With few exceptions, American-based action stars primarily relied on either physical strength (Arnold Schwarzenegger) or firearms (Bruce Willis; Eddie Murphy) as the means for righting perceived wrongs. Slowly, however, thanks to actors like Chuck Norris (Enter the Dragon; Missing in Action), Jean-Claude Van Damme (Bloodsport; Lionheart), Michael Dudikoff (American Ninja); Steven Seagal (Above the Law), Brandon Lee (Showdown in Little Tokyo), and Mark Dacascos (Only the Strong), a shift in American action cinema started to include martial arts, introducing an Asian sensibility to a well-worn genre. This may seem strange to modern audiences who are used to the integration of martial arts in their television or cinematic entertainment, but there was a time when merging East and West wasn’t as normalized. Between the rise of certain action stars and the increase in access to Eastern cinema, whether it’s classic Shaw Brothers titles (Come Drink with Me; The Shadow Boxing) or the work of director John Woo (A Better Tomorrow; Hard Target) or actors like Chow Yun-fat (Hard Boiled; The Killer) or Jackie Chan (Police Story; Rumble in the Bronx), stories like The Wachowskis’ The Matrix (1999) could come into being, melding together American action sensibilities with Eastern influences. While The Matrix is credited for a seismic shift in the technology used in moviemaking, it also paired stuntman Chad Stahelski (The Crow; Bloodsport III) with lead Keanu Reeves (Speed; Bill & Ted series), forming a bond that would create the opportunity for Stahelski to transition from stuntperson and Second Unit Director into the director’s chair in a film that would forever change American cinema: John Wick (2014). In his feature film directorial debut, Wick Is Pain, Jeffrey Doe (Jennifer Lopez: Let’s Get Loud) dives into the history of the John Wick franchise, talking with John Wick co-directors Stahelski and David Leitch (Deadpool 2; The Fall Guy), Reeves, the producers, the stunt team, and virtually everyone who has touched the now five films and one TV show deep franchise to ask what it means to say, “Wick Is Pain.”
L-R: Director Chad Stahelski and actor Keanu Reeves on the set of WICK IS PAIN. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
For the uninformed, John Wick is an action revenge thriller written by Derek Kolstad (Nobody series; Die Hart series) that centers on a former assassin, John Wick (Reeves), who had gotten out from the criminal underworld when he fell in love, but found himself back in when a critical error from his former boss’s son Josef (Alfie Allen) resulted in both the theft of John’s car and the death of John’s new puppy. While the car has its own significance, the puppy was a gift, the last one in fact, from his recently-deceased wife, Helen (Bridget Moynahan), and the loss of it not only disrupted John’s grieving, it amplified it. The only thing John possesses the skills to do to right such a personal wrong is to seek revenge against Josef and the family he once worked for, but this choice leads to devastating consequences that ripple outward across four total films set roughly across six and a half months’ time.
Keanu Reeves as John Wick in JOHN WICK. Photo Credit: David Lee. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
One doesn’t need to have seen any of the John Wick universe stories in order to understand or appreciate Doe’s Wick Is Pain. Through talking head interviews, archived on-set footage, new on-location footage, and film clips, the audience is lead from the origins of Stahelski and Leitch into the making of the first John Wick and beyond. There’s no presumption of having seen the films and only a slight one regarding awareness of cinematic martial artists and Eastern storytelling (films and anime), though it would most certainly help as the origins of the co-directors set the stage for the establishment of 87North Productions (once 87 Eleven Entertainment) as a production company, stunt team, and more. See, if Wick Is Pain were a bonus feature on the last main title, John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023), then it would likely focus more on the expected Reeves collaborations and creative team. But these films aren’t just about Reeves and the stunt team, even if that’s all the average person knows. Wick Is Pain dives deeper than the average marketing featurette, offering a look at the personal stakes that have been established with each John Wick project, which means looking backward to understand why it all matters. Rather than focusing on inspirations for where set pieces come from (like the motorcycle sequence in Chapter 3 drawing from The Villainess), Doe starts us at the beginning, which means Stahelski setting the stage with his upbringing, his martial arts training in L.A., developing relationships with local athletes and stunt people, and his friendship with the late Brandon Lee. From here enters frequent collaborator Daniel Bernhardt (Bloodsport II; Nobody), Leitch, and producers Basil Iwanyk (John Wick series; The Town) and Erica Lee (John Wick series; Monkey Man). Doe exhibits a naturalness with his storytelling throughout Wick Is Pain as each story shared by Stahelski and others guides the audience into the next thing so that while we know this is a chronological narrative, it doesn’t ever feel like a history lesson, instead feeling as if we’re sitting down with old friends. Doe draws from his past within the editorial department and as an editor to give the film a strong flow through its structure, pacing, and editing which keeps the audience engaged and finding themselves almost unaware of how much time has passed. As much as one might appreciate the films as either entertainment or as art, it’s the human element that audiences may not have considered, and Doe ensures that we never forget what’s at the heart of these films.
