This is a movie made by stuntmen, produced by stuntmen, directed by stuntmen, and it REALLY shows. And Keanu did as many of his stunts as they would let him - which was most of them. It is an AMAZING piece of cinematography, action, and writing.
When Simone said “ok after the hospital I was preparing myself”. I thought, you aren’t ready for the puppy dragging it’s broken body over to die beside John. 😭
Daisy the Beagle was played by a puppy named Andy. Andy was well-loved by pretty much everybody on the set, but especially by actor Omer Barnea, who played Gregori (Ioseph Terasov's driver... the kid who puts a gun to John Leguizamo's head in the beginning of the movie). The initial attack on John Wick's house by Ioseph, Victor, and Gregori was one of the last scenes filmed. Barnea, whose character was the one who actually killed Daisy, was so bothered with merely *pretending* to kill the dog that once the director called cut and the cameras stopped filming, he picked up the puppy and cuddled it for over an hour. Omer Barnea ended up buying Andy from her trainer, and she has been a part of his family now for the past 8 years.
The buildup is just perfect. But a lesser movie would have failed to actually deliver on the super-assassin that everyone is talking about. Can you imagine how much worse it would have been if the action was all quick cuts so you couldn't figure out what was happening? I love this movie so much.
That whole scene got my attention and changed what I thought the movie was going to be about lol. It basically became about the mob guys trying to survive John Wick. Instead of the other way around lol.
@@malcolmrowe9003 legend says chuck norris became old and rusty. So he focused on his inner lion in front of a mirror. His hair grew longer, his muscular structure regenerated and his entire body became young again. He did that already in the past when he worked with the Wachowski brothers (at that time).
Nah, the reason we have gun control is because we have no guns..... we gave them all to Keanu. In the USA they have the American Military... in Canada, we got John Wick. 😊❤
As a side note, the pit bull that John took in the end was scheduled "To be put down' (euthanized) per the note on the cage door. So in essence John saved the dog. You know you now have to follow through with John Wick 2 and 3!?
Keanu did an interview on Colbert a few years ago, Colbert asked “What do you think happens when we die?” Keanu’s answer was “I know that the ones who love us will miss us.” I will always be a fan of his.
One thing a lot of people miss about when Dafoe's character accepts the contract to kill John Wick is that before answering he asks if it's an "open contract" meaning will it be offered to other assassins as well. That's the reason he accepts, because he knows he can help John from the inside if he has a reason to be involved.
He is also the same actor who played T-Bird, the gang bully who is killed when his car explodes on the pier in The Crow. Which they ought to watch also.
Trivia: the guy at 9:54, who is also the guy Keanu fights at 17:19 was an agent in The Matrix Reloaded and Resurrection; the doctor that patches up Keanu in the hotel was the Keymaker in The Matrix Reloaded and this movie was directed by the stunt coordinators of The Matrix Trilogy.
One of reason why this movie hit me in the feel was because of the similarly to Keanu reeves life. Keanu did have a girl friend once. She also pass away soon after her miscarriage with Keanu child. He also seem like a loner but kind.
He's also super generous with the wealth he makes from his films. He gifts practically everyone on the productions things like cars and motorcycles to thank them for the work they do.
This movie pretty much redefined Western action since it's release. I think the action works so well since the directors were stuntmen themselves and made sure to shoot the action scenes well. Not many quick-cut edits and many long, clear and established takes. Even the action itself is based on realistic firearms training techniques. It looks showy and some have called it gun fu, but it's based on real life firearms combat training called Center Axis Relock where the combatant keeps their firearm close to their body when fighting in close quarters.
The guy who plays the head of the waste disposal is the guy from the movie The Warriors who says "Warriors come out and play-ay." I watch John Wick over and over.
The rawness of the action will always be ally of this series. George's mention of the realism with the ammo use and damage taken will always keep me in awe. Such a great film series. The second is good but damn ...... The third is the best.
I dont think it is that raw actually. It is highly choreographed and stylized including the camera work, lighting etc. For a raw revenge movie, try something like Dead Man's Shoes. blue ruin/green room also come to mind.
@Hesh Hesherson The third one is awful, but has a few entertaining scenes like the knife fight and library fight. Without those, it's a complete disaster. Needless to say, any discussion of realism is out the window after the first movie.
one thing unique to this movie and makes lines like that so impactful is that in most movies the protagonist is against all odds and they try to overcome the antagonist.. but in this series, it's a story of fear and worry from the villains about the hero.
10:45 - here's a fun bit of cinematography, during the pool fight scenes, lighting dictates how things are going for John. Any time he's lit in blue, he's in control, anytime he's lit in red, he's in trouble. Notice how he'll pull henchmen out from red lighting into HIS blue as they die. Or when he gets surprised, and thrown through the towel rack, he's lands in a red spotlight, only to roll out of it, and get to his feet where he's then illuminated in blue, as the henchmen that he begins to attack remains on the floor in red. Then we get the shot of John staring at Iosef, glad in blue, as he executes a henchman laying facedown in red. Absolutely beautiful
One thing I haven't seen people mention is the fight with Viggo... yes, John intentionally stabbed himself to get control of the knife. He purposefully directed it to his previous stab wound because he already KNEW it would be non-fatal, and would simply reopen a fresh wound, rather than cause more.
