It’s always cool to see an actor try something a little left of their field. Arnie and Sly have proven themselves as great comedians, Sirs Anthony Hopkins and Ian McKellen have been stellar Marvel characters, and now Bob Odenkirk is proving himself to be quite the badass.
And I don’t mean in the “Ricky Gervais says funny mean things at award shows” kinda badass, I mean “get this man a John Wick crossover” kinda badass.
After all, fundamentally, Nobody is middle-aged John Wick. And that isn’t meant in a bad way at all.
Aside from the actors’ similar ages (Keanu and Odenkirk are only about 2 years apart, with the latter being the senior), both films take drastically different approaches to arrive at similarly satisfying, cathartic, and truly balls-to-the-wall action!
And, no, John Wick isn’t necessarily the more insane one.
While the John Wick movies delve into the mysterious and romanticised underworld of espionage and assassins, Nobody grounds its character’s past in the mundane but macabre, without spending more time than absolutely necessary on backstory or exposition. In fact, the few moments of exposition are effectively used to great comedic effect.
Part of what makes Nobody a smooth action flick is it able to have the plot progress without pushing heavily on the old-guy-with-dark-violent-past trope. The movie allows Odenkirk to work to his strengths: straight-faced, self-deprecating humour, often contrasted against his own self-assured tone and inherent confidence.
Odenkirk’s chemistry with on-screen wife Connie Nielsen is arguably under-utilised, but with a stacked cast including the likes of Christopher Lloyd and RZA, both playing it up in pretty awesome ways, it’s understandable why sharing screen time with the lead was an inevitable sacrifice.
But of course, like with any other action flicks of this calibre, there’s strong sequel potential—the not-so-subtle mid-credits scene certainly sets up the premise, and isn’t all too bad.
Maybe with the creator and a director of the John Wick franchise overseeing this one, too, that crossover might not be as farfetched as we think.
Nobody is out in theatres today and would be a fitting return for many to hallowed halls of action!