L-R: Actor Keanu Reeves and director Chad Stahelski on the set of JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 2. Photo Credit: Niko Tavernise. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
In the later portion of the doc, audiences get a different glimpse of Reeves at work. His co-stars, his directors, the stunt team, they all describe him as affable, but determined, unwilling to give himself a break when trying to make a scene work. Reeves has worked in a variety of genres, but the action projects are what made him a global star, so a certain amount of perfectionism is to be expected. What we’re shown, though, is a different side of Reeves that’s both charming and inspiring. The former comes when Reeves is overjoyed with some aspect being discussed, either on his own or while sharing the screen with Stahelski, and he brings up his hand to cover his mouth. There’s something so delightful about seeing the 60-year-old giggling like a kid. The latter comes in the form of observing him at work, supported by stories from the stunt team, who describe Reeves as relentless to get things right, whether that comes in the form of excessive training in pre-production, on non-shoot days, or on set with cameras rolling. Mark Dacascos (Chapter 3 – Parabellum) talks about Reeves’s softness in personality and vice-like grip when executing stunts (including showing pictures of his bruises from the shoot), while Cale Schultz talks about shooting the nun chuck sequence in Chapter 4 and how Reeves pushed through even when sick with an ear infection. In both cases, the audience is shown footage of a very frustrated Reeves continuing to try to match the expertise of his co-stars and stunt team. Unlike regular marketing materials, such as with the nunchaku sequence in the run-up to Chapter 4’s release, not only is Doe unafraid to show Reeves in unflattering situations, there are opportunities for any and all of the principle subjects to strip away the pleasantries and get down to business. This exposes them, to be sure, and makes the work they do all the more impressive because we can see the authenticity that frequently seems lacking in other areas of cinema. It’s easy to forget after all this time that the first John Wick was an independently made film that just barely got shot (this is all covered by Doe) because of its success, therefore, it’s also easy to start to look at Stahelski and Reeves as the public figures they are today instead of as two people (three with Leitch) who just love moves and see the making of them as an art form to be respected at each stage. They give everything, just miles and miles of heart, because they believe that doing so will produce the best experience for the audience.
Keanu Reeves as John Wick in JOHN WICK. Photo Credit: David Lee. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
This brings us to the strongest element of Wick Is Pain. You’d think it would be something related to the legacy of John Wick for the way it’s reinvigorated American action cinema (not by copying Eastern techniques, but by integrating them) or by propping up Stahelski, Leitch, and Reeves as the public faces of the franchise, when, in actuality, it’s the way Doe ensures we hear from prominent individuals who have touched this series whether we knew it or not when watching the films. By giving space to Iwanyk, Lee, Kolstad, Bernhardt, actor/stuntman/fight coordinator Tiger Chen Hu (Triple Threat; John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum), actor/stuntman J.J. Perry (John Wick; Mortal Kombat Annihilation), film producer and former co-president of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group Jason Constantine (Saw series; Expendables series; Repo! The Genetic Opera), Jeremy Marineas (John Wick series), and others, Doe makes it plain what a collaborative effort these films are and that the success made isn’t something that came easily or without extended effort. That these films, for all the good they’ve done for the careers of all involved, are never made without consideration for the health and safety of those making it, and that, while Stahelski and Reeves take center stage at this point in the franchise, none of the films would work without the many hands who make it realized. From all involved, it required commitment, sacrifice, and pain.
Actor Keanu Reeves on the set of JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 4. Photo Credit: Murray Close. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
Admittedly there are some elements which are going to seem less impressive to audiences familiar with Eastern cinema, from the camera techniques used to capture action, the normalization of stunt teams in America, or having a lead actor committed to stunt work, but Doe doesn’t try to sell Wick Is Pain to audiences as either high on the John Wick series or as a hard-hitting exposé. Rather, Doe merely presents his subjects with a refreshing honesty about their experience that results in several stories that leave one feeling quite raw and exposed. Through this expression of genuine appreciation that the cast and crew possess for the unexpected reality we all now share, we, the groundlings of various shades, can better understand the absolute accident that is the success of John Wick and all that followed. Just like it was never about the dog in John Wick, it was never about the success of the few, but always about the actions of many. That’s how John Wick came to be and that’s how the other stories got made. Where we go from here has yet to be written.
Screened during Beyond Fest on May 8th, 2025.
Available on VOD and digital May 9th, 2025.
For more information, head to the official Lionsgate Wick Is Pain webpage.
Final Score: 4.5 out of 5.
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Categories: Films To Watch, Recommendation, Reviews, streaming
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