Just a note re: John's fall from the balcony flat onto his back. I had a similar fall to that when my feet slipped out from under me on a wet cement sidewalk and landed similarly. So...from a distance of about 5 feet, 8 inches. That was six months ago. Still in long term care at Brock Farni Pavilion in Vancouver, BC, Canada, and still need a walker in order to travel more than fifty feet. I'm impressed that he got up from that; shows what good shape he's in.
Believe it or not, that flat landing after being thrown over the balcony was an essentially perfect breakfall. It sucks, but it spreads the impact of the fall through as much of your body as possible, which minimizes the potential for injury.
Unless you can do a roll and tumble breakfall. Which in this case was obviously not possible as he didn't have enough time to control his fall, even prepare for it. In real life this whole crash, tumble and fall scene would have been over in less than three seconds, barely enough time to recognize what happened. Much less do a roll and tumble. So yeah, landing as flat as possible was the best possible outcome from a large choice of MUCH worse outcomes.
@@RustyDust101 Trajectory was another limiting factor; he's basically coming straight down when he hits the ground. Tumbling perpendicular to an impact is generally a bad idea; you're usually concentrating too much force into too small an area by even trying.
The bathhouse scene is one of the most beautifully filmed ever. The lighting, music (and lyrics), action, all counterbalance each other perfectly. A beautifully horrific scene.
The bodyguard that throws John from the 2nd floor of the club and the Continental’s doctor are played by actors that were in the Matrix Reloaded. They were one of the Agents and The Keymaker, respectively.
If you pay close attention in the vet's office, he doesn't steal the pittie, he rescues him. It's only on-screen for a split second, but, the tag on it's kennel was marked "euthanasia".
While John is obviously the most dangerous character, you also get the feeling that he’s incredibly rusty as he’s been out of the game for a while and is slowly working out the cobwebs throughout the course of the film. Just imagine what a prime John Wick was like back when he still worked for Viggo.
This movie is worth watching multiple times, there are details you usually don’t see the first time…like the blood trail the puppy left as she crawled to John’s side…
I love this movie more every time I watch it. I still really enjoy the sequels but there's something really special about this one. There's just so much neat about it.
Stroy writing and how the make most important scenes without word is tuly masterful. The scene where his wife collapses, to her dying. All the emotions with pitch perfect couple of minutes no words, no lines. Then her letter. Less than 3 minutes we know their relationship and how much they loved each others. And scenes where he has her bracelet on the desk and after robbery he places Daisy's collar. The most important parts are done with minimal lines. I have never seen in action film this perfect character building and introduction in so few words. Closest coming to mind is first Pirates of Carribean, how they introduce Jack Sparrow.
Because it's so easy to meme, everyone just simplifies the movie's drive and motivation as "dog." Not that Daisy isn't the cutest and pet owners can't relate, but it really wasn't just about a puppy. It's not like John was looking into adopting a pet before Helen passed. Very entertaining reaction! If Simone liked it enough, hopefully we also get Chapter 2 and 3 down the road 👍
Yeah, as they mentioned, the real issue was that they destroyed Wick's last connection to his wife (and thwarted her dying intentions). The fact that it was a dog tugs at the audience's heartstrings and gets everyone on Team Wick right from the jump, but it could've been anything irreplaceable that his wife left him.
12:50, we humans are basically giant sacks of water. We are pretty much the opposite of "Bouncy". Even when driving with a parachute, you want to land with your legs slightly bent because your body is pretty good at obsorbing all the kinetic energy it can
Keanu did mostly all the stunts and trained intensely in firearms/handling and martial arts for the John Wick movies. There's videos of him training on youtube.
Keanu is one of those actors who has had so much training in fighting and weapons and has trained so intensely with people who REALLY know what they're doing, that, if society ever fell, I think he could probably hold his own in the chaos afterwards. I mean, yeah, what he does onscreen is super choreographed unlike RL but I have to imagine that, even so, after that much training and practice, you'd pick up enough skills to handle some idiot looters and wannabe bandits.
Putting aside any input from the director to make things look cool for the film, Keanu's weapon handling skills and movement are on point. He spent a LOT of time working with real weapons to get this so right. There is a video of him competitively shooting with similar weapons, and transitioning between them and reloads. You don't get that slick unless you've done it hundreds of times.
So, there's a really awesome infographic that someone made, tallying up all of the shots fired, all of the kills, scene by scene, even detailing where the shots landed. It is really well made, and really shows just how brutally efficient of a killing machine John is.
When I first watched this I just loved the whole currency system. Going back to some kind of doubloon system let me know just how big the assassin profession is in this world.
The value of the coins depends on one's status in the assassin community. So what John Wick gets for one coin may cost more for someone of lower status.
@@dr.burtgummerfan439 I always assumed the better assassin you were, the more coins you could ask for in payment. But the value of the individual doubloon would not change.
I feel like this should lead into watching The Raid movies as well as The Night Comes for Us. Unbeliavable stunts and fight coreography, I think it would be a blast!
If you ever have to hide from gunshots behind a car, hide behind the wheels or the engine. Those are the parts least likely to be penetrated by bullets.
As many others have said here, check out The Accountant with Ben Affleck. Very similar to this one, albeit not as complex in terms of choreography, but it makes up for it by being a rather emotional film and very poignant.
I'm a former DoP from Ubisoft ant I can assure you that the amount of work it takes to make a sequence shot during a fight scene is incredible. The choreography, camera movements, continuity, maintaining a stable lighting if surrounded with flashing light sources, then the post-FX where every frame gets adjusted and cleaned... Crazy work!
