Warm up for new ‘John Wick’ with movie binge
The highly anticipated “John Wick: Chapter 4,” Keanu Reeves’ first live-action film since the San Francisco-shot “The Matrix Resurrections” 15 months ago, figures to be one of 2023’s box-office juggernauts.
The movie, which opens Friday, March 24, comes 37 years after his breakthrough film, “River’s Edge,” and is a testament to the enigmatic actor’s enduring star power.
The Alamo Drafthouse New Mission theater has been screening a monthlong Reeves series leading up to the latest edition of “John Wick” with titles such as “The Devil’s Advocate” and “Constantine.” But if you can’t get to the theater, here are nine films that showcase Reeves at his best, in chronological order:
‘River’s Edge’ (1986)
Reeves first gained wide notice in this film about a
high-school boy (Daniel Roebuck) who kills his girlfriend by the river, apparently for the hell of it, and his friends (Reeves, Crispin Glover, Ione Skye and others) find it merely odd instead of horrifying. Dennis Hopper makes an impression — as usual — as
the kids’ drug dealer.
Bay Area bonus: The film is based on a real-life case that happened in Milpitas in 1981.
Watch it: Stream for free on Kanopy, Hoopla, Tubi, Pluto TV; rent or buy on Amazon, Apple TV+ or Redbox. 12:30 p.m. Saturday, March 18. $13.75.
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema New Mission theater, 2550 Mission St., S.F. www. drafthouse.com/sf
‘Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure’ (1989)
Dude, Reeves nails stoner comedy as Ted “Theodore” Logan, who teams up with buddy Bill S. Preston (Alex Winter) to go on a time-traveling adventure in order to pass their history class and fulfill their destiny as the future’s philosophical inspirations (Ted’s words of wisdom to Socrates: “Dust in the wind. All we are is dust in the wind”). George Carlin provides the time machine.
The runaway hit spawned two sequels, the latest in 2020.
Watch it: Available to rent or buy through most major streaming services.
‘My Own Private Idaho’ (1991)
Gus Van Sant’s tale of gay
teenage prostitutes who trust only each other is notable for the dream pairing of Reeves and River Phoenix. A hypnotic, disorienting work of art, Van Sant, shooting in the Pacific Northwest, Idaho and Rome, based his script on Shakespeare’s “Henry IV” and Orson Welles’ 1966 Shakespeare adaptation “Chimes at Midnight.”
If you’re into physical media, the Criterion Collection Blu-ray is a must-own.
Watch it: Available to rent or buy through most major streaming services.
‘Point Break’ (1991)
Without Johnny Utah, there is no Neo or John Wick. Reeves became an action star in Kathryn Bigelow’s deliriously overthe-top look at sweaty, hunky masculinity as Reeves’ FBI agent Utah infiltrates a gang of bank robber/surfers led by a magnetic Patrick Swayze. (Don’t forget one of the toughest surfers of them all, Lori Petty.)
Watch it: Stream on HBO Max.
‘Speed’ (1994)
“Die Hard” cinematographer Jan de Bont makes his directorial debut and his ridiculous but irresistible actioner about an Los Angeles cop (Reeves) and a bus passenger (Sandra Bullock) who try to keep said bus from slowing below 50 mph and triggering a bomb set by a madman (Hopper).
Reeves and Bullock would re-team 12 years later for another excellent film, the romantic drama “The Lake House,” which is also widely available for streaming.
Watch it: Available to rent or buy through most major streaming services.
‘A Walk in the Clouds’ (1995)
There is no way this oldfashioned, syrupy, predictable romantic drama should work, but it does — and beautifully so.
Reeves displays sturdy charm as a returning World War II vet who agrees to pose as a pregnant woman’s husband to help her escape the wrath of her traditional vintner family.
Bay Area bonus: It was filmed in Napa, St. Helena and Sonoma, at various wineries including Beringer Vineyards, Charles Krug Winery and Duckhorn Vineyards.
Watch it: Available to rent or buy through most major streaming services.
‘Johnny Mnemonic’ (1995)
In a future that foresees an internet-fueled world of disinformation and “nerve attenuation syndrome” (think attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), Reeves is a data courier who carries his information in a brain implant. He must deliver his information from Beijing to Newark, N.J., before he dies from the mental burden or is killed by gangsters.
The visionary film is based on William Gibson’s novel and directed by artist, filmmaker and musician Robert Longo.
Watch it: Available to rent or buy through most major streaming services.
‘The Matrix’ (1999)
One of the most groundbreaking, legendary science fiction films in history likely needs no introduction. Say what you will about the fourfilm series, much of it filmed in the Bay Area, but the original is a masterpiece.
Thomas Anderson (Reeves) is a computer hacker who discovers his whole life is a digital illusion, and to reclaim his life he must become Neo, the Chosen One.
The Wachowskis’ revolutionary use of visuals and mind-bending ideas still thrills nearly a quarter of a century later.
Watch it: Stream on HBO Max or Tubi.
‘A Scanner Darkly’ (2006)
Richard Linklater’s adaptation of “Blade Runner” author Philip K. Dick’s novel was filmed on digital, with Linklater and his team turning his cast’s human faces into animated ones through rotoscoping. It serves the tripped-out plot, which has Reeves’ FBI agent infiltrating a drug ring that includes Robert Downey Jr., Woody Harrelson and Winona Ryder. The drug, Substance D, causes horrifying hallucinations that has the cop questioning his own identity.
Watch it: Stream it free on Tubi or Kanopy. 9:30 p.m. Monday, March 20. $17.75. Alamo Drafthouse New Mission theater, S.F. www.drafthouse.com/sf