John Wick
Summit Entertainment | Release Date: October 24, 2014 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
68
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 40 Critic Reviews
Positive:
31
Mixed:
5
Negative:
4
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
Entertainment WeeklyChris NashawatyOct 22, 2014
John Wick, is not only a return to badass form for the actor, it's also one of the most excitingly visceral action flicks I've seen in ages. Read full review
90
Los Angeles TimesRobert AbeleOct 23, 2014
It's a B movie made with A-student love for the relentless thrill of bodies in brutal motion. Read full review
90
The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisOct 23, 2014
Harboring few ambitions beyond knock-your-socks-off action sequences, this crafty revenge thriller delivers with so much style — and even some wit — that the lack of substance takes longer than it should to become problematic. Read full review
89
Austin ChronicleWilliam GossOct 22, 2014
At the center of it all stands Reeves, a convincing embodiment of both the calm before the storm and its subsequent capacity for ruin. Read full review
88
Chicago Sun-TimesBruce IngramOct 23, 2014
A lean, spare, stylish and grimly, methodically ultra-violent extravaganza that provides star Keanu Reeves with a much-needed infusion of cool. And hard-core action fans with combat-centric cinematic expertise on a par with 20ll’s “The Raid.” Read full review
83
The A.V. ClubIgnatiy VishnevetskyOct 22, 2014
Their use of Kaleida’s sparse, slinky “Think” — one of the most effective and eccentric sound track choices in a recent action movie — underscores the sense that what the viewer is watching is essentially a very loud and bloody dance piece. Read full review
83
HitfixDrew McWeenyOct 13, 2014
John Wick won't redefine action movies, but it perfectly exemplifies what I want from an action film when I go. Have fun with the world, shoot the action well, motivate it in a way that doesn't feel cheap. Read full review
82
Paste MagazineScott WoldApr 3, 2018
The blood-slicked, vividly drawn film universe John Wick illustrates is such a generous slice of pulp that, even if not original, per se, it exudes a confidence rarely seen these days, surefire franchises be damned. Read full review
80
The TelegraphTim RobeyApr 9, 2015
John Wick has such stylistic assurance that even when it falters – the music’s a bit moronic, and the subtitles for Russian dialogue get a naff, pseudo-pulpy typeface – it mainly tends to remind you how much you’re enjoying everything else. Read full review
80
CineVueBen NicholsonApr 9, 2015
Above all else John Wick is a lean, mean revenger to go with its ice-cold protagonist. It's not perfect, but you'll be hard pressed to find a more enjoyable action movie this year. Read full review
80
EmpireJames DyerApr 6, 2015
A giddy helping of artful violence delivered with a wink and a cheeky grin. Unsurprisingly, John Wick 2 is already in the works. Read full review
80
SlateForrest WickmanDec 15, 2014
With Wick—the best Reeves role in years, and the best existential actioner since Drive—Reeves fans have found something that should cheer them up, too. Read full review
80
New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriOct 24, 2014
John Wick is a violent, violent, violent film, but its artful splatter is miles away from the brutality of "Taken" or the gleeful gore of "The Equalizer." It’s a beautiful coffee-table action movie. Read full review
80
Village VoiceStephanie ZacharekOct 23, 2014
Reeves is wonderful here, a marvel of physicality and stern determination — he moves with the grace of an old-school swashbuckler. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterJustin LoweOct 22, 2014
Distilling a couple of decades of stunt work and second-unit directing experience into 96 minutes of runtime, Stahelski and Leitch expertly deliver one action highlight after another in a near-nonstop thrill ride. Read full review
75
Rolling StonePeter TraversOct 25, 2014
John Wick is the kind of fired-up, ferocious B-movie fun some of us can't get enough of. You know who you are. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliOct 24, 2014
John Wick is a rousing action thriller of the sort rarely encountered in theaters these days. The once popular genre, which was headlined by the likes of Stallone and Schwarzenegger during its heyday, has been a dying breed during the past two decades. Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comChristy LemireOct 24, 2014
John Wick breathes exhilarating life into this tired premise, thanks to some dazzling action choreography, stylish visuals and–most importantly–a vintage anti-hero performance from Keanu Reeves. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMichael OrdonaOct 23, 2014
Reeves’ skills are on glorious display in John Wick, an expertly made revenge drama in which he goes all headshot on lots and lots of bad guys, and it’s awesome. Read full review
75
IndieWireEric KohnSep 21, 2014
Neither surprising or groundbreaking in any particular way, the movie gives us what we want and leaves it at that. Read full review
75
The PlaylistDrew TaylorSep 21, 2014