I don't there's another film that so expertly makes the most softhearted viewers scream for blood. Nobody remains a pacifist in the face of puppy murder.
God, this movie is one of my favorites. Love watching people react to this one. The lore of this world gets extended in a big way in the sequels, and gives new context to the first movie. Man, it's so fun watching people exact revenge, even though I don't know I'd ever be able to do what John does.
I love when George said "So much strangulation. And not the fun kind." because a young female reactor said watching a Buffy episode "Oh no, he is choking her. And not in the good way!". If it were not for her I would have probably laughed out loud when George said it.
To be fair, the "something bad, and not in the good way" format has been around forever. Neither of them are original. It's more about the timing, and George is pretty good at that.
If you liked this, you should definitely check out "Nobody". It came out last year, and was from the same writer of John Wick. It stars Bob Odenkirk (Breaking Bad / Better Call Saul) as an action star, didn't see it coming, it's amazing!
I just love the attitude, the "politeness", and the mythology of this movie. The main "goon" heading up the security/bodyguards who gets a couple of great action scenes with John Wick and holds his own a bit...he's GREAT in "Atomic Blonde"...react if you haven't already! I also really enjoyed the brief interaction with Jimmy the police officer in the beginning of the movie. Jimmy is played by Thomas Sadoski who is amazing in the Aaron Sorkin TV series "The Newsroom"...another amazing series worth reacting to as you can't get much better than Aaron Sorkin shows/writing/dialogue!
The most amazing thing about the John Wick films is watching Keanu and the other actors doing gun drills with live ammo.Halle Berry was ridiculous good in the live fire drills.
Yes! I felt like I looked too long for this in the comments. The hours of firearms training Reeves put in is incredible. The reason it looks so real and brutal is because it’s really the way those arms are supposed to be handled.
I've fallen on my back from quite a height and let me tell you it wasn't fun. What's interesting about it is that it isn't your back that hurts, it's your chest because all of the air in your lungs gets expelled instantly. Oh, and btw you should also watch Nobody, it's great.
In the scene where John wakes up to see his dog dead, you could see a trail of blood leading to the puppy being next to him. Looks like Daisy might have crawled to John before dying. 😢
15:48 Car doors are mostly sheet metal and plastic! Pretty much any bullet will go straight through like it's butter. The same goes for most of the rest of the car for that matter.
i suggest y'all watch Atomic Blonde (2017) on the channel. it's action is rooted in a similar style. equally sensational yet scenes are filmed in a way that at least feels like gritty "realism". added bonus is a absolute banger of a deep 80's soundtrack. double bonus is Charlize Theron being portraying a very capable "John Wick"-esqe character.
its not just the story, the shots are awesome too. the way they make theis movie without a thousend qick skips during a fight makes it so much more pure and intemedating
Noone really spotted this movie when it came out as it had a really limited release. It was like an urban myth for a few weeks in 2014 with people saying 'have ya seen it yet?' Anyone who knows John Woo and Chow Yun Fat's Hong Kong movies of the 80s/90s will recognise this classy homage to them. Reeves at his finest too. And George's look to camera.. killed me man.
I got a 7 year old Beagle named Mabel and she looked just like John’s dog at that age! I wanted to hug Mabel after what happened Best quote: I once saw him kill three men in a bar, with a pencil. A BLOODY PENCIL.
About time you watched this one 😎 For a movie along the same general lines or theme, I'd strongly recommend "Nobody" (certainly over the rest of the John Wick movies since they have far too much worldbuilding that shows off how this world doesn't make _any_ sense whatsoever 🤪🤣)
One of the things I really love about this movie: All of the crazy stuff John pulls off, all the things he survives, and how deadly he is? This is him when he is rusty and out of practice. Could you imagine this man at his peak?
Hey guys, loved your reaction! There's a fun fact about this movie that people who actually speak Russian find hillarious. You see, Baba Yaga is not really a Boogieman. The part "baba" actually means "old lady". And Baba Yaga is a character from Slavic folklore. It's an ancient witch that lives deep into the forrest in a hut on chicken legs. However, there's another character in Russian and Slavic folklore who is called "Babayka". And Babayka is like this spirit, or some sort of spiritual entity. He comes for kids who misbehave and snatches them. The word comes from "babay" wich means "old man" in the Tatar language. The fact that this spirit has no description plays on the imagination of kids making him even more terrifying. That being said, I believe the creators of John WIck probably meant to make John a Babayka rather than Baba Yaga. But.. oh, well. We got what we got. By the way, the actors are not even trying to sound Russian. I mean if I had no subtitles I would barely get what they're saying. In addition they keep messing up the grammar. :D However it's quite typical for American movies. The only project where they speak Russian believably is the Daredevil tv series. (Another one could be "Nobody" but the actors who speak Russian are actually russians and the director of this movie is Russian himself).
Well, wasn't it that Viggo considered John Wick to be the guy to call if you want to kill Baba Yaga, a witch so old and powerful that she was supposed to be virtually unkillable? Meaning he could outsmart, outfight someone armed with the most powerful magic? Which is more dangerous and scary: an incredibly old, powerful witch that haunts Slavic folklore for centuries; or the guy you send to (and believe has a good chance actually does) kill that same witch?
