John Wick's World Just Keeps Getting Bigger

I think I want a dog now. Turns out, they're handier to have around than I thought.

Picking up where Chapter 2 left off, John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum finds our titular protagonist on the run from seemingly the entire criminal world. Wick's survival depends on him using up the last of the favors people owe him as he makes his way across the globe in a quest to save his own life.

Wick 3 packs in the killer action set pieces we expect from this franchise. There's a brutal knife fight in an antique store. Dudes with samurai swords chase Wick on motorcycles in an energetic, chaos-filled throwdown. Also, dogs get involved in a massive shootout in an African stronghold, creating one of the more memorable actions scenes.

Through it all, there's Keanu Reeves absolutely killing it as Wick. The Baba Yaga, the boogieman, a steely, determined engine of death and destruction, Reeves is perfect for the role because his relatively blank slate acting style keeps us on the outside, preserving the character's mystique. What we don't know about Wick does almost as much to make us like him as what we do know.

The supporting cast gives Reeves all the help he needs. Ian McShane is fantastic, like he always is. Lawrence Fishburne chews the scenes he's in to death, and it's endlessly entertaining. Lance Reddick gets to bust out the guns this time, and that a lot of fun. Halle Berry and Anjelica Houston both shine. Best of all is Asia Kate Dillon, who steals every scene she's in as an ice-cold bureaucrat tasked meting out consequences for broken rules.

But my favorite part of this movie, and the Wick flicks in general, is the way the world continues to expand and deepen. In this movie, we get to see more of the inner workings of the syndicate run by the High Table. We see the organization and how it fits into more exotic locations.

We also get a little bit more on Wick's origin. Not enough to ruin his mystique, but just enough to make him even more intriguing.

Something I need to mention is the color palette of this movie. Its eye-popping greens and violets set scenes apart from one another and accentuate the mood of the proceedings. I know all filmmakers do this kind of things, but it stands out here a little more than other movies I've seen.

Bottom line: Chapter 3 is yet another satisfying entry in the Wick franchise. It's exciting, full of killer action, and a few well-earned laughs. Best of all, Wick 3 does something very few other franchise films do: it justifies its existence as something other than a money grab. Story is more than plot, it's also character and world, and Wick 3 does some wonderfully compelling things with both character and world-building. And I can't wait to see where the series goes from here.