Much like the giant monster movies I spoke about in my Kong: Skull Island post a few weeks ago, spy movies have been around for a very long time, but have never been a big part of my life. I’ve seen a few Bond movies, but only a few. Spy films have created a sub-genre of their own within the larger umbrella of action films, and have their own tropes that people identify as “spy movie things”. When it came out back in 2014, Kingsman: The Secret Service went completely under my radar. I didn’t even know it was a thing until I read about a sequel being released this year! Based purely on the fun trailers for its sequel, I decided to give Kingsman a shot. I had no idea what to expect going in, based on my unfamiliarity with spy films. However, the movie I saw was hilarious, action-packed, and just an all-around great time.
Kingsman: The Secret Service revolves around a spy organization known as Kingsman based out of London. Kingsman serves no government, but helps settle world affairs that may go unnoticed by others. Eggsy, a young man on the streets played by Taron Egerton, finds himself meeting Harry Hart, a dapper Kingsman agent played by Colin Firth, and being brought into the titular secret service. This movie is incredibly fun, with gorgeously choreographed fight scenes, lots and lots of British-isms, and great ideas that simultaneously pay homage to and brutally subvert the tropes of the spy film sub-genre.
This movie was so well cast. Colin Firth was just an absolute joy to watch, being a gentleman and brutal soldier at the same time. His fight scenes were the best in the film by far. Taron Egerton was great, and I loved watching his story unfold. He had great chemistry with all of the other actors, especially Firth. Mark Strong and Michael Caine were great as two other Kingsman members (Merlin and Arthur, respectively), and Samuel L. Jackson was a hilariously weak-stomached villain, strange lisp and all. Oh, and Mark Hamill was in this movie too!!
I went into this film with zero expectations, but found myself engaged in a fun, British action romp. Of all the things that surprised me about this film, the one thing that really caught me off guard was just how brutal it is! The fight scenes were incredibly well made, but also super dang violent. There was a crazy amount of blood in this movie, but I never found it to be off-putting: it really added to the over-the-top nature of the whole film. They curse a lot in this movie, so be prepared for that if you decide to check it out.
Oh, and did you know this movie was based on a Mark Millar comic book?
Kingsman: The Secret Service is rated R for sequences of strong violence, intense language, and some sexual content. Overall, I had a blast with this film, and I think anyone who enjoys spy flicks will enjoy the heck out of this one. I definitely plan on checking the sequel out at some point, which is in theaters now. I also plan on adding this one to my Blu-Ray collection, and what better way to do it than through an Affiliate link?
Thanks again for reading everybody.
-Grant
nice post