The Director talked in an interview about being worried about the number of deaths over, well, a dog. Like will the audience eventually lose touch with John? but in test screenings they learned the average audience is content with a hero killing ANY number of people to avenge a puppy...
If you liked the action in this, I highly recommend “The Accountant “ with Ben Affleck and the Netflix series “The Punisher” with John Bernthal. You’ll have to watch “Daredevil” season 2 before watching The Punisher.
The movie takes place in New York, and the building that you guys asked about, the Continental hotel, is a real building called the Flat Iron. It was built in 1902, and it's in Manhattan, just south of Madison Square park.
Especially the third one is possibly the best ever camera work in an action movie. Not the million closeup cuts and stuntmen. But the actual actors doing most if not all the stunts, seen from a stable camera. Apart from one scene with freaking strobes... Love this series. Anyone seen my pencil? ✏️
The song during the bathhouse part of the red circle club is called Think by Kalaida. I want people to know that because it is an extremely vibey and chill song that is worth a listen. Also check out their song Tear the Roots.
This is a movie made by stuntmen, produced by stuntmen, directed by stuntmen, and it REALLY shows. And Keanu did as many of his stunts as they would let him - which was most of them. It is an AMAZING piece of cinematography, action, and writing.
One of THE best action trilogies ever. And even crazier, the movies just keep getting better!
The camera work is just the absolute best imho
Don't think Dereck Colstad(writer) is a stunt man.
Especially shows in the writing!
John Wick is superb. I love how Nobody is the absolute antidote to it though!
@@bertalach nobody?
The look you gave when she was talking about that puppy being the cutest. Lmao
I was like "Yeah. She's gonna break and probably be mad :D"
And also the way he tried to hide his grin when Simone asked what the penalty for breaking the Continental's rules was.
Especially when the rest of us know what's coming. 😬
When I saw it in theaters, I literally said to myself "they're killing the puppy, aren't they?" 😔
When Simone said “ok after the hospital I was preparing myself”. I thought, you aren’t ready for the puppy dragging it’s broken body over to die beside John. 😭
Simone: "Why does he always looks so evil?"
Well, he is Willem DaFOE, not Willem DaFRIEND.
I've surprisingly never heard that before 🤣🤣🤣
@@kingdarius513 I've seen it as a meme before.
It has been since one of my favorite puns 😂😂.
Did the door hit you on your way out? /j
I think he always looks so evil because he seems to have no body-fat at all and that takes all the softness out of his facial features.
Well Done, sir. Well done. 😂
Daisy the Beagle was played by a puppy named Andy. Andy was well-loved by pretty much everybody on the set, but especially by actor Omer Barnea, who played Gregori (Ioseph Terasov's driver... the kid who puts a gun to John Leguizamo's head in the beginning of the movie).
The initial attack on John Wick's house by Ioseph, Victor, and Gregori was one of the last scenes filmed. Barnea, whose character was the one who actually killed Daisy, was so bothered with merely *pretending* to kill the dog that once the director called cut and the cameras stopped filming, he picked up the puppy and cuddled it for over an hour. Omer Barnea ended up buying Andy from her trainer, and she has been a part of his family now for the past 8 years.
Great insight from one Grumpy old guy to another.
Me realizing the puppy murder was one of the last scene they filmed.👀💀
"been a part of his family for 8 years" Ok.ThankGod.
thats so nice
this comment made my day, thank you ❤️
omg
I love the "Oh" from Viggo when Aurelio tells him exactly why he hit his son. So much said with one simple word.
Followed by John hanging up on and him.
What did he say? "Enough..."
@@spddracer There could have been a whole conversation there, but John Wick hanging up without saying anything says so much more.
The buildup is just perfect. But a lesser movie would have failed to actually deliver on the super-assassin that everyone is talking about. Can you imagine how much worse it would have been if the action was all quick cuts so you couldn't figure out what was happening? I love this movie so much.
The script for this movie had to be only about ten pages long, because of the sheer LACK of dialogue in this flick. lol
That whole scene got my attention and changed what I thought the movie was going to be about lol. It basically became about the mob guys trying to survive John Wick. Instead of the other way around lol.
Fun fact: When John asks the guard how much weight he's lost, the guard responds with the number of other guards are in the club.
His name is Kevin Nash!
@@kongyajyaj Yeah, I recognized him too! lol
Used to watch that guy wrestle. All wrestlers seem to eventually become actors in their old age.
That's why John gave him the chance to leave. He also didn't kill Perkins because she gave him information about the church.
@@Michael-of6zf He was the Waldo-dressed Russian bad guy in Thomas Jane's Punisher too. That was the first role I remember him from.
I never caught that. That's awesome.
I want on my phone screen that look George had on his face when Simone mentioned how cute the dog was. Dude, hilarious.
Simone: That dog is the cutest!
George: *looks at camera*
LOL....that was great!
Fact: the main reason why Canada has such strict gun control laws is to try to keep them out of Keanu Reeves' very dangerous hands.
Keanu, the new Chuck Norris?
@@malcolmrowe9003 legend says chuck norris became old and rusty. So he focused on his inner lion in front of a mirror. His hair grew longer, his muscular structure regenerated and his entire body became young again. He did that already in the past when he worked with the Wachowski brothers (at that time).
Then why don't they have pencil control laws?
