My quick rating – 7.3/10. Ballerina spins right into the blood-soaked chaos of the John Wick universe, landing somewhere between ballet recital and bullet-riddled slaughterhouse. And that’s meant as a compliment. Set between the events of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum and John Wick 4: Chapter 4, the film follows Eve Macarro (Ana de Armas), a young woman beginning her brutal education in the assassin arts of the Ruska Roma. Think less Swan Lake, more headshots at dawn.
First off, this movie absolutely nails the action choreography. It’s exactly what you want from a Wick spin-off: gorgeously staged gun-fu, vicious close-quarters scraps, and an unwavering commitment to creative carnage. Forget about bringing a gun to a knife fight — Eve shows up with a belt full of grenades. The gunplay is smooth, the camera glides right alongside the chaos, and heads keep popping like watermelons at a Gallagher show.
One standout sequence has to be the flamethrower shootout. If you ever wondered what it would look like to torch a crowd of heavily armed mercenaries while pirouetting through molten chaos, this film’s got you covered. You can practically feel the stunt team sweating through their flame-retardant gear. That entire scene burned itself (literally) into my memory as one of the more unique moments I’ve seen in modern action cinema. Here is a quick video of their reactions to that crazy sequence.
Ana de Armas handles the lead with style. Sure, you have to suspend disbelief watching her 120-pound frame get slammed into walls by guys twice her size, only to pop back up like a kid’s inflatable punching clown. But if you’re a Wick fan, you’ve already trained yourself to accept this brand of physics-defying punishment. Besides, the movie smartly mixes up its violence — throwing in knives, grenades, improvised kills, and that glorious flamethrower — so it never settles into stale shootouts.
Story-wise? Let’s be real: there’s not much to chew on. Ballerina is all about long, stylishly orchestrated battles with the thinnest thread of revenge and self-discovery tying it together. Dialogue and depth take a back seat to carnage, but in the Wickiverse, that’s practically tradition.
It’s also a treat seeing the old gang again. Keanu Reeves drops in for a few brooding, bullet-filled cameos. Ian McShane’s Winston brings his sly style, and the Continental’s shadow looms large. And the inclusion of Norman Reedus as Daniel Pine was a brutal treat. It all ties back to that delightfully hyper-violent universe we’ve come to love.
I don’t think Ballerina is trying to reinvent the franchise’s wheel. It’s just spinning it faster, with more flames. If you’ve learned to leave your brain at the theater door and embrace the beautifully choreographed insanity, this is a solid two-hour popcorn feast that’ll keep your adrenaline pumping and your eyes glued to the carnage. And really, isn’t that why we keep coming back?
You can watch this at home for theater prices on these streamers, including Amazon.