It’s the first instance where an entire location is given stark colors. Sela spoke to this directly in the ARRI interview by saying that he largely utilized handheld work for the second portion of the film.Ī great analysis piece by Bill Friedell for Cinemablography did a scene-by-scene analysis of when John Wick enters the Continental Hotel and how this return to his old life is indicated by color: When he re-enters the life, the camera is a kinetic moving force like John Wick. The dichotomy between his retired life and assassin life is separated in one way by the camera movements: at the beginning, shots are static and immobile. We wanted the first look to be soft and clean, and the second to be grittier, darker and sharper. Our main visual idea for the film was to achieve two different looks, one for John Wick’s normal life before the action begins and the other for the underground world he is drawn back into. In an interview with ARRI, Sela described the initial vision for the “John Wick look”: And then at the very end of the movie when he at least attempts to cross back over into the ordinary world, the colors become more subdued again, but also warmer.ĭirector of Photography Jonathan Sela shot John Wick in 4K and largely utilized a couple of different cameras, notably the ALEXA XT and the ALEXA M for close-range work. As he crosses back into the violence, colors leak back into his world and become more intense. Initially, the movie is almost a cool blue monotone, reflecting John’s detachment and struggle to cope with his wife’s death.

This was articulated well in, of all places, the IMDB trivia section : The idea was that John Wick begins the movie in a desolate world of loss, and as he wakes back up, so do the colors of his existence. I mean “‘coolest” both figuratively and literally.

One of the coolest color palette themes in any franchise is this one right here established in the original John Wick.

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