@@tycol322 Because once pencils are outlawed, only outlaws will have pencils. -_-
Nah, the reason we have gun control is because we have no guns..... we gave them all to Keanu. In the USA they have the American Military... in Canada, we got John Wick. 😊❤
2:46 George’s face when she says the dog is the cutest is the biggest “Oh no....” expression ever..... I’m still laughing 😂
As a side note, the pit bull that John took in the end was scheduled "To be put down' (euthanized) per the note on the cage door. So in essence John saved the dog. You know you now have to follow through with John Wick 2 and 3!?
George's look at the camera when she calls the dog cute, lol
Keanu did an interview on Colbert a few years ago, Colbert asked “What do you think happens when we die?” Keanu’s answer was “I know that the ones who love us will miss us.” I will always be a fan of his.
One thing a lot of people miss about when Dafoe's character accepts the contract to kill John Wick is that before answering he asks if it's an "open contract" meaning will it be offered to other assassins as well. That's the reason he accepts, because he knows he can help John from the inside if he has a reason to be involved.
Yeah. If it were exclusive, he would've flat out denied it.
The Body Clean up guy was the same actor from Commando that Arnold dropped off the cliff.
Whoa, I never noticed that. Thanks!
Yup! David Patrick Kelly. Also notoriously famous for The Warriors, which I now realize they ought to watch.
The puppy's turd in the beginning is CGI. Lol.
Warriors COME OUT TO PLAY!!!!
He is also the same actor who played T-Bird, the gang bully who is killed when his car explodes on the pier in The Crow. Which they ought to watch also.
The symbolism of him shattering the foundation of his new life, the basement floor, to re-enter his old life, the weapons..is just...*chef's kiss*
Trivia: the guy at 9:54, who is also the guy Keanu fights at 17:19 was an agent in The Matrix Reloaded and Resurrection; the doctor that patches up Keanu in the hotel was the Keymaker in The Matrix Reloaded and this movie was directed by the stunt coordinators of The Matrix Trilogy.
One of reason why this movie hit me in the feel was because of the similarly to Keanu reeves life.
Keanu did have a girl friend once. She also pass away soon after her miscarriage with Keanu child.
He also seem like a loner but kind.
He's also super generous with the wealth he makes from his films. He gifts practically everyone on the productions things like cars and motorcycles to thank them for the work they do.
@@glennwelsh9784 True. He's a humble man. He knows he doesn't need a 50 room mansion, 5 houses or 50 cars.
7:55 most likely already pointed out, but that old guy was "Remember when I said I'd kill you last?"
This movie pretty much redefined Western action since it's release. I think the action works so well since the directors were stuntmen themselves and made sure to shoot the action scenes well. Not many quick-cut edits and many long, clear and established takes.
Even the action itself is based on realistic firearms training techniques. It looks showy and some have called it gun fu, but it's based on real life firearms combat training called Center Axis Relock where the combatant keeps their firearm close to their body when fighting in close quarters.
The guy who plays the head of the waste disposal is the guy from the movie The Warriors who says "Warriors come out and play-ay." I watch John Wick over and over.
The rawness of the action will always be ally of this series. George's mention of the realism with the ammo use and damage taken will always keep me in awe. Such a great film series. The second is good but damn ...... The third is the best.
Ptooo......Ptooo.....Ptooo.....Ptooo.......Ptooo.
.
I dont think it is that raw actually. It is highly choreographed and stylized including the camera work, lighting etc.
For a raw revenge movie, try something like Dead Man's Shoes. blue ruin/green room also come to mind.
I didn't really like the third one as much. The action is still great, but I didn't like some of the world they built in their world-building.
The third film does not live up to its own opening scene but it’s def better than 2.
@Hesh Hesherson The third one is awful, but has a few entertaining scenes like the knife fight and library fight. Without those, it's a complete disaster. Needless to say, any discussion of realism is out the window after the first movie.
'Oh that's handy.' then I see George's expression, and Simone's 'Oh!' Nice one.
"John will come for you." I love how he just whispered that in his son's ear. It's like it emphasized the magnitude of his mistake.
"and I wouldn't like to be around when that happens..." would be the second part of that sentence
one thing unique to this movie and makes lines like that so impactful is that in most movies the protagonist is against all odds and they try to overcome the antagonist.. but in this series, it's a story of fear and worry from the villains about the hero.
10:45 - here's a fun bit of cinematography, during the pool fight scenes, lighting dictates how things are going for John. Any time he's lit in blue, he's in control, anytime he's lit in red, he's in trouble. Notice how he'll pull henchmen out from red lighting into HIS blue as they die. Or when he gets surprised, and thrown through the towel rack, he's lands in a red spotlight, only to roll out of it, and get to his feet where he's then illuminated in blue, as the henchmen that he begins to attack remains on the floor in red. Then we get the shot of John staring at Iosef, glad in blue, as he executes a henchman laying facedown in red.
Absolutely beautiful
One thing I haven't seen people mention is the fight with Viggo... yes, John intentionally stabbed himself to get control of the knife. He purposefully directed it to his previous stab wound because he already KNEW it would be non-fatal, and would simply reopen a fresh wound, rather than cause more.
Someone with good core-strength can 'grab' a blade, so goes the urban myth I just made up.
2:45
"That is the cutest dog."
George: Oh boy...
Simone at 2:44 'that is the cutest dog!'
