As you can probably guess from that title, I’m not a fan of the John Wick movies. I’ve seen two thus far (and part of the first) – John Wick: Chapter 2 and John Wick – Chapter 3: Parabellum – and they’re all about the action set pieces.

Which is fine though the problem I have is that Keanu Reeves doesn’t have the range, the gravitas to carry off anything but the action set pieces.

And is that any shock? Beyond Speed (1994) and The Matrix (1999) can anyone with a straight face really claim that he’s a solid actor (and that’s not to say that he’s not a nice person, loves his mom and puppies but at the end of the day those things are irrelevant because while I can’t stand the person James Woods seems to be, there’s no denying that he’s a damn good actor).

Enter Kate, which stars Mary Elizabeth Winstead as an assassin who has 24 hours to live after being poisoned. Her response to a most peculiar predicament is to go on an all-out murder binge to track down who killed her.

It has the kinetic action of the John Wick movies though it’s gorier, which is interesting because you’d think that since the Wick movies being rated R they’d invest heavier the red stuff. It’s also worth mentioning that while Kate has a lot of action set pieces they’re not as innovative as those that appear in the Wick movies, which is good a good thing in that they don’t define the movie, the performances do.

Though what’s more important are the leads, and as I said, Reeves as an actor isn’t in the same ballpark as Mary Elizabeth Winstead. She brings his enthusiasm for action with an ability to emote that’s off the charts.

And if there’s anything that makes Kate better than all the John Wick movies released thus far, it’s that.