John Wick chapter 2

Spoilers.

We went to see John Wick chapter 2 last night. First movie was really good and I remember screaming out during the action scenes. Naming the second movie chapter 2 made it seem like a continuation of the story. The start of the movie was just that - the string had been tied. John Wick made peace with the lesser Russian mafia group. It could have been the end of the movie right there, but obviously it was not. I was sad to see that gorgeous car getting wrecked, but they gave us a hint it would be restored (in 2030). The car never made it to the screen again.

Moving up from the lesser criminals we step into the business of the big bad twelve. This was a bit unclear to me since I had no English subtitles (in Singapore, all movies have Chinese subtitles) and I could not pick up every word spoken (due to a small hearing problem). The second fight scene felt like an homage to the first movie's most memorable scene. I recognised the moves, where the bad guys would pop out and the scene was almost exactly the same. At first I was pissed! Was this really all they could give us? Nothing new, just the same scene in another setting? It was okay, the upcoming fight scenes were exciting enough, although afterwards only one move stood out and could be remembered, namely John Wick killing two assassins with a single pen.

One thing I have to point out is that the expendable henchmen wore ski-masks. They removed their person so it would feel justified to kill them. The first movie did not do this, it is what made the scene so gruesome and terrifying. Putting masks over their faces made it look like a video game. The cool John Wick, ruthlessly killing the men working for the big bad guy, looked like a teenager going through a first-person-shooter. It was sad, it was unworthy.

With so many people getting killed I was glad to see at least one good death scene. The murder John Wick was supposed to commit turned out to be a strong and strange feminine power-move. The lady knew she would die and chose how she would go. It was a beautiful scene and I fully approved of her choice. She looked like an angel with wings of blood.

The dialogues were few and far apart, and frankly they did not lift the story. The amount of fighting felt too much with so little to go on. I was confused for parts of the movie, not understanding why some people tried to kill him. They made it easy to understand in the end though, setting a price on his head which anyone could claim - even I would want to kill him for that kind of cash. It was a set up for the next movie, but it felt like an excuse. He was just trying to retire! At least he had company from his nameless dog, looking like Will Smith in I Am Legend.

I must say that I did enjoy the movie, despite all the things I have just said about it. People who enjoy action will do too. Unfortunately I felt like the story was not coherent and I can barely remember the characters. It was not what I had looked forward to see, but I did enjoy it never the less. Watch the first movie and then go see the second with no expectations. That way, you can not be disappointed.