George's knowing face to the audience at 2:46 😂
Just a note re: John's fall from the balcony flat onto his back. I had a similar fall to that when my feet slipped out from under me on a wet cement sidewalk and landed similarly. So...from a distance of about 5 feet, 8 inches. That was six months ago. Still in long term care at Brock Farni Pavilion in Vancouver, BC, Canada, and still need a walker in order to travel more than fifty feet. I'm impressed that he got up from that; shows what good shape he's in.
Believe it or not, that flat landing after being thrown over the balcony was an essentially perfect breakfall. It sucks, but it spreads the impact of the fall through as much of your body as possible, which minimizes the potential for injury.
All I could think about was "Ooo! I bet he had a gun, magazine, or knife right on his spine!" 😬
Unless you can do a roll and tumble breakfall. Which in this case was obviously not possible as he didn't have enough time to control his fall, even prepare for it. In real life this whole crash, tumble and fall scene would have been over in less than three seconds, barely enough time to recognize what happened. Much less do a roll and tumble.
So yeah, landing as flat as possible was the best possible outcome from a large choice of MUCH worse outcomes.
@@RustyDust101 Trajectory was another limiting factor; he's basically coming straight down when he hits the ground. Tumbling perpendicular to an impact is generally a bad idea; you're usually concentrating too much force into too small an area by even trying.
You lucky two, it just gets better and better from here - enjoy!!!!
One of my favorite little things I love about these movies is they don't use infinite ammo cheat.
The kid John Wick was after the actor that played him I've heard is actually one of the nicest people you could meet off set.
The bathhouse scene is one of the most beautifully filmed ever. The lighting, music (and lyrics), action, all counterbalance each other perfectly. A beautifully horrific scene.
Keanu underwent months of intensive shooting training for this, his shooting skills are real. There are RUclips vids of Keanu at the shooting ranges.
The bodyguard that throws John from the 2nd floor of the club and the Continental’s doctor are played by actors that were in the Matrix Reloaded. They were one of the Agents and The Keymaker, respectively.
Love how the Continental is a character in the film.
No other movie has matched this in it's characterization, the way it builds the legend of John Wick before turning him loose is utter perfection.
"John Wick's car"
"....Oh."
I didnt think Simone could get any cuter,but her face when the dog was killed was priceless.
In the early 2k´s we had the Bourne Trilogy and now we have John Wick. To fantastic Action Franchises
If you pay close attention in the vet's office, he doesn't steal the pittie, he rescues him. It's only on-screen for a split second, but, the tag on it's kennel was marked "euthanasia".
While John is obviously the most dangerous character, you also get the feeling that he’s incredibly rusty as he’s been out of the game for a while and is slowly working out the cobwebs throughout the course of the film. Just imagine what a prime John Wick was like back when he still worked for Viggo.
George is right. If you need to hide behind a car to get away from gun fire the only safe places are wheel wells and behind the engine block
This movie is worth watching multiple times, there are details you usually don’t see the first time…like the blood trail the puppy left as she crawled to John’s side…
I always assumed it was his blood trail as he crawled to her.
@@Deathbird_Mitch it could have been, just didn’t look like it to me. But I can see what you are saying :)
Also the puppy did not die immediately. You can see the tinny bloody paw prints, the dieing puppy crawled over to john before it died.
I love this movie more every time I watch it. I still really enjoy the sequels but there's something really special about this one. There's just so much neat about it.
Stroy writing and how the make most important scenes without word is tuly masterful. The scene where his wife collapses, to her dying. All the emotions with pitch perfect couple of minutes no words, no lines. Then her letter. Less than 3 minutes we know their relationship and how much they loved each others. And scenes where he has her bracelet on the desk and after robbery he places Daisy's collar. The most important parts are done with minimal lines.
I have never seen in action film this perfect character building and introduction in so few words. Closest coming to mind is first Pirates of Carribean, how they introduce Jack Sparrow.
Because it's so easy to meme, everyone just simplifies the movie's drive and motivation as "dog." Not that Daisy isn't the cutest and pet owners can't relate, but it really wasn't just about a puppy. It's not like John was looking into adopting a pet before Helen passed.
Very entertaining reaction! If Simone liked it enough, hopefully we also get Chapter 2 and 3 down the road 👍
Yeah, as they mentioned, the real issue was that they destroyed Wick's last connection to his wife (and thwarted her dying intentions). The fact that it was a dog tugs at the audience's heartstrings and gets everyone on Team Wick right from the jump, but it could've been anything irreplaceable that his wife left him.
12:50, we humans are basically giant sacks of water. We are pretty much the opposite of "Bouncy". Even when driving with a parachute, you want to land with your legs slightly bent because your body is pretty good at obsorbing all the kinetic energy it can
This is one of Keanu Reeves' coolest movies ever made, cool reaction as always Simone & George, you both take care
That "Oh god, if only she knew" look you gave to the camera after she was talking about the dog at 2m 47s... 😂
If you type it like this 2:47 it turns into a blue hyperlink
@@saytr4 Thanks. I forgot about that ;)
Keanu did mostly all the stunts and trained intensely in firearms/handling and martial arts for the John Wick movies. There's videos of him training on youtube.
Keanu is one of those actors who has had so much training in fighting and weapons and has trained so intensely with people who REALLY know what they're doing, that, if society ever fell, I think he could probably hold his own in the chaos afterwards. I mean, yeah, what he does onscreen is super choreographed unlike RL but I have to imagine that, even so, after that much training and practice, you'd pick up enough skills to handle some idiot looters and wannabe bandits.
