made with the aim of stretching a decent movie to earn a few more bucks. But, John wick 2 only improves upon john wick 1 with a better and more intriguing story and amazingly well-choreographed fight scenes. Yes, amazingly well-choreographed fight scenes. The movie speaks through style with action sequences that look brutal, intense as well as realistic.
The fighting choreography is done astoundingly as it isn’t as cliche (choppy, to be precise) as in other films. Retired super-assassin John Wick’s plans to resume a quiet civilian life get ruined when Italian gangster Santino D’Antonio shows up on his doorstep with a gold marker, enthralling him to repay past favors. Ordered by Winston, the kingpin of secret assassin society The Continental, to respect the organization’s ancient code, Wick then goes to Rome in order to eliminate D’Antonio’s sister.
Fast-paced action
The film runs through at a relentless pace, with rarely a dull moment. The few non-action scenes are engaging enough to serve the purpose of the story but are mostly filler before the next action sequence begins. It’s these sequences that are the highlight of the film. Not much is held back in terms of violence, and while it’s extreme, it’s not extreme for the sake of it. There’s a certain elegance to the choreography that justifies the brutality. But more than that it’s just pure entertaining stuff.
John Wick: Chapter 2 has it all for action-film fans. It’s pure entertainment at its best, fill with colorful characters that would fit just as comfortably on the pages of a graphic novel as they do on the screen. It’s fast-paced, stylish, and most importantly, a film that won’t easily be forgotten.
Audio Quality
John Wick: Chapter 2 continues the first film’s overwhelming sonic tendencies with another blisteringly effective Dolby Atmos track. From the first seconds of the movie, when an incredible chase between Wick and a motorcyclist offers a near riot of panning sounds and LFE, it’s clear this film is going for the gusto in a major way with respect to sound design. There are moments of relative calm here, as in John’s brief moment of peace at his house with his new (nameless) dog, but even here there’s the nice pinpoint placement of ambient environmental effects. Both in the hand to hand combat scenes as well as tangential elements like the explosion that takes out John’s house, the mix offers constant immersion, top-notch fidelity, and impressive dynamic range.
Visual Quality
John Wick Chapter 2 blasts onto UK 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray with an excellent HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer framed in the movie’s original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.40:1 widescreen. The UHD Blu-ray was reviewed on a Samsung UE55KS8000 Ultra HD TV and a Samsung UBD-K8500 Ultra HD Blu-ray player.
Shot digitally at 2.8K using an Arri Alexa XT Plus, unlike the first chapter, the sequel, unfortunately, constrain by the limitations of a 2K digital intermediate. Although full 4K titles do not always equate to clear upgrades in terms of detail and clarity, John Wick arguably did, with a tangible uptick in resolution. Although not quite as obvious this time around, the sequel is almost as flawless as the first entry. Clarity is eminently impressive, close-ups near-perfect and the image is lovingly texture and rich, with finer nuances clearly visible. And, despite the limitations, there’s still an undeniably obvious upgrade over the 1080p counterpart.
What fails to impress
However, the movie isn’t all-stars. The makers get engross in serving people’s blood and headshots that while proceeding towards the ending of the sequel. They failed to make the audience connect with the characters on individual levels. John Wick: Chapter 2 thus makes a choice it doesn’t have to make. But that’s just a perception. Keeping this aside, the movie does serve a lot of entertainment, mind-blowing scenes and marks its mark on the number one spot.
