Logan/John Wick 2

My weekend was filled with the violent and well reviewed movies Logan and John Wick 2.

I am not an X-Men fan. I am not a comic book movie fan. I am usually not a super hero movie fan. I am usually not a fan of violent movies. But after reading some of the reviews of Logan and hearing HBO's Bill Simmons go on and on and on about John Wick 2, I decided to see both in two days. 

I really enjoyed Logan. The 90% or so on Rotten Tomatoes is well deserved. I like that these comic book movies are being made with the R rating. Maybe because I am a degenerate who likes to hear the fratbroy humor of dead pool. Maybe I just think if you if you are going to show someone like Wolverine kill people, might as well go all out right? 

It wasn't just the violence and action that made Logan worth watching, but the acting and quieter scenes make the action and violence little more tolerable. Logan gives you time to breath and gather yourself after extreme violence. You care about the characters because you see them in quieter and normal situations--like watching Wolverine, Professor X, and Laura ride in a car and window shop new clothes. All the actors were solid. Unlike Kong: Skull Island, there isn't a bad performance to point to. 

The fight scenes with the little girl should have been eye rolling and cheesy, but they were exciting and bad ass. 

John Wick 2 is a lot of fun to watch. I watched it on a Sunday afternoon and the small audience was laughing and gasping often. The opening scene sees John Wick fighting with Russians to get his car back. All while the Russian boss is telling a subordinate the Legend of John Wick. I'm a sucker for the Russian Accent. Think the poker player from Rounders or the Russians from The Equalizer. The great opening scene sets the tone for the rest of the movie. The action of John Wick 2 never gets stale or too unbelievable, like some other action movies--Fast and the Furious, etc... 

Like Logan, all the acting was solid in John Wick 2. I was expecting Common to be kind of terrible, but he was actually good! Who knew the guy who did the worst NBA player impersonation ever could pull off being a hitman? 

John Wick 2 is just as exciting and entertaining as the first. If you can stand the violence, I would recommend both movies.