The van door slams shut, and it’s as if we’ve been plunged to the floor of the ocean — such is the darkness that consumes us.
“People are looking for you,” a harried-looking man in a hoodie explains as he ushers us into the back of said vehicle. “We’re going to hide you.”
And so in we go, about a dozen of us, blinded by the sudden absence of light.
Soon, our journey will come to an end, and we’ll celebrate by sipping cocktails topped by bloody writing utensils.
But first, the crackle of gunfire, the whirr of helicopters outside.
“Is that a dead body?” someone asks.
Turns out we’re sitting on one.
Becoming Keanu
The man in the black cowboy hat and matching suit delivers the bad news, mood as dark as his attire.
“I’m gonna cut to the chase with y’all,” he says, seated behind a desk in a shadow-strewn room. “Your Continental privileges have officially been revoked.”
Groans all around.
“Why?” an onlooker wonders.
“You crossed the table when you aided John Wick,” he elaborates. “Mr. Wick has been declared excommunicado, and now you share that same fate. Rules are rules.”
Who’s John Wick?
Well, if you haven’t made it to the cineplex in the past decade, he’s the bullet-dodging, rubber-laying, muscle-car-driving, puppy-avenging antihero at the center of the blockbuster film franchise that bears his name.
Low in dialogue, high in body count, with most exposition confined to the pained grunts of its pistol-wielding protagonist, the “John Wick” flicks star Keanu Reeves as a globe-trotting retired assassin perpetually clad in chic, tailor-made black suits as stylized as all the choreographed violence.
Oh, and he once killed three dudes in a bar with a pencil.
A staple of the series is The Continental hotel, a luxe safe haven for underworld types who seek a good night’s rest, perhaps a cocktail or two, after killing people all day — that killing stops here, though, as there’s no violence allowed on the property.
The Continental also serves as the setting for the new John Wick Experience, a novel, dynamic blend of escape room puzzlery and live-action game play that just opened at Area15.
The 12,000-square-foot attraction spans over a dozen themed rooms — as well as two bars and a retail shop — and fully immerses visitors in the John Wick cinematic universe.
The experience is produced by Egan Productions, whose founder/owner Jason Egan has a strong and lengthy track record of creating interactive, movie-themed attractions in Vegas, having also built the Official Saw Escape, Escape Blair Witch and Escape It.
“John Wick” franchise director Chad Stahelski and his team at 87Eleven Entertainment also served as creative collaborators on the project, from design to special stunt work.
Speaking of which, the experience lasts around 60 minutes, and we’ve just gotten underway.
There’s a bounty on all our heads, apparently, the sums posted by name in the switchboard/call center room, the first one we enter. (We fetch $575,000. Not bad.)
“Y’all have just under one hour to get out of Las Vegas,” the man in black commands. “I don’t like your odds.”
Bad guys, good times
Behold, the Kevlar-lined Elvis jumpsuit and sparkling showgirl costume capable of emitting poisonous gas.
At the John Wick Experience, the action is driven by actors portraying various characters found in the films.
We’ve just met The Tailor, who creates Wick’s natty suits in the film series and whose designs include the aforementioned, Vegas-centric get-ups on display here.
Next, we encounter The Sommelier, an arms dealer who speaks of weapons like fine wine.
Before we know it, we’re pretzeling our bodies to avoid a series of security lasers en route to a firing range where said weapons can be put to good use.
“If it moves, shoot it!” our pony-tailed gun handler commands as we target virtual assailants on video screens before us.
Warring with so many bad guys inevitably works up a thirst, and before long, our adventure culminates where it should: at the bar, the experience’s final stop.
With its exposed, graffitied concrete walls and numerous statues, the room has the vibe of an abandoned art museum reclaimed by street punks.
The drinks here are themed.
We order the Just a Pencil, which comes topped with a bloody version of its titular writing utensil.
We think about pocketing the thing. You know, just in case …
Contact Jason Bracelin at jbracelin@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0476. Follow @jasonbracelin76 on Instagram.