JOHN WICK CHAPTER 4 FILM REVIEW

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Bill Skarsgård, Chad Shahelski, Derek Kolstad, Ian Mc Shane, John Wick, John Wick Chapter 4, John Wick Chapter 4 Review, Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Marquis de Gramont, The High Table

John Wick Chapter 4

Review by Paul Bowler.

Keanu Reeves is back in action again in John Wick Chapter 4 as the series’ legendary hit man with a price on his head. So with everyone, quite literally gunning for him, John Wick raises the stakes and takes his fight against the infamous High Table to a global level, seeking out the most powerful players in the organisation in his attempt to finally earn his freedom. But first Reeves’ indestructible hit man will have to take on a myriad of rival killers, no mean feat considering the ever increasing bounty on his head, before he can take his shot at a duel with the organisation’s head honcho Marquis de Gramont (Bill Skarsgård).

The fourth instalment of a franchise can often be a major stumbling block for a franchise, no matter how established or popular it has become. Fortunately John Wick Chapter 4 manages to doge that particular bullet. Keanu Reeves is on fine form as you’d expect, indeed his role as the franchises leading assassin fits him like a glove now, and you will be left marvelling at his amazing martial arts skills.

He reunites once again with director Chad Shahelski for what is arguably one of the bloodiest and most ultra-violent chapters in the dazzling gun-fu neon-noir saga so far. Notably, this is the first John Wick movie that doesn’t have the involvement of series creator and writer Derek Kolstad. If you thought the films had been complicated so far, Shay Hatten and Michael Finch arguably elevate the series to a whole new level of bone crunching gun-fu fighting – albeit by sacrificing any real semblance of having a cohesive plot.

Not that any of that really matters as it’s virtually impossible not to get swept along with the grand scale of Chapter 4 and its episodically stylised globe trotting narrative that takes John Wick to New York, Paris, Japan and Berlin. Yes, JWC4 does get a little pretentious and ridiculously OTT at times, but those traits are as intrinsic a part of this franchise now as the gun totting mayhem. The High Table remains as slippery as ever, while Laurence Fishburne’s Bowery King and Ian Mc Shane’s New York Continental Hotel manager Winston Scott also return as Wick’s key allies. As the action goes global John Wick encounters  a host of different friends and foes along the way: with Donnie Yen as the blind hitman Caine, while Reeves’ 47 Ronin co-star Hiroyuki Sanada adds some samurai style as Wick’s ally Shimazu, whose deadly daughter Akira is played by Rina Sawayama, and Scott Adkins is German High Table boss Killa. 

The stylishly choreographed fights and set-pieces are a balletic neon drenched spectacle and undoubtably  everything we’ve come to expect from the franchise. Highlights include an astounding fight sequence in Osaka, there’s a frenetic battle in  packed nightclub, a breathtaking fight as cars speed around the Arc de Triomphe, and Wick’s epic fight up the 222 steps to the Sacre-Coeur ahead of a sunrise showdown. Stahelski’s direction never falters for a moment as this rollercoaster ride of unrelenting set-pieces unfolds, with shaky camera angels and quick edits accentuating the pace throughout. John Wick Chapter 4 may be nearly three hours of wall-to-wall fighting, but Reeves’ stoic performance, and Staheski’s eye for detail ensures this instalment is one of John Wick’s most thrilling adventure yet!

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About The Author

Hi, I’m Paul Bowler, blogger and reviewer of films, TV shows, and comic books. I’m a Sci-Fi geek, a big fan of Doctor Who, Star Trek, movies, Sci-Fi, Horror, Comic Books, and all things PS4.You can follow me on Twitter @paul_bowler,or at my website, Sci-Fi Jubilee, and on YouTube and Facebook

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #22 REVIEW

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Amazing Spider-Man #22, Amazing Spider-Man #22 review, Benjamin Rabin, John Romita JR, Marvel, Marvel Comics, MJ, Peter Parker, Spider-Man, The Amazing Spider-Man, What did Peter do?, Zeb Wells

The Amazing Spider-Man #22 Review

Review by Paul Bowler

Writer Zeb Wells continues to lift the veil on the mysterious crisis and consequence that kicked-off this new run of Amazing Spider-Man with such a compelling quandary – what exactly did Peter do that turned his fellow superheroes against him and sent MJ into the arms of another man? Well, following last issues cataclysmic return of Benjamin Rabin, The Amazing Spider-Man #22  has a lot of ground to cover as Peter and MJ find themselves teleported into an apocalyptic version of New York City and pursued by the Mayan god of mischief and death, Wayep. Essentially the issue is a flashback to events of a year ago, events which would in turn prove the catalyst for the new status-quo Zeb Wells set out for Peter and MJ at the start his Spider-Man run. What we get this issue isn’t necessarily all the answers we’d hoped for as Peter and MJ receive some unexpected help to find shelter, take stock, and form a Spider-Verse-hopping way out of their predicament.

However, newer readers may still be scratching their heads over exactly who Benjamin Rabin is and what he could possibly have to do with everything that’s been going on with Peter and MJ. Well, Rabin was last seen nearly a decade ago in Amazing Spider-Man #557, where Spider-Man thwarted his plan to become the Emissary of the Mayan god Wayep. 

The crazed mathematician then spent years plotting his revenge, which in turn culminated in the devastating series of events we now see unfolding in the flashbacks of this story-arc. Phew! Once you get your head around it the narrative kind of makes sense, but it still feels pretty surprising why Wells has chosen to place such an obscure foe at the centre of whatever Peter did. Zeb Wells writing is pacy and exciting as Spider-Man valiantly goes toe-to-toe with a raging Wayep, the dialogue also feels more on point this issue than of late, but as we’re still only halfway through this massive storyline we clearly still have a long way to go before all the pieces of the puzzle can fall into place.

