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- MOVIE REVIEW BY JACK WATSON
From the World of John Wick: Ballerina
Director: Len Wiseman
Starring: Ana de Armas and Gabriel Byrne
Genre: Action-thriller
Rating: 3 stars
As a big John Wick fan, Ballerina on paper should be good and in practice is.
It tries its best to stand out from the John Wick movies but weirdly feels similar to last year’s Furiosa, a film I loved, so this approach was something I didn’t mind.
My biggest hope for Ballerina is it would have its own identity from John Wick but for the most part, it doesn’t.
The neon aesthetic still stands true, but the action feels very different in the best way possible.
John Wick slowly became all about long and ridiculous action set pieces, whilst Ballerina takes a more patient route.
Each set piece revolves around a singular item like ice skates, grenades, or even flame-throwers, and it’s a joy to watch.
The creativity and the more assassin-like nature to the action was great with its thumping techno-music. But the weakest part of the movie is Ana de Armas.
She’s not bad, but with the pantheon of legendary actors (especially Gabriel Byrne who easily gives my favourite performance), she falls flat.
The John Wick series is one I want to see continually built upon with universe-expanding sequels.
Jack Watson saw Ballerina at Monterey Howick. This review first appeared in our sister publication, Eastern Times.