Can’t wait to see y’all’s reaction to the next two. The fourth should be out next year, assuming they don’t delay it again.
Putting aside any input from the director to make things look cool for the film, Keanu's weapon handling skills and movement are on point. He spent a LOT of time working with real weapons to get this so right. There is a video of him competitively shooting with similar weapons, and transitioning between them and reloads. You don't get that slick unless you've done it hundreds of times.
So, there's a really awesome infographic that someone made, tallying up all of the shots fired, all of the kills, scene by scene, even detailing where the shots landed. It is really well made, and really shows just how brutally efficient of a killing machine John is.
As the owner of a beagle puppy, i can say John Wicks reaction was entirely justified.
As someone who's had multiple dogs, I'd say his actions were very restrained.
This series gets better and better as it goes along.
When I first watched this I just loved the whole currency system. Going back to some kind of doubloon system let me know just how big the assassin profession is in this world.
@@Shawn-st2lx Patreon subscribers get early access to YT content.
I didn't think it back at the time, but the currency for the Assassin's Guild just reminds me of BITCOIN at this point. lol
The value of the coins depends on one's status in the assassin community. So what John Wick gets for one coin may cost more for someone of lower status.
@@jacob4920 Maybe they modeled Bitcoin after the Assassin Doubloon system of currency. Who’s to say?
@@dr.burtgummerfan439 I always assumed the better assassin you were, the more coins you could ask for in payment. But the value of the individual doubloon would not change.
So glad you did this one. It's an excellent series. Hope you make it to the next ones soon.
I feel like this should lead into watching The Raid movies as well as The Night Comes for Us. Unbeliavable stunts and fight coreography, I think it would be a blast!
What a franchise. Kinda came out of nowhere and now here we are, with some of the finest action movies ever made.
If you ever have to hide from gunshots behind a car, hide behind the wheels or the engine. Those are the parts least likely to be penetrated by bullets.
I love your breakdown, it really seems to be like classic 80's action flick, but with a lot more grounded and realistic combat.
As many others have said here, check out The Accountant with Ben Affleck. Very similar to this one, albeit not as complex in terms of choreography, but it makes up for it by being a rather emotional film and very poignant.
Thanks for the rec!
I'm a former DoP from Ubisoft ant I can assure you that the amount of work it takes to make a sequence shot during a fight scene is incredible. The choreography, camera movements, continuity, maintaining a stable lighting if surrounded with flashing light sources, then the post-FX where every frame gets adjusted and cleaned... Crazy work!
I don't there's another film that so expertly makes the most softhearted viewers scream for blood. Nobody remains a pacifist in the face of puppy murder.
The exterior shots of "The Continental" were filmed at 1 Wall Street Court, NYC. The Beaver building.
you guys definitely need to check out the videos of the training he went thru for this movie! It was intense!!
God, this movie is one of my favorites. Love watching people react to this one. The lore of this world gets extended in a big way in the sequels, and gives new context to the first movie. Man, it's so fun watching people exact revenge, even though I don't know I'd ever be able to do what John does.
Killing the dog was film making brilliance. That one moment gets you on board with him killing 77 people in retribution.
For anyone who doesn't know, the music in the club scene is Think, by Kaleida. It's a fantastic piece of minimalist pop
I love when George said "So much strangulation. And not the fun kind." because a young female reactor said watching a Buffy episode "Oh no, he is choking her. And not in the good way!". If it were not for her I would have probably laughed out loud when George said it.
To be fair, the "something bad, and not in the good way" format has been around forever. Neither of them are original. It's more about the timing, and George is pretty good at that.
Lol, her face is priceless:)
which reactor?
@@trevin5675 Riley lynn, but I can't remember which episode.
The Continental is actually The Beaver Building at 1 Wall Street Court in NYC. The interior of the building was shot at Delmonico's.
If you liked this, you should definitely check out "Nobody". It came out last year, and was from the same writer of John Wick. It stars Bob Odenkirk (Breaking Bad / Better Call Saul) as an action star, didn't see it coming, it's amazing!
I just love the attitude, the "politeness", and the mythology of this movie. The main "goon" heading up the security/bodyguards who gets a couple of great action scenes with John Wick and holds his own a bit...he's GREAT in "Atomic Blonde"...react if you haven't already! I also really enjoyed the brief interaction with Jimmy the police officer in the beginning of the movie. Jimmy is played by Thomas Sadoski who is amazing in the Aaron Sorkin TV series "The Newsroom"...another amazing series worth reacting to as you can't get much better than Aaron Sorkin shows/writing/dialogue!
The most amazing thing about the John Wick films is watching Keanu and the other actors doing gun drills with live ammo.Halle Berry was ridiculous good in the live fire drills.
Yes! I felt like I looked too long for this in the comments. The hours of firearms training Reeves put in is incredible. The reason it looks so real and brutal is because it’s really the way those arms are supposed to be handled.
I've fallen on my back from quite a height and let me tell you it wasn't fun. What's interesting about it is that it isn't your back that hurts, it's your chest because all of the air in your lungs gets expelled instantly. Oh, and btw you should also watch Nobody, it's great.
In the scene where John wakes up to see his dog dead, you could see a trail of blood leading to the puppy being next to him. Looks like Daisy might have crawled to John before dying. 😢
15:48 Car doors are mostly sheet metal and plastic! Pretty much any bullet will go straight through like it's butter. The same goes for most of the rest of the car for that matter.
