'From the World of John Wick: Ballerina' Is an Absolute Hurricane of Action

The world of the John Wick films is without question one of the strangest cinematic arenas we’ve seen. Like the Fast and the Furious films, they’re best accepted as an alternate universe. Here, instead of the laws of physics and common sense not existing, the world is ruled by a bizarre collective of assassins, operating in an economy based entirely on precious gold coins. It’s a world where cops and government only barely seem to exist, where public mass murders must be a daily occurrence, and where the death of a single puppy can send the world into a chaotic and bloody tailspin that will span four full-length films.

That world, developed by screenwriter Derek Kolstad and brought to life by director Chad Stahelski, is ripe for expansion, and after Keanu Reeves has exhaustedly shot, punched, stabbed, and kicked his way through four films, we’re finally branching out into fresh territory. Unlike the middling prequel TV series The Continental, which attempted to serve as an origin story of sorts, the newest film, Ballerina, comes roaring to life to inject fresh life into the franchise. Len Wiseman takes over the directing reins — cause for concern for many given his splashy/trashy resume (the Underworld films, a terrible Total Recall remake) — but in a refreshing change of pace, Wiseman seems to be hitting his stride here.

Perhaps that’s aided by the casting of Ana De Armas as Eve, the ballerina/assassin (stay with me) who gives the film her absolute all, scowling and glaring with a vicious intensity as she brutally slays countless enemies. Or it could be the rock-solid supporting work of Gabriel Byrne as The Chancellor, a steely-eyed fanatic cult leader who Eve is hunting in her quest for vengeance over the murder of her parents. Byrne is joined by equally capable characters from the original series — Anjelica Huston as the Director, the leader of the NYC-based school of orphan ballerina/assassins-in-training, Ian McShane as Winston, the owner of the Continental who is given to waxing poetically, and the wonderful Lance Reddick as Charon the Concierge (in, sadly, his final performance before his untimely death). Of course, we can’t ignore the presence of Keanu Reeves himself, in a smaller supporting role that expands on the Baba Yaga’s legend while taking nothing from Eve’s story.

Its story is more of the same elegantly nonsensical, hyper-violent chaos that made the first four films so entrancing — even if they often are bafflingly obtuse, they are eminently watchable. Ballerina is no exception. After a brief rabbit hole of a prologue where we see Eve lose her father at the Chancellor’s hands, and then raised and trained by the Director, the film begins to relentlessly and bloodily rampage its way across the world as Eve searches for answers and vengeance. From New York to Prague to rural Austria, Eve never stops, taking only slightly less abuse than she gives out (say this for the Wick franchise — its heroes do NOT escape unscathed).

While that prologue is a bit of a drag, when the film finds its footing and de Armas takes charge, it is an absolute hurricane of action. Its creative violence and poetic choreography make it oddly deserving of its namesake, and it becomes a sort of exploration of the pathos of murder— just how much more jaw-dropping can the slaughter of a roomful of people be before we finally blink? The answer? A lot more. Ballerina is one of the few truly innovatively brutal action flicks, making it gruesomely fun to watch and - probably - rewatch. De Armas is all in on the role, and despite not having the training that Reeves brought to the table, her grim determination and minimalist performance work quite well.

Ballerina is a worthy addition to the Wick universe, with a blistering pace that never relents and a cast that never lets you down. It’s tonally nearly identical to its predecessors — assassin abandons the rules for their own code and must face the consequences that come with their choices — and de Armas slips easily into that world with a solid performance. Behind Wiseman’s surprisingly capable lens, the film is filled with a gory splendor. Throw in some great choreography and a cast that never flinches from their silly dialogue, and you’ve got a B-movie that somehow gives off A-movie vibes. As a result, Ballerina is more than welcome to this viciously elegant, logic-bereft world of John Wick.