“You are Him. The one they call the Baba Yaga. How do I start doing what you do?” –Eve Macarro
Ballerina follows Eve Macarro after she is essentially adopted by the dark underworld introduced in John Wick (2014). Joining the Ruska Roma at a young age, Eve grows into a deadly ballerina who strays from the path of revenge. Right out of the gate, Ballerina is an excellent official step towards expanding the John Wick cinematic universe. It is as stylish and cutthroat as its predecessors, with John Wick appearing as his legacy looms large, and a ton of people die. The bar to impress is very low, but the one thing that gives John Wick and now Ballerina an edge over the standard action thriller is the action. If Ballerina can be distilled to one main winning trait, it would be the style. What more can one want from a movie set in the world of John Wick?
There is an interesting tension around the reaction to Ballerina, but anyone who enjoys John Wick will adore this film. There is painstaking effort put into Ballerina to make it fit neatly into the background of John Wick’s story, and that will undoubtedly thrill audiences who are endeared by the legacy of the Baba Yaga. That being said, some sacrifices have been made to the characterization of Eve Macarro and her story to fit her journey into the John Wick series retroactively.
Ballerina is a great entry to the John Wick franchise, it really is. I’m not sure why there’s a predetermined dislike for the film, but for a summer actioner, it’s entertaining. However, it overly relies on its connection to Wick, depriving the lead of being an independent person and stripping her of a compelling narrative. The story is enough for an introduction to this character, but the contrived ways to include Wick slow down the momentum. Sharon Duncan-Brewster’s underserved Nogi could have filled the function that Wick plays in this film. Ultimately, the film loses its appeal when it constantly tries to remind us that Ballerina is set in the world of John Wick…we know. We aren’t that daft.
One of the things that draws audiences to the John Wick series is its compelling world-building and kick-ass action. Ballerina suffers a bit from the attempt to “reintroduce” the audience to this world. There isn’t any outright exposition dialogue, but nearly every step of Eve’s journey is tempered by a pause to remind us of the world her story is set in. More could have been done to trim off the fat and focus on the compelling persona that lurks beneath the unnecessary layers.
Ballerina has its shortcomings. The script is a rather by-the-number revenge flick, with a touch of absurdity (why are there so many deadly people?). Am I to expect that every cafe, bookstore, park, movie theatre, or mall is the site of a secret assassin organization? They are so blatant. Anyways, yes, Ballerina is very basic. Swap the dog for a person, and you effectively have John Wick’s story replayed but with a woman in the lead role. That being said, the film is very stylish, moves at a decent pace, and the action is sharp and intense. The shortcomings primarily stem from the writing, rather than the visuals, which are perfectly tuned to fit the established John Wick aesthetic, now being replicated elsewhere.
Ana de Armas is a highly competent actor and undoubtedly one of the most visually compelling actresses to emerge on the scene in the last decade. It was not surprising to hear that the titular role went to her. To her credit, she manages to rise above the subpar writing. To be very frank, Eve is a rather dull character when one gets past her cold exterior. She is an archetype of many vengeful action heroines. Stoic, determined, quiet, and fearless, but there is little in the way of eccentricities or quirks that differentiate her from the archetype. However, there is one part of the “strong female” action hero that is done away with here, and that is sexualization. Eve is by no means portrayed for the male gaze; sure, she has her “I can fight in a dress” moment, but none of the shots are gratuitous or cringey, which is quite an accomplishment, considering de Armas has often played highly sexualized characters. Additionally, de Armas infuses Eve with a shrewd, calculating air that makes her the perfect type of person to become an assassin. Too bad there isn’t a bit more to her.
Despite how much I enjoyed Ballerina, I felt a touch disappointed by the false promise of something epic. John Wick was a phenomenon, and continues to flourish with each addition, so Ballerina seemed like the perfect antidote for the wait between new John Wick movies. As a fan, I felt like I would certainly be treated to a colourful character that exists in the background, but it seems the powers behind this were too afraid to make an individualized story. They relied on the name recognition of our beloved Baba Yaga and were unsure whether a woman could succeed in this genre on her own. It is no secret that the action genre is a tough one for women to break into; the goalposts keep shifting, and the stories often lean into stereotypes and gender norms that hinder their experience. Ballerina feels like a product of this energy from Hollywood. It doesn’t feel like it comes from a place of love or excitement for the franchise, but rather an obligation to keep the audience engaged long enough for Keanu Reeves to take a break and come back for more. I also did not appreciate the fake-out with Choi Soo-young, who is heavily emphasized in the marketing, but her presence in the film is reduced to a wordless cameo. It is also unnerving how little Duncan-Brewster is in the movie, especially when the potential for more was so apparent.
All in all, Ballerina is a fun time, but not wholly satisfying as a fan of the John Wick films. For a series filled with engaging characters, a fascinating world and ambitious filmmaking, Ballerina falls short in almost every regard. Still, it maintains an element of entertainment due to the action set pieces. I went into this movie with huge hopes, and I left the theatre having enjoyed my time, but was mildly disappointed. The question that lingers since screening this film is, why didn’t they spin off Halle Berry’s Sofia into her own movie? Hopefully, Ballerina does well enough to inspire 87Eleven Productions, Thunder Road Films, and Lionsgate to go in that direction next, after they are done with Donnie Yen’s Caine spin-off and the John Wick prequel that we honestly don’t need but will take.
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