Ironically, or perhaps understandably, due to the less familiar ‘exotic East’, in more Western than Eastern movies, there are huge Asian signages featured. At times in neon too, at night, for greater standout effect. While some might be signboards of sponsoring brands, some literally highlight philosophical idioms. A prominent example would be Wick’s meeting with Shimazu Koji on Osaka Continental’s roof.
The words shown are ‘初志貫徹’, which means ‘With the initial aspiration implemented; put into practice; carried out.’ A related phrase less focused on action would be ‘不忘初心’, which means ‘Never forget your initial aspiration.’
The burning question would be, ‘What are the very original motivations of Wick and Shimazu?’ Assassins they are, but for what exactly were they willing to kill for, to live and die by? Worthy aspirations must be pure though, more spiritual than worldly. Bearing this in mind, the same question is more pressing for us. Are our initial aspirations noble enough, good enough to continue carrying through?
‘Honour’ is the clichéd claim, but it is impure if fuelled by greed for bounties and hate for vengeance. While imperfect mortals are mixed bags of righteousness and self-righteousness, the truly honorable will aim to address all issues calmly and clearly, with more compassion and wisdom, with less trigger-‘(un)happiness.’
Physical destruction of enemies for the good of all should be the last resort, while spiritual reformation for the better should be the first target, challenging as this is to implement skilfully. Will Wick ‘revive’ in Chapter 5 transformed? Well, while the series is too lucrative to just ‘die’, the blood spilled is way too much already.
Related Reviews:
Beware Of The ‘John Wick’ Syndrome!
https://thedailyenlightenment.com/2015/05/beware-of-the-john-wick-syndrome
‘John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum’; Not Go To War?
https://thedailyenlightenment.com/2020/01/john-wick-chapter-3-parabellum-not-go-to-war
