The King’s Man – Movie Review
131 Minutes, Rated R
Written by Matthew Vaughn and Karl Gajdusek
Directed by Matthew Vaughn
Synopsis:
In the early years of the 20th century, the Kingsman agency is formed to stand against a cabal plotting a war to wipe out millions.
When the original Kingsman: The Secret Service came out in 2014, it was certainly a game-changer for comics-based films. Unabashed raw, violent, and funny, all while maintaining a certain degree of internal logic, folks were understandably excited about the sequel.
2017’s Kingsman: The Golden Circle, however, failed to capture that lightning in a bottle the first film had, and the audience and critical receptions reflected that.
What, then, to make of the prequel film playing in theaters now?
Delayed from an early 2020 release to now late in 2021, The King’s Man is the tale of how the Kingsman organization came into existence. As such, it is not so much a Kingsman adventure, but an agonizing family tragedy movie, because we know this from the exposition given in that first, exceptional film.
With The Great War raging, aristocratic sons are killed off at an alarming rate, leaving well-to-do, but emotionally bankrupt families behind to attempt to pick up the pieces: not just of their own lives, but of all the lives to come.
This story is given to us in the microcosm of the Oxford clan, led by Patriarch Orlando (Ralph Fiennes), who fought in the Boer wars of South Africa, becoming a pacifist after witnessing the horrors of combat and losing his wife to a sniper attack during a goodwill mission.
Shielding his son from then till now, when the war is ready to pop under the machinations of a shadowy, evil organization.
Most of the first part of the film involves a lot of political talk and family drama between Orlando and his son, Conrad, as they debate the merits of dying for one’s country versus pacificism.
It’s not until a key event midway through the film that the action really starts.
We get watch as the groundwork of the eventual formation of the Kingsman is laid and used, and that’s a bit of a treat. The action sequences that comprise the majority of the second half of the film are good, if not great, and remind us exactly how unexpected that original film was.
Even then, though, it doesn’t quite completely capture the energy of the first, although it easily surpasses the sequel in every way (though they do throw a quick callback to the second film in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it line).
Listen as we discuss for more insight about the film.
The King’s Man is playing in theaters now.
The King’s Man stars Ralph Fiennes, Gemma Arterton, Rhys Ifans, Harris Dickinson, Djimon Hounsou, Matthew Goode, Charles Dance, Tom Hollander, and Daniel Bruhl.
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