John Wick — A Legend of Few Words
The following article contains spoilers for the John Wick trilogy, including Parabellum.
John Wick has an almost absurdly simple premise for the expansiveness of its story, and I mean that in the best way possible. A man loses his wife, and then some Russian dudes kill the dog she left for him. Now, he wants to kill them. That plot would have made for a pretty decent action flick, but the writers behind this series weren’t satisfied with “decent.” The trilogy, soon to be a saga of sorts, boasts a unique sense of world-building, all through very little expositional dialogue. It relies on the viewer to really think about what’s happening and definitely doesn’t hold the viewer’s hand. The dialogue in these films isn’t for us, but rather for the dynamic characters that the story revolves around. So, just how does John Wick tell a legend of few words?
The dialogue in these films isn’t for us, but rather for the dynamic characters that the story revolves around.
To begin, there is no character in this movie that serves as a vessel for the viewer to be introduced to the world. Sometimes, the beginning of movies and tv shows like to introduce a character that has had no contact with the other characters, and so as they learn more about the way their world works, so does the viewer. John Wick isn’t like that. The world of these films is set in its ways and it isn’t going to waste time explaining it because, once again, the dialogue is for the characters, not for the audience. Probably the most obvious example of the world-building is the legend of Baba Yaga, the Boogeyman. In a subversion of expectations, the first film in the John Wick series doesn’t actually have a single proper fight scene until around the 30-minute mark. What does the movie do before those 30 minutes? Well, there are dialogue exchanges like this:
Viggo Tarasov: It’s not what you did, son, that angers me so. It’s who you did it to.
Iosef Tarasov: Who? The f**king nobody?
Viggo Tarasov: That f**king nobody… is John Wick
This exchange occurs right after Viggo sucker punches his son in the gut (right after the kid had downed some vodka too. Brutal). It’s the fact that just the idea of angering Wick is enough to bring forth such an aggressive response. that sells this idea of John being a legend in this world. This is paired with scenes of John digging up gear from his past, or, quite literally, digging up his past. Up to this scene, Viggo Tarasov has been shown as a feared don, but whenever John’s name is on his tongue, there is fear in his eyes. He knows, and tells his son, that they can’t do anything but wait for the Boogeyman to kill them, and through these conversations, the audience learns the same.
The world of these films is set in its ways and it isn’t going to waste time explaining it.
Probably the most commonly discussed aspect of these films is the assassin network, and how it is conveyed to the viewer. While some things are directly explained, such as the rules of the Continental, that’s just scratching the surface. One of the first ways we are exposed to the assassin network is the usage of gold coins. We don’t know how many gold coins you need for what service, the assassins know that. We know that you need gold coins to get access to those services, but not because they tell us, because they show us. After a masterful fight sequence in his house, John orders a clean-up crew to rid the evidence. We see him hand the crew a gold coin, indicating its significance for the first time.
Then, there is also the idea of how far the network is spread. In the first film, it is mostly contained to the Continental. In the second, we start seeing these assassins as bodyguards, like Cassian, or hiding in plain sight, like that park full of assassins during the ending. Finally, in the third, John’s attempt to escape the High Table takes him all over the world, and the assassin world awaits him wherever he goes. This just gives an awe-inspiring sense of scope to the series, making it feel like there are other stories happening while we follow John’s.
The way these characters act is also a way of telling the viewer that they are watching a world that they have to figure out for themselves. Things that might shock the viewer are nothing to these characters. Ian McShane’s portrayal of Winston is a perfect example of this point. He delivers all his lines with a chilling calmness. Take the climax of Parabellum for example. The Continental is no longer a no-kill zone, and so, John, Charon, and Winston are all under attack by bulletproof High Table soldiers. Winston hardly raises his voice throughout the entire ordeal, instead sitting back with John’s dog in a vault. It works to make the viewer feel like he’s been through worse than this and perfectly contributes to that feeling of a world that the viewer is late to.
Now, as much as I love good acting, it’s not what I look for in an action movie of this nature. The things I’m looking at are things like choreography and camera work. However, John Wick’s acting is just as necessary and on point as those things. It’s also at its best when it’s completely non-verbal. There are many great acting moments I could point to. Take John’s cold, emotionless face before he shoots Santino in the second film, or maybe the unprecedented tremble in his voice as he begs the High Table for passage in the third. But, nothing will compare to this shot in the first film:
It’s amazing how a single shot tells us everything we need to know about John without any dialogue and that’s really what prompted me to write this entire article. It’s all in the eyes. We see that pure ferocity and anger that John has showcased throughout the movie as he inches this man ever closer to his death. They are the eyes of Baba Yaga, the legendary hitman. But, John isn’t a two-dimensional character, and so anger isn’t his only emotion. His eyes showcase a deep-rooted torture from losing his wife and dog. The shot excels in non-verbal storytelling even past the acting. The warmth of the reds and cools of the blue clash against John’s face, representing that anger and torture respectively. Not only is this shot visually appealing, but it is also a reminder of who our protagonist is and the complexity of his character, despite a simple plot.
It’s amazing how a single shot tells us everything we need to know about John without any dialogue.
John Wick is a franchise that broke barriers in action. With its long takes and the casting of Keanu Reeves, there was very little to dislike. No one could have imagined the scope it has taken on since the first film, but here we are. However, what makes it so great is its sense of world-building and how it takes on the idea of “show, don’t tell.” The dialogue that is here is natural because it doesn’t consider an audience. It serves to constantly remind the viewer that they are on the outside, looking in, and that was the best way to execute these films.
