{"id":5688,"date":"2019-03-21T16:33:36","date_gmt":"2019-03-21T16:33:36","guid":{"rendered":"\/?p=5688"},"modified":"2019-03-29T18:26:15","modified_gmt":"2019-03-29T18:26:15","slug":"the-lore-intrigue-that-set-john-wick-apart-from-other-action-franchises","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atomtickets.com\/movie-news\/the-lore-intrigue-that-set-john-wick-apart-from-other-action-franchises\/","title":{"rendered":"The Lore &#038; Intrigue That Set &#8216;John Wick&#8217; Apart From Other Action Franchises"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Action films are special. Car chases and explosions, intrigue and killer stunts help us buy into plotlines that are rarely\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">sensical<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0or well-rounded. Who in the world wants to think about logic when a spy is jumping out of a burning plane with no &#8216;chute, or a hitman leaps from building to building like someone who won\u2019t die if their foot slips and they plummet the hundreds of feet to the ground? Action for action\u2019s sake is a fantastically fun storytelling tool that deserves all the love the world has for it.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">But what happens when you put something deep, layered, and tremendously complex underneath\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">all of those explosions and killer stunts?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">&#8216;John Wick&#8217; Gave Us Something More Than The Typical Action Flick<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1080\" height=\"608\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/AuYfuEjPHKk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">John Wick <\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">unexpectedly\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">seized the collective imagination of moviegoers in 2014. While on the surface, the story of revenge is seemingly simple, there\u2019s something incredibly un<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">ique about the film<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0and its follow-up in 2017. We had our hero, John (played by the ageless Keanu Reeves), who just wanted to get out of the<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0assassination<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0game to live a normal life. When that life was ripped from him due to circumstances only the gods could have stopped, he found himself lost.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Upon her death, John\u2019<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">s beloved wife left behind one last<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0parting gift: a puppy. We get to spend just enough time with the little thing to know that we adore her.\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Then<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">some idiots who think they can just up and steal a car from John freaking Wick kill her \u2013 and that&#8217;s when John Wick comes out of retirement to go on a bloody rampage to avenge the death of his dog<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">. In print, the premise is a little ridiculous and that&#8217;s where the film should have lost folks. But that\u2019s not what happened.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Instead, a cultural phenomenon of a franchise would be la<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">unched from the murder of one small dog. Throughout the first installment, we watch John systematically take down every last idiot who took the last remnants of his wife from him.\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">And\u00a0<\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">John Wick\u00a0<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">could have survived on that premise alone<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0if it had chosen to<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">. If some jerks kick off a movie by killing a puppy, you bet your butt I\u2019ll be watching anywhere from two to three hours of the dog&#8217;s owner savagely seeking revenge.\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">That movie would still be memorable, but not in the genre-changing way this film was meant to be.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">An Entire Mythology Has Emerged From The Violence<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Another world starts to surface as we follow along with John\u2019s bloody quest for vengeance.\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">We get told that he\u2019s the best of the best from the beginning but there is never a point in the series where it stops\u00a0<\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">showing\u00a0<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">it. He&#8217;s spoken of in near-mythical terms from his fellow hitpeople and assassins;\u00a0he is the Boogeyman of boogeymen, but the incredible thing is that the movie backs that up. The backdrop for the illustration of Wick\u2019s prowess for straight-up murdering anyone he sees fit is The Continental, the hub of the secret society of the most impressive assassins in the world. Like any good secret society, The Continental has rules. With those rules comes a rich lore writer Derek Kolstad has been wise to seed in pieces as the franchise progresses.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/images.atomtickets.com\/image\/upload\/h_960,q_auto\/v1547585873\/ingestion-images-archive-prod\/archive\/1547585872727_257621_cops_8.jpg\" width=\"1440\" height=\"960\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Listen, y\u2019all.\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.atomtickets.com\/movies\/john-wick-chapter-3-parabellum\/257621\"><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">John Wick: Chapter 3 &#8211;\u00a0<\/span><\/i><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Parabellum<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">features Keanu Reeves fighting on horseback. We\u2019re all lining up to get into a theater to see that regardless of what else the movie has going on, but it\u2019s the lore of The Continental that keeps me thinking about this franchise over and over again in between viewings. We know the primary rules: no business can be conducted on the hotel premises; blood oaths must be carried out (the holder of the oath cannot be murdered to get out of it, either). We\u2019ve also been told that there\u2019s a High Council, but know that each branch of The Continental is independently managed. Branch managers are allowed to run their business as they see fit, provided t<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">hey abide by the above two laws.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">They\u2019re such simple things, but they inspire so many questions. How i<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">s the High Council appointed? How do<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0the managers of The Continental get chosen? Are they elected or appointed or something else entirely? And then there are the more immediate questions about John Wick himself: How did he become the best in the business? Why is he feared by every other assassin? Why does Winston have such a soft spot for\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">him<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">? You want to know everything all at once but, at the same time, it\u2019s that mystery, with all its tiny details, that keeps you enamored with this assassin<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0sub<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">culture.