We finally got around to watching the latest John Wick installment, Ballerina (2025)!
Given how great Wick chapters 2 through 4 were we naturally had high hopes, but what ended up being the real delight of this film is how it treats its female lead, and especially how it dresses its female lead. I can honestly say that this is the only action movie I have ever seen where a female lead gets to dress badass in exactly the same way that a male lead gets to dress badass, as opposed to either a) femme fatale shit or b) Sexy Paramilitary. You know how people used to be like, “I wish we could have female James Bond, but not the way the movies would inevitably do this, just, everything is literally exactly the same, but James Bond is played by a woman”? James Bond may never have the balls, but apparently John Wick of all things does, because Eve Macarro spends 90% of this film dressed exactly like Keanu Reeves, murdering like Keanu Reeves, and, for the most part, being treated by the narrative like Keanu Reeves, which is not at all what I was expecting. I had been sure that we’d get something in the vein of Rina Sawayama in Wick 4—who was phenomenal, and I can’t imagine a cooler first-ever-film-role for someone to have, but who was definitely still doing those spectacular fight sequences in sexy elven archer armor while Keanu Reeves was in his usual black suit.
I have just never seen a female lead in an action movie about whom it is possible to have the “I want to be that” reaction before! Absolutely female power fantasy material. And seeing as, in the year of our lord 2k26, at the age of thirty-something, I can still count the number of actual female power fantasies I have encountered in the media ON ONE HAND (three. This film perhaps makes three, and one of those doesn’t even really count, because Mass Effect was literally written about a male character and then they decided to add a female voiceover option at the last minute), that earns this movie so many points from me, even before you get to the part where it has a flamethrower fight. (And the flamethrower fight was awesome, once again I can’t wait to look up the BTS.)
——In light of all of which it is absolutely killing me that the Blu-Ray cover and most of the theatrical posters for this film use the one (1) total scene where Eve wears a dress, marketing really went “Wait, we can’t just tell people we let a woman Be John Wick, quick, make it more male gaze—”
Some spoilery comments
The fact that Wick appears in this film and ends up saving Eve a couple times at the end (rather than the film giving her truly equal status as The God Mode Player in a First-Person Shooter) perhaps slightly undermines this, and it’s undeniably a bit lol that they make her, technically, an Elite Bodyguard as opposed to an Elite Assassin (and at least marginally concerned with the welfare of a little kid, yes yes). But also a) we all know Keanu sells tickets, in-universe Wick IS the god of all assassins, and anyway the moment he had his one fight sequence I was saying to Gregory ugh he's just so fun to watch, keanu is so GOOD at this, which makes it difficult to complain; b) I did actually like the whole Kikimora thing + Eve not being a total psychopath, she reminds me of Jyn Erso rather; c) NOT THAT YOU COULD TELL, ANYWAY, given the amount of carnage she causes from about the 30% mark, lmfao; and d) at no point in this movie is it remotely believable that Eve’s motivation is anything other than Revenger Murder Revenge. The bad guy may think she’s after Elle, but both Gregory and I were like—uhhh, my guy, are you sure she even remembers that Elle exists?? And indeed there is every sign that she doesn’t, right up until she literally trips over her at the end, lol.
All this just to say that on the whole these decisions don’t actually detract from Eve being treated basically like the male lead of this same series; on a meta level I’m sure these probably were rooted in attempts to gesture towards [the caring feminine nature] or whatever the fuck, but in actual practice they are uhhh, mostly not there at all, and also this stuff does work well within the story, obviously Eve having some humanity in addition to being a murder machine is not actually a bad thing. And also the ending implicitly puts her on equal footing with Wick by also making her hunted by the Continental! Love that!
The bit of “fight like a girl” dialogue and the end credits song were the only two moments that felt really ham-fisted about Female Power™, but these are such minor points in the grand scheme that I’m whatever (and obviously fact that weight devisions exist in judo + men are usually physically heavier is true, it’s just that this really does feel like the cheesiest most Girl Power way they could have possibly phrased this problem).
Anyway! Was this as great as Wick 3 and 4, perhaps not, but it was good and absolutely stylistically on-theme and I enjoyed it a great deal. This is the right direction!! More of this please!! I would absolutely watch three more films of Eve Macarro murdering her way through assorted mooks. (Oh, and of course Le Castle Vania’s soundtracks were terrific as always, no notes, the bass drop in that club scene was [chef’s kiss].)
Obligatory Russian language note: every single person in this film puts the stress on the wrong syllable of the word “kikimora” and it is physically painful to me, it is keeKEEmora (кики́мора) (and with o -> a vowel reduction in the last syllable so it sounds more like “kikimara,” but never mind), not kikiMORa, please, I am begging. You gotta pronounce it as if it is a Japanese surname! (And also Wick should still be the Babai, not the Baba Yaga, I will die on this hill.)
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