From the world of John Wick : Ballerina

Language : English / Russian

Year of release : 2025

Run time : 2h5m

Genre : Action

Cast : Ana de Armas, Anjelica Huston, Gabriel Byrne, Keanu Reeves, Lance Reddick, Ian McShane

Director : Len Wiseman

The movie is the 5th installment of the John Wick franchise, taking place between John Wick : Prabellum (2019) and Chapter 4 (2023).

Eve Macarro was born into a family of assassins. Her father took her away from the cult, but the cult leader (we discover towards the end it was her own grandfather) with his team of assassins, find them, and k1ll her father,trying to get to her. Eve learns they also k1lled her mother as punishment for her father taking her and going into hiding (but this doesn't phase her).

Winston Scott, the New York Continental owner, brings Eve to the Ruska Roma, where, after meeting the Director, she agrees to become one of them.

Eve trains as a ballerina (thing she's not that very good at, although she always wanted to be one), and an assassin, thing she excels in. She becomes a kikimora, a protector. She meets John Wick when he is expelled from the Ruska Roma for his transgressions, and he tells her she can walk away whenever she pleases.

Feeling ready for her first mission, the Director gives her her first test, to k1ll a Ruska assassin who tells her she's her in 10 years. After she passes, she is given the mission to protect a heiress, in an ice club (I don't know how could those people stay and dance there, since it was all ice, it means it was below zero temperatures! Not to mention, how could they walk on ice!!!)

A while later, while on a mission, she sees the mark the men who k1lled her father had on their wrist , on the wrist of the man she k1lled, and she takes the hand to the Director. The Director tells her about the cult, and tells her to stay away from it, as they are dangerous, and nobody knows where they hide / live (after this, when she finds them, the leader of the cult keeps on talking about protecting Hallstatt, which is a real place- my dream place- in Austria, although they say they are deep in the mountains. They keep on calling it a village although it's a town!They couldn't make up a place!!!) and that they have a truce with this cult, they can't break,or war will ensue .

Eve goes to Winston, and he tells her a member of the cult with a large bounty on his head, stays at the Prague Continental.

Eve travels to Prague, and books a room at the Continental, right next to the cultist. She goes into his room through the window, and discovers the man is on the run from the cult, trying to protect his daughter, the way her father did with her.

This makes her want to help him, so she helps him escape, in return for information on the cult.

I personally enjoyed the movie. I usually don't quite like the John Wick movies (I don't like the world created and its rules), but I liked this one, and most definitely did not bore me! It is action packed, beginning to end. I loved the fight scenes, they are shot in these long shots, and it looks like the actors did their own stunts, especially in the first scene, with Evie's father. There's also a long scene in which Eve is fighting with flame throwers (I think the makers missed an opportunity to use Rammstein music, as they are known for playing with fire in their shows). She also walks a lot on ice, and it's surprising she can do it without losing her balance or falling.

Eve also finds out towards the end she has a sister, who is brainwashed by the cult (she doesn't see anything wrong with the cult / her own grandfather k1lling her parents!).

Speaking of Eve, she seems to only care about her father, as she doesn't seem to care the cult took out her mother, she only wants to avenge her father!

The acting was good. Ana de Armas also brought soul to the character, her face was expressive. Anjelica Huston's character was expressionless.

Keanu Reeves looked tired (somebody tell him to cut that hair and beard!!!).

The faces of certain old actors look weird, and I kept on wondering if they used de-aging AI on them.

The soundtrack, composed by John Wick franchise's music writer, Tyler Bates, was good.

Ballerina has been in the works since 2017! And the makers already have a sequel in mind.

The movie received positive reviews, and so far grossed 131 million dollars against a budget of 90 million.

Cinema Score audiences gave the movie an A-, on an A+ to F scale!

Ballerina is out in cinemas across the world.

Rating : Worth a watch !