And in Paris, Wick has a meeting with the Marquis, the Eiffel Tower providing a picturesque backdrop. A big, climactic scene is set on the steps and in the shadow of Sacré-Coeur. The backdrops make the criminal underworld look like the subject of a glossy fashion-magazine photo shoot. There is nothing wrong with that, but it is a sign of a slender plot engineered to suit the settings.
The film echoes a central question from all the Wick films, though: is he a natural-born murderer? Or a good man underneath it all? “This is who you are,” the Marquis tells him. “A killer.” The question is pointedly unresolved here. Beneath the supersized action, the character hasn’t deepened over time. For an action series, that isn’t a flaw, but it is a missed opportunity.
The franchise is already growing in new directions. The Continental, a three-episode spin-off series coming this year on Peacock, is set in the 1970s and tells the origin story of Winston and his hotel. Production has finished on Ballerina, set between Wick 3 and 4, starring Ana de Armas as a dancing assassin. We don’t know if she kills en pointe, but we do know Reeves is in the film. Apparently, as long as the franchise keeps making money, one way or another John Wick will never die.
★★★★☆
John Wick: Chapter 4 is released on 24 March.
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