Movie Review- John Wick: Chapter 4
In my previous review of “John Wick 3: Parabellum,” I observed that the franchise has always prioritized spectacle over storyline, focusing on the elevation of choreographed cinematic carnage to an art form. With “John Wick: Chapter 4,” this assessment remains accurate — but with a crucial distinction. The fourth installment doesn’t merely continue this tradition; it transcends it, raising the bar to unprecedented heights.
Where previous entries established the formula, “Chapter 4” perfects it. Director Chad Stahelski has synthesized the franchise’s alternate world — with its byzantine social contracts and moral codes — with increasingly inventive displays of violence to create what can only be described as a masterclass in action filmmaking. The result is not merely another sequel but the franchise’s magnum opus — a breathtaking culmination of everything that made its predecessors compelling, now executed with newfound confidence and ambition.
From its opening moments, “John Wick: Chapter 4” establishes a vice-like grip on the viewer’s attention, delivering what can only be described as intensely pleasurable asphyxiation. Each action sequence builds upon the last, constructing an increasingly impressive Sistine Chapel of visceral violence. The film orchestrates its brutality with meticulous attention to aesthetic detail — sometimes set to the refined strains of classical music as antagonists espouse Zen-like philosophical musings about friendship, rules, and consequences; other times accompanied by pulsating techno beats while combatants decimate each other amid laser-illuminated crowds of oblivious ravers.
This juxtaposition of refinement and savagery has always been the franchise’s signature, but “Chapter 4” pushes this contrast to new extremes. The film finds beauty in brutality, elegance in excessive force, creating a paradoxical viewing experience that both shocks and mesmerizes. Each confrontation feels both primal and precisely calculated — a contradiction that perfectly encapsulates the franchise’s unique appeal.
What elevates “Chapter 4” above its predecessors is its flawless technical execution. Every aspect of the production demonstrates exceptional craft: superb direction that maintains clarity even in the most complex sequences; hard-hitting and brilliantly choreographed stunt work that pushes the boundaries of what performers can achieve; creatively designed set pieces that transform ordinary locations into extraordinary arenas for combat.
The cinematography deserves special mention, employing innovative techniques to capture the action from perspectives that heighten both impact and artistry. Whether utilizing overhead shots that transform a fight into abstract patterns of movement or tracking sequences that follow Wick through seemingly impossible gauntlets of enemies, the camera work consistently impresses with its ingenuity.
Equally important is the film’s deft editing, which resists the contemporary trend toward frenetic cutting in favor of longer takes that showcase the performers’ physical prowess. The sound design completes this sensory experience, with aurally precise effects that make every impact register with visceral force — from the muffled thud of silenced gunshots to the sickening crunch of broken bones.
Beyond its technical achievements, “Chapter 4” benefits from several impressive performances that ground its fantastical world in emotional reality. Keanu Reeves continues to embody John Wick with the perfect balance of wounded humanity and lethal capability, but the supporting cast equally impresses — action movie legends and newcomers alike bringing gravitas and charisma to the franchise’s expanding mythology.
Each character, however briefly they appear, feels fully realized — inhabiting this parallel society of assassins with convincing commitment. The performers understand the film’s delicate balance between deadly seriousness and winking self-awareness, delivering their often-philosophical dialogue with just the right intonation to make it land within the franchise’s heightened reality.
For viewers unfamiliar with the John Wick franchise, “Chapter 4” might initially register as merely an exercise in excessive violence — albeit one executed with unusual style. However, those willing to look beyond the pomp and pageantry of blood and gore will discover layers of meaning beneath the mayhem.
The franchise has always used its alternate world as a canvas for exploring themes of consequence, honor, and choice within rigid systems. “Chapter 4” deepens this exploration, examining how rules both constrain and define us, how systems designed to create order often breed their own forms of chaos, and how individual agency operates within strict hierarchical structures.
This philosophical underpinning — most explicitly articulated in “Chapter 4” — elevates the franchise beyond typical action fare. The initiated have always recognized that beneath its surface spectacle, the John Wick series offers a complex meditation on codes of conduct and their implications — a modern mythology dressed in bespoke suits and ballistic trauma.
“John Wick: Chapter 4” represents the pinnacle of what this franchise — and arguably the entire action genre — can achieve. It orchestrates its symphony of swords and knives, its ballet of bullets and brutal fights, and its avalanche of raw, visceral violence with unprecedented artistry and purpose. The sartorial finesse of its fitted-suit-wearing antagonists merely underscores the elegant brutality that has become the series’ hallmark.
For those willing to engage with both its spectacular surface and its surprising depth, “John Wick: Chapter 4” reveals itself as something remarkable — a genuine masterclass in modern filmmaking that uses its genre conventions not as limitations but as opportunities for creative expression. It not only sustains the impressive tempo set by its predecessors but surpasses them, establishing a new standard for action cinema that future entries — both in this franchise and beyond — will struggle to match. 9/10