There are enough pleasures going on in John Wick to elevate it above just another dumb action movie. Read full review
70
TimeRichard CorlissOct 27, 2014
Quibbles aside, John Wick is the smartest display of the implacable but somehow ethical Reeves character since the "2008 Street Kings." Read full review
70
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzOct 23, 2014
There's something refreshing about a movie that knows what it is, and what it wants to be. John Wick is that kind of movie. Read full review
70
The DissolveTasha RobinsonOct 23, 2014
Keanu Reeves is the perfect figurehead for this kind of yarn, as he was in The Matrix: Emotionless, poreless, and polished, his character is more a graven idol of vengeance than a human being seeking it. Read full review
70
TheWrapOct 23, 2014
Both ludicrous and ludicrously entertaining, John Wick's stylish look, B-movie vibe and less-is-more, longer-takes-are-stronger-takes approach to action make it a standout. Read full review
70
VarietyPeter DebrugeOct 16, 2014
If you can stomach the setup, then the rest is pure revenge-movie gold, as Reeves reminds what a compelling action star he can be, while the guy who served as his stunt double in “The Matrix” makes a remarkably satisfying directorial debut, delivering a clean, efficient and incredibly assured thriller. Read full review
67
Tampa Bay TimesSteve PersallOct 23, 2014
Director Chad Stahelski — Reeves' stunt double for Point Break and The Matrix — aims only for a kinetic revenge yarn with wrinkles drive-in movie critic Joe Bob Briggs might appreciate, like martial arts moves at point blank bullet range; what he'd call gun fu. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeTom RussoOct 23, 2014
The movie’s one big pitfall, really, is that Reeves’s character is so intently focused, he takes care of business a bit too quickly. Some final skirmishing and a tonally false sign-off feel like unconvincing bids to stretch the story to a more legit feature length. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineChris CabinOct 23, 2014
The film is thematically thin, and it has a tendency to embrace the action genre's more obnoxious elements, but there's a proudly no-nonsense air to its nonsensicality. Read full review
63
Washington PostStephanie MerryOct 23, 2014
Like so many action movies, John Wick goes way beyond a reasonable carnage threshold. Brawls that are exciting in the beginning become dull as each sequence attempts to outdo the last. But John Wick has a more interesting story and better fights than most. Read full review
63
McClatchy-Tribune News ServiceRoger MooreOct 22, 2014
Reeves animates the action and the filmmakers surround him with wonderful co-stars; the quietly menacing McShane, the chop shop operator (John Leguizamo), the dapper “cleaner” (David Patrick Kelly of “The Warriors”) and the spitting, hissing Nyqvist. Read full review
60
Time OutJoshua RothkopfOct 24, 2014
John Wick feels like action manna for its cleanly designed gun-fu sequences—ones you can actually follow—and brutal takedowns. But the revenge plotting is deeply dopey and we shouldn't have to choose one or the other. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierOct 23, 2014
Plot is not the movie’s strong suit. But stylish set pieces are, including one epic blast-a-thon alongside a pool. Read full review
58
Portland OregonianMarc MohanOct 24, 2014
There are some attempts at a comic-bookish, film noir vibe, including a hotel where all the crooks and killers stay, forbidden by house rules from "doing business"on the premises. And everywhere Keanu turns, he bumps into a character from HBO. Read full review
50
Miami HeraldRene RodriguezOct 23, 2014
John Wick reminds you this actor deserves better. Reeves makes the movie entertaining in a background-noise way, but he can’t give it any gravity, even when the filmmakers pull the cheapest trick in the book to get the audience to root for the hero and hiss at the Eurotrash villains. Someone get this man some good work, quick. Read full review
40
New Orleans Times-PicayuneMike ScottOct 24, 2014
John Wick makes a few feeble attempts at witty repartee, but, in the end, Leitch and Stahelski's film feels like an unintentional parody of itself. Read full review
38
New York PostLou LumenickOct 24, 2014
Aside from the very occasional stab with a dagger, John prefers to shoot people at point-blank range. It gets old fast. Read full review
38
USA TodayClaudia PuigOct 23, 2014
John Wick serves up a noxious, clashing blend of hyper-realistic and cartoonish violence. Too bad there's no cinema decontaminating service that can wash our memories clean of such useless gore. Read full review
38
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe WilliamsOct 23, 2014
Sorry, Keanu, but you stole my time and you murdered my brain cells. By the sacred oath of WHOA, there will be blood, and this time it’s personal. Read full review
12
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)John SemleyOct 23, 2014
John Wick is the most blatant attempt to establish a character’s name recognition since the Angelina Jolie actioneer "Salt." Read full review
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