Keanu Reeves plays John Wick with precision

In the third installment of this guilty pleasure, the “John Wick” trilogy could never be mistaken for a family feature. With the feel of a sadistic video game, the body count measures in the dozens in “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum,” but that’s just in a single action scene, and there are dozens of action scenes. The title could have been “Ready Player One” but that was already taken.

John Wick is not based on a true story, at least not that we know of. Wick is played with precision by the monotonously stoic Keanu Reeves, delivering his most excellent adventure yet. Beginning only an hour after Chapter 2 (2017) ends, Wick is pursued by the world’s most ruthless hit men for the $14 million bounty on his head. He has become “excommuicado” for killing a member of the shadowy international assassin’s guild. Knowing Wick’s skills, one boss says, “His chance of surviving are about even.”

Make no mistake; this is a gritty and brutal action flick but also absurd and even cartoonish. Although there is just enough plot to keep us interested, the appeal is certainly not in the nonsensical honor amongst thieves, which includes social contracts, ceremonies, rules and what appears to be pawn shop trinkets.

Similar to the “Final Destination” series, the appeal is primarily on the ludicrous, exhilarating and imaginatively choreographed mayhem. The soulless, but dazzling carnage is so intricate and marvelously “executed,” it’s almost like a ballet. That is until Wick drives an “OJ” sized knife through the skull of his adversary. What? Too soon?

The 2014 silly but thrilling original was a surprise hit and the even more preposterous sequel was even more popular. Action stuntman-turned-director Chad Stahelski (Reeves stuntman in “The Matrix”) seems committed to outdoing himself each time with the creativity of his explosive action sequences.

This is cinematic action at its finest, unless you’re interested in nuance, character development or any redeeming values whatsoever. Or, if watching dozens of faceless bozos get shot in the face two or three times each makes you a bit squeamish. Well, if we say it that way, it doesn’t sound that appealing, but to some, that’s entertainment!

A mob leader played by Angelica Houston asks, “All this for what, because of a puppy?” Wick deadpans, “It wasn’t just a puppy.” But, the question is how long can a franchise with such a flimsy premise continue? One could ask the “Fast and Furious” crew, whose movies now number in the double digits, the same thing.

As the movie plows through its numerous extended fight scenes, some begin to forget Wick’s initial reasons to go to war with the underworld and just look forward to the next ridiculous and superbly ruthless spectacle. It’s been said that it’s ok as long as nobody dies that doesn’t deserve it. Or, as they say in the South, “He needed killin’.”

Maybe it’s true that today’s movies desensitize the audience towards violence. There were actually laugh-out-loud moments of dark humor. This movie has become a major blockbuster and the ending sets up the next installment. But as Winston (Ian McShane) says, “Jonathan, do what you do best!”

The superb supporting cast also includes Laurence Fishburne, who co-starred with Reeves in “The Matrix” series and the marvelous Halle Berry, who broke three ribs filming the action scenes.

“John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum” is 130 minutes and rated R for pervasive strong violence, and language. In Latin, parabellum means, “If you want peace, prepare for war.” It is also a nickname for a 9mm handgun cartridge. The masterfully executed skirmishes are with guns, knives, hatchets, motorcycles, horses and mano-a-mano.

Mostly, Wick enters a fight only with his wits and his particular set of skills. However, with so many knife fights, we half expected someone to say, “That’s not a knife, THIS is a knife.” Ok, maybe not, but what we do learn is that guns don’t kill people. John Wick kills people. The tagline could be, “911, what’s your emergency?”

Ron’s Rating: B+ Leigh’s Rating: D-