Could it be possible that the “John Wick” movies are getting better as the franchise progresses?

The original movie proved to be an enjoyable bit of escapist entertainment, at least for those who enjoy mindless action movies. Most of us found the first film’s box office and critical success to be an enjoyable surprise, but very few believed that lightning would strike twice.

Boom. “John Wick 2” proved to be just as much fun as the original film.

Perhaps it’s time to take shelter because believe it or not, “John Wick Chapter 3” turns out to be the best film yet. That’s not to say that it’s the stuff of high art and great acting, but fans who just want to sit back and watch Keanu Reeves kick some bad guy butt should have a blast watching his latest adventure.

Animal lovers will also have a lot of fun as this time out our titular hero teams up with a couple of dangerous doggies who turn their opponents into R-rated chew toys. If you recall, this entire adventure began because a villain killed John Wick’s dog, so it’s only fitting that we’d see some canine vengeance in this third movie.

That’s just one of the many scenes that will have you cheering on our assassin hero as he lays waste to all those who try to collect the bounty on his head because of his actions in the previous movie. The full plot doesn’t make a lot of sense, but it doesn’t have to provide much more than a reason to string together the various fight sequences.

Kudos to director Chad Stahelski who has been with this franchise from the start. He has a knack for choreographing brawls that employ creative use of weaponry and some rather striking cinematography. I’ll stop short of calling it fine art, but there is certainly an artistic quality to the action sequences. It may be vulgar, but it’s still very impressive.

Reeves is also quite impressive. He is entirely believable as a 50-something man who can best hordes of highly trained assassins. He’s also great at holding our attention in the quieter moments, despite having very few lines. Credit the actor for his abundance of charisma that gives “John Wick” much of its kick.

Story-wise, I do think that the franchise is losing steam. The shadowy world of assassins has lost some of its exotic appeal and the supporting cast can only provide so much exposition before we start wondering when the next fight will begin. Perhaps it’s a good thing that there isn’t a “John Wick 4” on the schedule.

Then again, with a film that’s as much fun as “John Wick 3,” perhaps it’s time to start dreaming up further adventures for this laconic-but-lethal assassin.

Movie reviews by Sean, “The Movie Guy,” appear each week in The Port Arthur News and seen weekly on KFDM and Fox4. Sean welcomes your comments via email at smcbride@sbgtv.com.