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Dir: Chad Stahelski (15, 90 mins)
After the surprise success of John Wick, a testosterone boost to the creaky B-movie action genre Liam Neeson seemed to dominate for years, Keanu Reeves returns as the gun-fu expert and assassin…expect a high body count. John Wick, although formulaic, had some incredibly crafted stunts thanks to the writer/directors, who were former stuntmen themselves. Keanu managed to re-invent himself again after some time in the wilderness as a ludicrous, taciturn hardman out for dog revenge. Inevitably there is now a sequel, expanding the action to Rome, adding car-fu to gun-fu, and now Wick has the assassin world on his trail. Ex-rapper Common and the androgynous Orange is the New Black Ruby Rose are among those up for fisticuffs as Reeves destroys anything that wants to kill him. Ian McShane and Laurence Fishburne show up to add some gravitas to the bullet count, but essentially this is more of the same impressively staged action amidst a daft plot about the assassin underworld. Reeves is as blank as ever, but incredibly handy, mowing through set pieces with aplomb. Another blast of adrenaline for those in need.
Opens Feb 17