Action films, like horror movies, run the risk of becoming weary, predictable, and hollow. Both genres are popular among mainstream audiences, leading to saturated markets and orders to follow strict formulas that executives know will guarantee ticket sales. Instead of the jump-scares, teen protagonists, and haunted houses, we find in horror, action flicks are required to feature fight sequences, weapons, and quick-cut editing that speeds the pace along.
On surface level, the John Wick franchise looks like another run-of-the-mill action series that blends into the background: fights, guns, explosions, and arrogant baddies reeling off long speeches before defeat. A retired hit-man returns to take revenge? It’s not a new plot-line, but director Chad Stahelski makes it feel like it with his singular revitalization of the worn-out genre.
John Wick chiefly stands out because of its tone. By infusing elements of neo-noir (a modernized revival of Old Hollywood film noir, where shady detectives and femme fatales smoke in the shadows, influenced by German Expressionism), John Wick is given the depth and dimension most action franchises lack. It was also one of the first movies to shoot action scenes with a long take, and served as Keanu Reeve’s big comeback after a string of poor box office returns.
Such is life, indeed. The long-awaited return of our beloved dog-loving assassin John Wick is here, and it doesn’t disappoint. This time, the stakes are higher, the world is bigger, and every set piece feels like it’s pushing the boundaries of what action cinema can achieve.
John Wick: Chapter 4 is a visual spectacle packed with kinetic action sequences and breathtaking stunt work, making it the most ambitious chapter yet. Every punch, bullet, and perfectly choreographed move serves the larger-than-life operatic quality the franchise has come to embody.
The First John Wick
John Wick was first released in 2014 after struggling to secure finances and distribution. Its unconventional features made the script a hard sell to safe-playing studios, but it ended up a huge success and spawned three more sequels. Stahelski opens to an ex-assassin in mourning—with his wife and career gone, Johnathan “John” Wick has nothing in his life but his pet beagle…until Russian gangsters kill it and steal John’s car.
It soon becomes clear that John is a hailed and feared hitman in the New York City underworld, as the Russian mafia—who had no idea they were ripping off the infamous Wick—fear John’s impending wrath. A succession of carefully choreographed fight scenes, noir-style rainstorms and witty one-liners follows this set up, and Keanu continues fighting the mob into the next three movies.
John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023) Plot Summary and Movie Synopsis
After Wick (Keanu Reeves) is shot off the roof by Winston (Ian McShane) at the end of Parabellum, King (Laurence Fishburne) takes him in. In his underground network, King nurses Wick back to health, ready to seek revenge. Wick goes to The Elder in the desert, looking for a way out of his obligations to the High Table. But the Elder he met before is gone; the new Elder tells him the only way to be free is “in his death.” In his uncompromising style, Wick kills him, sparking fresh chaos in the High Table.
Winston’s New York Continental is destroyed, and Charon is killed by the Marquis (Bill Skarsgård). Koji, another friend of Wick, also loses his life when the Osaka Continental falls to the Marquis. The only legitimate way to stop him is through one of the High Table’s oldest traditions—a duel.
A retired High Table assassin, Caine (Donnie Yen), is hired to kill John, and finds him at the Osaka Continental. John fights his way out alongside the wounded daughter of the owner, Akira (Rina Sawayama).
Later, John meets with Winston, who advises him to challenge the Marquis to a duel. This would not only stop the chase but also free John from his contract with the High Table. To do this, John must represent a crime family, so he agrees to kill a German High Table senior in exchange for their backing in Berlin.
Once everything is made official, John and the Marquis agree to their terms, with the Marquis nominating Caine to fight on his behalf. Despite all the obstacles the Marquis throws in his way, John makes it to the duel. He is shot three times but manages to kill the Marquis, sparing Caine in the final round. Freed from his oath to the High Table, John finally finds peace before dying from his wounds.
Why does the Marquis kill Charon and not Winston?
