John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum is undeniably a spectacle of action cinema. The film elevates the franchise’s signature balletic violence to new heights, showcasing breathtakingly choreographed fight sequences and an almost comical amount of on-screen deaths. In fact, this single movie accounts for over half of the entire John Wick series’ body count, adding a staggering 167 deaths to the tally. Many of these eliminations occur in extended, technically brilliant scenes that are undeniably thrilling. However, Chapter 3 teeters on the edge of excess.
While the relentless action is a core part of the John Wick experience and provides plenty of dark humor, there’s a sense that John Wick: Chapter Three could have benefited from tighter editing. Cutting just 10 to 15 minutes, primarily from some of the more prolonged battle sequences, could have sharpened the film’s overall impact. Take, for example, the memorable fight featuring Raid stars Yayan Ruhian and Cecep Arif Rahman. The scene, filled with brutal throws into glass display cases, brilliantly showcases Wick’s resilience. Yet, it pushes the boundaries of believability, even within the heightened reality of the John Wick universe. Wick’s ability to absorb punishment and keep fighting verges on parody, positioning him closer to an indestructible comic book icon than a mere mortal, albeit a highly skilled one.
This feeling of action overload also emerges during the extended Moroccan set piece. Here, Wick partners with Sofia, portrayed by Halle Berry, a former associate who brings her own lethal assets to the fight: two highly trained Belgian Malinois. The dogs are as formidable as their human counterparts, and the entire sequence is visually captivating. However, the sheer volume of nameless adversaries starts to become monotonous. Even within the stylized world of John Wick, one begins to question the tactical ineptitude of wave after wave of enemies charging into a kill zone seemingly without adapting their strategies.
