Kingsman – The Secret Service is the first in a series of films that introduces the audience to the secret organization Kingsman.
The Kingsman is made up of a select group of highly trained super spies. Fans of the franchise will find out more about the origins of The King's Man who created the organization in the latest film.
Based on the comic books that first appeared in 2012. Kingsman – The Secret Service tells the story of Eggsy, a streetwise geezer who has dropped out of the Royal Marines. An old friend of his father recruits Eggsy into the Kingsman.
Once he makes it through training, they go about taking down the bad guys. Equipped with more super-spy gadgets than you have ever seen before, the Kingsman agents save the world from evil.
Yes, I know what you are thinking; this is so James Bond, but creators Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons openly admit this. But trust me, the Kingsman series pushes boundaries that Bond never could, more violent, much more over the top and much funnier.
For Example, you would never see Bond kill a Church full of Christians midway through the service – now would you?
Kingsman The Secret Service Official Trailer
The popularity of the comic book grabbed the attention of Matthew Vaughn, who had previously brought Mark Millar's Kick-Ass to the screen. Vaughn stamped his outrageous directing style all over that movie, and he exceeds himself again in this outing.
The action scenes are mind-blowing, with incredible effects. The violence makes Tarantino's films look lame, but it is all delivered with a tongue-in-cheek style.
Another big surprise is Colin Firth (Before I Go To Sleep) playing a badass super spy. But he is amazing. I mean, genuinely great in this film.
In fact, the whole cast is fantastic. Taron Egerton explodes onto the scene playing Eggsy. Samuel L Jackson plays the evil baddie hell-bent on taking over the world. Michael Caine is cast as the head of the Kingsman agency.
But for me, the big stand-out is Mark Strong, who completely owns his character, Merlin. Merlin works mainly behind the scene but somehow is the man who makes everything work in the Agency. Just like his character, Strongs acting binds this whole film together.
Is Kingsman The Secret Service Worth Watching?
It's fair to say that there have been more than a few Bond-style spoof movies. Films like Austin Powers and Jonny English are out and out comedies. But Kingsman could easily tone down the comedy a little and it would be a true action spy film.
And the best part is, it is so jaw-droppingly different that it succeeds in standing on its own.
One thing I would say is that the rating of 15 is maybe not a good reflection of the content. Before sitting the family down to watch this film, you should be aware that there is a lot of swearing and more blood and gore than you would see in most R-rated films.
However, now that we have the cautionary quote out of the way. Kingsman – The Secret Service is a movie that satisfies every single emotion, heaps of fun, incredibly entertaining, relentless action and backed up with fantastic music.
Give it a watch on Netflix and follow up with Kingsman – The Golden Circle before the new movie hits the screens next year.