Charon’s killing at the Maqruis’ hands showed his ruthlessness. By his own admission, Marquis Vincent wanted to send a message to the other Continentals. In a conversation with the Harbinger, he alluded to his ambition of destroying “the idea of John Wick” by eviscerating anyone who tried to protect him or associated themselves with him. This is why he attacked the Osaka Continental, as Koji had allowed Wick on the premises. The Marquis killed Charon and spared Winston to send everyone a message. It was also his attempt to malign Winston’s image and standing among the emissaries of The Table.
Charon died for Winston and Wick’s sins, as the former said. This is representative of the larger themes in the franchise of innocent bystanders getting dragged into violence and paying dearly for their association with people like Wick. Winston represented an important part of the Table. Even with the latent betrayal of his own title, killing him would have made the Table turn against Vincent. That is why he killed Charon but spared the manager of the NY Continental.
What is Winston’s end of the bargain if Wick duels with the Marquis?
Winston contacts Wick and tells him what needs to be done to give him a chance to kill Vincent. The manager has always had a soft spot for Wick but, more importantly, saw it as an opportunity to eliminate Vincent once and for all. The Marquis emerged as a madman of sorts who could easily rise to the highest of positions in their underground world and destroy the existing order. He is ambitious, does not care for rules, and represents chaos. Winston also saw the opportunity to get back his NY Continental if Wick defeated Vincent.
Accordion to the rules of A High Table Dual, the sponsor of the victor would also be granted a wish. The Table would have to comply with it no matter how grand it was. Winston knew that if John were able to beat Vincent, he would be able to stipulate conditions that would get fulfilled by the Table. This way, he could get his Hotel rebuilt and get himself reinstated as part of the Table after being declared excommunicado by Vincent.
How does Wick redeem himself in his family’s eyes? Why does he need to do so?
Wick is asked to go back to the Ruska Roma syndicate in Berlin. He needs to mend relations with them as only those individuals can participate in a dual who are part of a family sitting at The Table. Previously, we saw that Ruska Roma tore Wick’s ticket. He needs to go to Berlin and mend it. As of now, he was not a part of any family and hence, couldn’t ask Vincent for a dual. When he visits his family, he is welcomed with violence. Katia, his adopted sister, tells him that Marquis killed Uncle Pyotr.
Vincent came looking for Wick after Wick killed The Elder. But he did not leave empty-handed. There was only one way Wick could be welcomed back into the family: if he kills the man who murdered Pyotr. Killa Harkan was a mob boss who Vincent instructed to kill Pyotr. Wick goes to his nightclub and, in a long, drawn-out fight, finally murders Harkan. He takes one of his gold teeth as evidence of the kill.
Why does Mr. Nobody decide not to kill Wick despite having a clear shot?
The same reason why Wick decides to go behind this killing spree in the first chapter! Mr. Nobody had a fierce German Shepherd hybrid with him and used her as his accomplice. The dog was a loyal soldier to him. Her deft steps, fearlessness, and tactile physical strengths made her the perfect partner in crime. In the climax, there is an instance when the dog is in danger of being killed by one of Marquis’ men (Chidi). Wick had a gun in his hand, and Nobody didn’t. Even then, Wick decided to make sure that the dog was safe, marking the redemption of his arc as he couldn’t save his own puppy gifted to him by Helen in the first movie.
The roles were reversed in the final leg of the climax, as Wick was the one facing the barrel. Nodboy had a choice to kill Wick and take the hefty reward money. But since Wick saved his puppy and Chidi tried to kill her, Nobody decided not to kill Wick.
John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023) Movie Ending, Explained –
How does John win his freedom from The Table?
Once the duel is set up, Vincent and Wick flesh out the details of the rules. Wick stayed hidden until the wee hours of the morning to ensure that he could rest up and not have to face Marquis’s men and other assassins. His destination was the Sacré-Cœur at sunrise. Wick began his sojourn, and the bounty was activated across continents by The Table. What followed was almost a half an hour long action bonanza where Wick fought the others in a sea of incoming traffic on the streets of Paris, among other places.
