Stop Frame

Later this month, John Wick Chapter 2 will be available for digital download, followed in mid-June by its release on Blu-Ray. So it's time to acknowledge that Chapter 2 is a master class in how to make a sequel. While building on the events of 2014's John Wick , it expands in logical fashion and generally avoids the pitfalls of just trying to repeat itself. The result is that I love both films, but for very different reasons. John Wick's (Keanu Reeves) rampage over the murder of his dog has signaled the dark world he left behind that maybe he's back and not really retired. As a result, Santino D'Antonio (Riccardo Scamarcio) calls in a marker, compelling Wick to once more become a gun-for-hire. Massive running gun battles, legendary feats of gun fu, betrayal, lots of betrayal, and general, all-around great mayhem ensue. JW was a delight for anyone in love with physical acting and action. Not only was it praise-worthy that Reeves did most of his own stunt work, ...

With its release on home video, we come to the unsurprising and yet still bitter disappointment that is Rogue One: A Star Wars Story . Unsurprising, because of a lousy director. Disappointing, because it should have been great. To explain further will involve light spoilers; I will avoid larger giveaways. In a galaxy far, far away, the Empire continues to consolidate its power after the fall of the Republic (see Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith ). Toward that end, they are assembling a giant battle station, the Death Star. The Rebel Alliance plots a way of finding out what’s going on and perhaps, in the process, save their collective butts. Rebellious galivanting ensues. All of the elements necessary to craft a good story are here, yet none of them work. The blame lies almost exclusively at the feet of director Gareth Edwards. This is his third film (after Monsters and Godzilla ) and his failings as a director stand out in each. The major problems with each film invo...