Now, the quality of John Romita JR.’s artwork has varied somewhat over the course of this run, although he does seem to be back on form again with this current story-arc. The action is pretty fast and furious and JRJR’s pencils strike a seamless balance between the frenetic pace and dramatic action. Likewise, Scott Hanna’s bold inks and colourist Marcio Menzy’s vivid pallet of color nicely complements JRJR’s work, and it seems that the magic themed narrative and alternative dimensional setting has enabled the art team to draw on far more creative vigour than we’ve seen of late.

You know, when this series isn’t getting bogged down in yet another Marvel Comics event, crossover, tie-in, or whatever Amazing Spider-Man can really grab your attention and run with it. As creative teams go, Zeb Wells and John Romita JR. do seem to work well together. Recent issue of ASM have seen Peter claiming he now thinks of MJ as more like a sister to him and he’s also seems to have rekindled his romance with the Black Cat, both are moves that have divided fans and critics alike. Even though I’m not fully on board with the direction the book is taking with the characters, there’s clearly a lot more behind the events that has alienated Spider-Man from his friends and is keeping Peter and MJ apart – especially where magic is concerned. So far there is a sense that we are only just scratching the surface of it all. I’m still willing to give Wells and JRRJ the benefit of the doubt for now and I think Amazing Spider-Man #22 is certainly a step in the right direction. 

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About The Autho

Hi, I’m Paul Bowler, blogger and reviewer of films, TV shows, and comic books. I’m a Sci-Fi geek, a big fan of Doctor Who, Star Trek, movies, Sci-Fi, Horror, Comic Books, and all things PS4.You can follow me on Twitter @paul_bowler,or at my website, Sci-Fi Jubilee, and on YouTube and Facebook

SHAZAM FURY OF THE GODS FILM REVIEW

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Daughters of Atlas, Davif F Sandberg, DC Comics, DCEU, Helen Mirren, Shazam 2, Shazam Fury of the Gods, Shazam Fury of the Gods review, Zachary Levi

Shazam Fury of the Gods

Review by Paul Bowler.

Shazam Fury of the Gods follows on from the events events of 2019’s Shazam! with great gusto and mirth as it lobs a sizeable side order of fantasy into the the DCU’s superhero movie formula. Having been bestowed with the power of the gods in the first movie, Billy Baston (Asher Angel / Zachary Levi) seems to have settled into life with his fellow foster kids and their adoptive family as they adjust to the angst of teenage life – although Billy’s super-powered alter ego seems to be struggling to catch up at times.

His foster family, who are also bestowed with powers, seem to be slowly drifting apart: Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer/Adam Brody) likes the limelight, Mary (Grace Fulton) has set her sights on going to college, and Eugene (Ian Chen/Ross Butler), Darla (Faithe Herman/Meagan Good), and Pedro (Jovan Armand/D.J. Cotrona) each have their own trials and tribulations to deal with. Now that Billy is on the cusp of aging out the foster system he must fund a way to balance the anxiety about what the future holds while also keeping his family’s teenage superhero life on track. 

The Shazam family must set aside their troubles and strife when the villains of the piece finally emerge, three banished Greed goddesses called the Daughters of Atlas – Hespera (Helen Mirren), Kalypso (Lucy Liu), and Anthea (Rachel Zegler) – who have busted out of their their supernatural prison. Now they want to take back the power stolen from them by the ancient Wizard Shazam (Djimon Hounsou) – powers which also give the Shazam kids their incredible abilities. 

However, returning director David F Sandberg struggles to recapture the same quirky blend of humour and action that made the first film so charming, instead he attempts to shoehorn too much slapstick into an overstuffed script that is already juggling multiple plot threads, and the end result is unforntuatly a tad underwhelming. Zachary Levi seems to get an uneven share of the screen time in this body-swap  superhero retread, while Asher Angel’s teenage Billy Baston often seems almost sidelined as an afterthought. It’s great to see more of Shazam in action but it also ends up having a detrimental effect on the fun duality of the character as a result. Everyone in the Shazam family gets their moment the spotlight, but with an ensemble cast like this it was perhaps inevitable that the film’s three screenwriters would struggle to really do them all justice.

The action sequences are brisk, exciting and pretty spectacular, with our Shazam superhero team racing to save people from a collapsing bridge, the Daughters of Atlas unleashing a world-shattering scheme that see Shazam and his family step up to save the day, and an epic battle where Billy takes on Kalypso and her dragon –  there’s even a cameo by Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman and two post credit scenes to look out for as well. Right from the outset, there’s a frenetic, almost breathless pace to Shazam Fury of the Gods, and there is potential here for another sequel – if indeed James Gunn decides to bring Shazam into his new cinematic vision for the DC Universe. Even though the dorkish humour is wearing a bit thin now, Shazam Fury of the Gods is still an action packed family friendly superhero film – even if it does fall short of the first movie.

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About The Author

Hi, I’m Paul Bowler, blogger and reviewer of films, TV shows, and comic books. I’m a Sci-Fi geek, a big fan of Doctor Who, Star Trek, movies, Sci-Fi, Horror, Comic Books, and all things PS4.You can follow me on Twitter @paul_bowler,or at my website, Sci-Fi Jubilee, and on YouTube and Facebook