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The King's Man
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Well, now this is something I really didn’t see coming. After 2017’s Kingsman: The Golden Circle I fully expected Matthew Vaughn’s take on the Mark Millar graphic novels to go by the wayside. 2014’s Kingsman: The Secret Service was a fun little jaunt, but the sequel sort of stumbled and fell along the way. Decent movie, but just not what the audience was hoping for. Neither film was exactly grade A material, but they were entertaining enough for me to enjoy. However, come 2021 and Matthew Vaughn is back with a completely different approach to the source material. This time in the form of a prequel that almost completely changes the tone and feel of the entire franchise.
What made the Kingsman films so unique was Matthew Vaughn’s trademark vulgarity, ultra violence, and warped view on Bond era spy craft mixed with some extremely frenetic action sequences. This new take on the origins of the Kingsman spy service is almost completely devoid (almost) of the trade mark sexual vulgarity that the first two films had, and instead tries to focus nearly completely on the spy craft element of the story. That doesn’t mean that there isn’t some bizarre changes of pace for the film (Rasputin alone is so bizarre and crazy that it’s worth the price of admission alone), but Vaughn has obviously toned down his desire for excess and exaggeration in those fields.
Orlando (Ralph Fiennes), the Duke of Oxford, is a bit of a pacifist. An ex soldier who fell out of love with blood lust, he transferred to the Red Cross where he could help SAVE lives in the army, not take them. However, his life is changed forever when his wife is killed in collateral damage, causing the already pacifistic Duke to take a back seat and never allow his son Conrad (Harris Dickinson) to ever fight in a war like he did. However, when a mysterious force starts pulling strings and forcing the world into WWI, Orlando starts to take notice. He can’t help but get pulled in when his friend, Archduke Ferdinand, is murdered on the street and takes a more active role in hunting down this mysterious puppet master.
The movie is still Matthew Vaughn goody, but it’s more laid back and bland than the previous two films. I’m not sure whether it’s just Vaughn honing his directing style or what, but The King’s Man is very much more laid back and more intent on focusing on the spy craft element of the story rather than the vulgar or the ultra violence. There’s plenty of action, but still the film feels just a tad boring, especially after the midway point with Conrad joining the war. At that point the film just feels like it wants to get to the end and doesn’t mind glossing over things. However, the inclusion of Rhys Ifan playing a completely BIZARRE Rasputin is probably worth the price of admission alone. That hilarious action sequence is the highlight of the film and by far the best performance. Ryhs has always been a crazy character actor, but this one just goes above and beyond. Easily my favorite portion o the movie.
Rating:
Rated R for sequences of strong/bloody violence, language, and some sexual material
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The King’s Man delivers more dramatic elements than the previous two films in the series, but also lacks the pizazz and excitement of those movies as well. There’s a sort of sincerity to this effort that will make fans of the first two rather confused, but he also doesn’t know how to handle said sincerity either. Many of the most dramatic elements are squandered, but Vaughn’s trademark insanity bleeds through ENOUGH to make for an enjoyable (if not singular watchable) film. Being that I only viewed the digital copy for this review from Disney/Buena Vista I can’t comment too heavily on the audio and video, but if the Streaming encode and the Atmos track are anything to go by, this will be phenomenal on physical media.
Technical Specifications:
Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Gemma Arterton, Rhys ifan, Harris Dickinson, Djimon Hounsou, Matthew Goode, Charles Dance
Directed by: Matthew Vaughn
Written by: Matthew Vaughn, Karl Gajdusek, Mark Millar (Based on the Graphic Novel)
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1
Audio: English: Dolby Atmos oooooo
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Studio: Disney/Buena Vista
Rated: R
Runtime: 131 Minutes
Digital Release Date: February 18th, 2022
Recommendation: Solid Watch