Tell me you know nothing about guns without telling me you know nothing about gun.
i suggest y'all watch Atomic Blonde (2017) on the channel. it's action is rooted in a similar style. equally sensational yet scenes are filmed in a way that at least feels like gritty "realism". added bonus is a absolute banger of a deep 80's soundtrack. double bonus is Charlize Theron being portraying a very capable "John Wick"-esqe character.
its not just the story, the shots are awesome too. the way they make theis movie without a thousend qick skips during a fight makes it so much more pure and intemedating
Well done, Simone, on having avoided all the memes, etc. that would have let you know about the dog in advance.
Noone really spotted this movie when it came out as it had a really limited release. It was like an urban myth for a few weeks in 2014 with people saying 'have ya seen it yet?'
Anyone who knows John Woo and Chow Yun Fat's Hong Kong movies of the 80s/90s will recognise this classy homage to them. Reeves at his finest too.
And George's look to camera.. killed me man.
I got a 7 year old Beagle named Mabel and she looked just like John’s dog at that age! I wanted to hug Mabel after what happened
Best quote: I once saw him kill three men in a bar, with a pencil. A BLOODY PENCIL.
Well, the Joker in Dark Knight only killed one person with a pen, but very spectacularly. Ta da!
There are some fantastic videos of Keanu on the shooting range, that guy took training seriously.
About time you watched this one 😎
For a movie along the same general lines or theme, I'd strongly recommend "Nobody" (certainly over the rest of the John Wick movies since they have far too much worldbuilding that shows off how this world doesn't make _any_ sense whatsoever 🤪🤣)
One of the things I really love about this movie: All of the crazy stuff John pulls off, all the things he survives, and how deadly he is? This is him when he is rusty and out of practice. Could you imagine this man at his peak?
Hey guys, loved your reaction! There's a fun fact about this movie that people who actually speak Russian find hillarious. You see, Baba Yaga is not really a Boogieman. The part "baba" actually means "old lady". And Baba Yaga is a character from Slavic folklore. It's an ancient witch that lives deep into the forrest in a hut on chicken legs. However, there's another character in Russian and Slavic folklore who is called "Babayka". And Babayka is like this spirit, or some sort of spiritual entity. He comes for kids who misbehave and snatches them. The word comes from "babay" wich means "old man" in the Tatar language. The fact that this spirit has no description plays on the imagination of kids making him even more terrifying. That being said, I believe the creators of John WIck probably meant to make John a Babayka rather than Baba Yaga. But.. oh, well. We got what we got.
By the way, the actors are not even trying to sound Russian. I mean if I had no subtitles I would barely get what they're saying. In addition they keep messing up the grammar. :D However it's quite typical for American movies. The only project where they speak Russian believably is the Daredevil tv series. (Another one could be "Nobody" but the actors who speak Russian are actually russians and the director of this movie is Russian himself).
Well, wasn't it that Viggo considered John Wick to be the guy to call if you want to kill Baba Yaga, a witch so old and powerful that she was supposed to be virtually unkillable? Meaning he could outsmart, outfight someone armed with the most powerful magic?
Which is more dangerous and scary: an incredibly old, powerful witch that haunts Slavic folklore for centuries; or the guy you send to (and believe has a good chance actually does) kill that same witch?
The Director talked in an interview about being worried about the number of deaths over, well, a dog. Like will the audience eventually lose touch with John?
but in test screenings they learned the average audience is content with a hero killing ANY number of people to avenge a puppy...
the cuter the puppy, the higher the allowable body count.....
If you liked the action in this, I highly recommend “The Accountant “ with Ben Affleck and the Netflix series “The Punisher” with John Bernthal. You’ll have to watch “Daredevil” season 2 before watching The Punisher.
Punisher was rally good.(Bernthal's best role) IMO
The outside of the hotel is downtown manhattan. 1 Wall Street Court
George’s face at 2:47…
omg yes! That look of someone who knows...
The movie takes place in New York, and the building that you guys asked about, the Continental hotel, is a real building called the Flat Iron. It was built in 1902, and it's in Manhattan, just south of Madison Square park.
Keanu went through firearms training to make his skills that much more realistic so when you see him operating a firearm he's trained.
He ended up liking the training so much he does shoot houses for fun now. And apparently is QUITE good at it now.
@@DaemonKeido That's awesome.
I love how he actually reloads... Adds soooo much to realism
When I first saw this movie, I didn't think that Keanu Reeves could pull off a bad ass action movie. I was wrong. Very very wrong.
Point Break, Johnny Mnemonic, Chain Reaction, The Man of Tai Chi, Speed, The Matrix....?
@@joegreene7619 Never seen Speed?
Caught and loved the, “EVERYONE” reference from Leon: The Professional.
The best action movie made in YEARS! When you want action done right, let a career stuntman direct!
Its so funny. The guy who almost finishes him in the Red Circle is the same action stuntman who plays the so-called Uprade in Martrix 2.
Especially the third one is possibly the best ever camera work in an action movie. Not the million closeup cuts and stuntmen. But the actual actors doing most if not all the stunts, seen from a stable camera.
Apart from one scene with freaking strobes...
Love this series.
Anyone seen my pencil? ✏️
The song during the bathhouse part of the red circle club is called Think by Kalaida. I want people to know that because it is an extremely vibey and chill song that is worth a listen. Also check out their song Tear the Roots.