‘Ballerina’ review: Ana De Armas leads fun but forgettable John Wick spin-off

“From the world of John Wick” says Ballerina’s title preface. Just in case the ultra-violence, sightings of Keanu Reeves and obligatory trip to the Continental Hotel didn’t give it away. After four films following the bruising adventures of Reeves’ vengeful hitman John Wick, it’s time to take the female perspective. Ana De Armas plays Eve Macarro, a deadly killer who wants revenge on those who killed her father when he tried to hide her from a life of blood-soaked assassinations.

This being a John Wick movie, there are more rules, regulations and made-up mythology than there are bullet casings on the floor. Rescued by Ian McShane’s Continental manager Winston Scott, Eve is raised by the Ruska Roma, who train her as a ballerina at their academy cum headquarters under the watchful eye of The Director (Angelica Huston). The theatre life is not for her, however, as her killer instinct sharpens. Before long, she’s learning how to beat down opponents twice her size. “Fight like a girl,” she’s told, which usually means aim for the nether regions.

Set between John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum and John Wick: Chapter 4, Eve soon encounters Reeves’ Wick, who makes an appearance at the Ruska Roma’s HQ. She wants to know if he’s chosen a path to quit the life or not. “I’m working on it,” he says, grimly. But Eve is hellbent on taking out The Chancellor (Gabriel Byrne, menacing), the man responsible for her papa’s demise. So the rule goes, this man’s gang of assassins, all living in a snowbound European town, don’t mess with The Director’s team and vice versa. But the minute Eve goes rogue all bets are off.

Directed by Len Wiseman (Underworld), Ballerina was first shot back in 2022, just months after De Armas proved her action credentials in James Bond movie No Time To Die. There have been rumours of extensive reshoots since, with the franchise’s godfather Chad Stahelski coming in to beef up the action scenes. If that’s true, you certainly can’t see the join. From an early fight in a neon-drenched club – the vibe is very refrigerator chic, with furniture ludicrously carved from ice – it all feels very John Wick.

The fights are as inventive as they are bone-shattering, with everything from ice skates to flame-throwers used as weapons, and De Armas coming on like a mistress of mayhem. There is, of course, a final appearance by the late Lance Reddick, as the New York Continental’s concierge Charon, and a nice turn by The Walking Dead’s Norman Reedus as another killer who is trying to get his daughter out of harm’s way, echoing Eve’s own past.

While Reeves’ Wick is thankfully more than just a cameo, the big problem with Ballerina is its simply hard to care about Eve’s journey. De Armas, as athletic as she is, doesn’t boast the movie-star-cool that Reeves does (to be fair, few do). Like the 2023 Prime Video show The Continental – another “From the world of John Wick” spin-off – the mythology isn’t much without the main man central to the action. It’s just another slick-but-shallow ’beat-em-up. Well made, but instantly forgettable.