The Salvation - Cinema Review

The modern western seems like a starved genre these days and whilst The Salvation has all the classic Wild West moments, there are some touches that could only be achieved these days and help set the film apart. It's a very simple, straightforward revenge story expertly told. Much like John Wick, it's streamlined and compact refraining from spoon-feeding the audience but ensuring all the information is present for those paying attention. I appreciate any film that treats its audience with a degree of respect, not having to blatantly spell everything out and knowing when to hold your tongue is more powerful than to flap it.

A likeable protagonist, a strong motivation, an abhorrent villain and all the appropriately placed tension, stakes and mystery are all solidly set up. There is plenty of quite brutal suffering too, which while i'm not overly familiar with the western genre, seems like a staple that in this case perfectly suits the film's tone and intentions.

Mads Mikkelsen and Eva Green provide intensely strong performances with none of the supporting cast falling too far behind. Dialogue is sparse and purposeful, befitting the film's atmosphere and in Eva Green's case she manages monologue's-worth of emotion without ever uttering a word. Mads Mikkelsen also doesn't miss a beat in his portrayal of a father, husband, immigrant and solider, trying to escape a world of violence only be drowned in it and its vicious repercussions.

There isn't much immediately obvious in the way of deeper moral messages other than the standard "to kill a monster you must become a monster" and the reinforcement that no one can just live peacefully in the wild west but the ending leaves a bit more to the imagination. Amibigious but somehow also classic, it lets you ruminate and speculate on the post-film plot given what we've seen of the characters so far.

Perhaps i should write an article on the difference between "predictable" and "classic" because they're almost synonymous but generally used within opposing sentiments. The Salvation has all the classic western tropes but for whatever reason they didn't feel tired and cliched to me. I confess slightly breaking my rule of not looking at other reviews before writing my own but it seems many people found the story overall caricature rather than classic. I suppose i should address that as a possible downfall despite not experiencing it myself.

Visually the film is quite beautiful to watch contrasting its grim subject matter. From the framing to lighting to the art design, a great many moments could be frozen as snapshots and put up in a gallery somewhere, which is part of how i believe modern technologies can refresh old stories and genres. The dusty, dry deserts, the sweltering sun and sand, the silver moonlight in the grey-blue dark of night, down to little details like old dried bloodstains on the wooden walls are all portrayed perfectly and build an immersive real world which for a century long past in a country I've never visited, is impressive.

The backgrounds and more complex shots show their CGI influence a little too clearly but much of the film appears to be practical sets where possible and the costume design is both authentic, functional and memorable. The Salvation does very little new but it does everything you'd want perfectly. For dark, lean, Wild West action that doesn't outstay its welcome, this film is exactly that polished to a high finish.

Although "Polish" is probably the wrong word, I mean...he's clearly Danish...

John Wick - Cinema Review

John Wick is unashamedly classic in so many ways. It's a cocktail of action movie tropes and cliches in its set up and characters. An exceptional retired hitman out for revenge against his former employer could describe hundreds if not thousands of films but John Wick never purports to be anything more than this and instead tries to prove itself in the details and overall skill of delivery.

The old phrase of "style over substance" comes to mind but it's also "style over spectacle" There's a stripped-back and restrained feel to the proceedings which is almost refreshing when most modern action films constantly strive to be louder and more absurd.

Wick as a protagonist strikes the perfect balance between being entertaining and impressive in the action scenes but not straying into absurd invulnerability. The scenes still have tension because as badass as John Wick is, he is still human and fallible. It's not really a question of can he kill his enemies? It's more, can he kill all of them in a row without stopping?

"I haven't killed this guy yet, i'm just using him as a meat-shield to breakdance around whilst i kill five other guys."

 A lot of the fun comes from seeing Wick's reputation precede him and how far respect for him carries him throughout the criminal underworld. The almost honourable professional code between him and most of his enemies gives the film more of its own personality and adds some welcome sprinklings of straight-faced humour when John and his enemies chat on first name terms about the impending bloodbath, with the kind of casual routine familiarity you'd have with your neighbours or local bartender.

Keanu Reeves imbues the trope of hardened killer out for revenge with his own sense of style and gravitas, and the protagonist's sparse dialogue helps build a atmosphere of calculating contemplation and restrained rage beneath the surface that Reeves portrays very effectively. As many of the old team from The Matrix films return in collaboration, the action scenes are as you'd expect, excellently and expertly choreographed, rapid paced, brutal and with some memorably inventive moments, that i would've loved to have seen more of. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt in saying that it feels like the film could have gone further in places because as i mentioned there's a sense of intentional restraint throughout and i'd like to believe this is an artistic choice rather than a padding out of ideas for what is already decided to be a trilogy.

Overall John Wick feels like a good, solid action film with all the filler cut out. The cliches are numerous but the film doesn't sit still long enough for you to really reflect on them. There's nothing mindblowing here but what exists is fast, slick, stylish, streamlined and polished to a very high quality. If the sequels can build upon this by fleshing out John's unique influence on the world and give us more of the blisteringly fast shootouts, grapples and chases John Wick could easily ascend into an action masterpiece.

Also more dogs...Assassins and puppies are like, my two favourite things...