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">The Relationships Are Given Mystery And Agency<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The relationships of the franchise are another realm of mystery to mine for future stories. So many relationships are already in progress (or long-since destroyed) by the time we&#8217;re introduced to them. Nearly everyone John meets, he knows already, but we learn little to nothing about them. From\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">the Bowery King (Laurence\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Fishburne<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">)<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0to Gianna\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">D\u2019Antonio<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0(Claudia\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Gerini<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">) to Anjelica Huston as The Director in the upcoming third installment, we are brought in at whatever given point in their relationship with John and left to connect the dots. The audience is trusted to be smart enough to\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">suss<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0out the relationship on its own \u2013 smartly, the <em>John Wick<\/em> franchise doesn&#8217;t engage in hand-holding of the audience, for the better.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/images.atomtickets.com\/image\/upload\/h_960,q_auto\/v1547585837\/ingestion-images-archive-prod\/archive\/1547585837134_257621_cops_4.jpg\" width=\"1440\" height=\"960\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">But let\u2019s circle back to Gianna\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">D\u2019Antonio<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0for a moment.\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">It\u2019s been a slow process, but, over the years we\u2019ve finally started to see the women in action films (or, hell, films in general) start to get a little bit of autonomy.\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The death of Gianna\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">D\u2019Antonio<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0in <em>John Wick: Chapter 2<\/em> should be used in master classes to illustrate female sovereignty over their narratives. Gianna knows full well why John showed up on her door. She learns of her brother\u2019s betrayal, and knows that she cannot best the Baba\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Yaga<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">. Rather than fight a losing battle, or stoop so low as to beg, she elects to take her own life.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The scene that follows\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">is an incredible illustration of mutual respect between John and his target. When faced with the inevitability of her own death, Gianna decides that it will be done her way. John sits with her until her final breath, despite knowing that he\u2019ll have to deal with her protector,\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Cassian<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0(Common), immediately after.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The rules that are meant to protect John and his ilk quickly turn against him when he finds himself facing down both teams of the\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">D\u2019Antonio<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0children. While he\u2019s able to take down both\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Cassian<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0and Ares (Ruby Rose), we quickly see him decide that the rules aren\u2019t really protecting who they\u2019re meant to. John\u2019s next move might have been his last as a member of The Continental, but it will ultimately result in what we can assume will be more answers in\u00a0<\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Parabellum<\/span><\/i><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The teams behind\u00a0<\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Chapter 3\u00a0<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">have ensured that fans have as little information about the film as possible, which certainly isn\u2019t a complaint. We might not know for sure what we\u2019re getting into, but the first two installments have certainly earned our trust in the franchise. Here\u2019s to more action, lore, and agency to all characters involved!\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>You Might Also Like<\/h2>\n<hr style=\"color: #000; width: 95%; margin-left: 0;\" \/>\n<!-- The Grid Plugin Version 2.7.4 --><div class=\"tg-error-msg\" data-grid-name=\"Home Featured\">No post was found with your current grid settings.&#xa;You should verify if you have posts inside the current selected post type(s) and if the meta key filter is not too much restrictive.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Action films are special. Car chases and explosions, intrigue and killer stunts help us buy into plotlines that are rarely\u00a0sensical\u00a0or well-rounded. Who in the world wants to think about logic when a spy is jumping out of a burning plane with no &#8216;chute, or a hitman leaps from building to building like someone who won\u2019t [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":5690,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[50],"tags":[40,37],"class_list":["post-5688","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-editorial","tag-featuredpage","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/atomtickets.com\/movie-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5688","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/atomtickets.com\/movie-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/atomtickets.com\/movie-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atomtickets.com\/movie-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atomtickets.com\/movie-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5688"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/atomtickets.com\/movie-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5688\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5691,"href":"https:\/\/atomtickets.com\/movie-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5688\/revisions\/5691"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atomtickets.com\/movie-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5690"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/atomtickets.com\/movie-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5688"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atomtickets.com\/movie-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5688"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atomtickets.com\/movie-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5688"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}