It adds a familiar dimension to the storytelling that we have all appreciated the John Wick franchise for over the years. This sequence itself is something that relentlessly picks up pace as the time for the duel nears. Wick has his fair share of help as well. Caine makes sure that Wick reaches the duel on time, even though Caine himself will be fighting Wick (as Marquis had chosen him as his nomination). Nobody also helped Wick for saving his dog.
How does Wick kill the Marquis by outsmarting him?
Wick made it successfully to the duel and began the pistol shooting contest with Caine. Both men injure each other and move a few paces toward each other after each shot. On the last shot, Caine injures Wick, who falls to the ground, but Caine is almost unscathed. Marquis sees this as an opportunity to deliver the death blow to his nemesis.
He thinks Wick won’t be able to get up and has no more shots left. To his surprise, Wick hadn’t taken his shot at Caine in that turn and had shot a blank to give the Marquis the impression. He shoots the Marquis dead and gets up back on his feet.
Does John Wick die at the end of ‘John Wick 4’?
John Wick indeed dies at the end of the film, lying on the steps of Sacré-Cœur with a beautiful sunrise greeting him. This was common knowledge after Reeves and Stahelski decided not to have another sequel to John Wick 4 and go out with a bang. Reeves is done with the character, who might appear in other avatars if Lionsgate decides to make it a full-blown franchise with its unique cinematic universe. They have announced a slew of spin-offs for major characters, including Winston and Rooney.
Post-credit Scene and Sequel
Nowadays, blockbusters love to include a post-credit scene—both to keep viewers engaged (and therefore keep the movie on their mind even after leaving the theater) and set up the next installment. A spin-off movie about a ballerina-assassin (played by Unity Phelan) from John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019) has already been confirmed, as well as a TV series centering on Winston’s hotel (The Continental). When Akira reappears in John Wick: Chapter 4’s post-credit scene, it’s suggested she will return for the fifth John Wick movie to avenge her father.
But wait, how can there be a fifth John Wick movie if John Wick is dead? Stahelski hasn’t given a clear answer to this question, stating the series has evolved “organically” so it all depends on whether a fifth movie feels natural to make. We never technically see John’s corpse, and in a franchise built on lore, legend, and indestructible hitmen verging on the magical, a resurrection wouldn’t be too difficult to imagine.
The final post-credits scene shows Caine meeting his daughter, Mia. She is a professional violin player and is in the midst of a performance in public. Unbeknownst to Caine, Akira has been tracking him this whole time and wants to avenge her father. She dangerously approaches him, but before we can see what happens next, the screen goes black. Naturally, we have no answers about whether Akira kills Caine or not. The makers have not confirmed it either, and with no sequel in sight, we will be left without answers on this one.
What lies next for the John Wick franchise?
McShane will star in the television series The Continental: From the World of John Wick, which will be released this year in September. Rooney was not a noteworthy character in the broader universe but was seen in Parabellum, played by a different actress. Wick will be seen one more time in the upcoming spin-off Ballerine, starring Ana de Armas. Donnie Yen might also have his own Caine spin-off. Given his popularity and effectiveness as the character, the odds are that he will get green-lit by the studio. How can anyone say no to that much money?
John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023) Movie Review
Although audiences found the 169-minute runtime a little lengthy, John Wick: Chapter 4 is worth sitting through for the tension, spectacle and payoff. Having John meet his end (for now) is a refreshing surprise for the genre, who usually keep their untouchable title characters immortal for future movies (and profits). Plus, there’s a lot of ancient-meets-urban mythology to pack into the film—another unique feature of the John Wick franchise. Reeves moves through the movie with control and slick violence, harking back to the 1940s as a mix of both the criminal and the detective archetypes of classical film noir.
