Kingsman: The Secret Service

My Grade:  A

What if Quentin Terantino directed a Bond movie? He hasn’t and probably won’t ever, but there’s something even better:  Matthew Vaughn directed a quasi Bond movie and it’s awesome. Who is Matthew Vaughn, you ask? He is the action genius behind the camera for two of the best superhero flicks to come out in recent history:  Kick-Ass (2010) and X-Men:  First Class (2011). He’s also quickly becoming one of my favorite directors.

Kingsman is not your momma’s spy movie. It is ultra violent, rather raunchy, and irreverent to a fault. It follows a rough street kid, Eggsy (a name-making turn from little known Taron Egerton) who gets recruited by a refined gentleman, Harry (a refreshing role for the extremely talented Colin Firth) who works for an ultra-secretive agency called The Kingsmen. Once recruited, Eggsy has to compete against other highly touted recruits in an action-packed and dangerous training program/tryout. Only one of these recruits will be allowed to join The Kingsmen and help rid the world of various types of evil.

Spy movies have been done and done in Hollywood; but Kingsman breathes new life into the genre by abiding by the spy movie tropes while simultaneously spoofing them. It makes for a very smart film and the action that Vaughn weaves in is spectacular as always. It also offers some relevant social commentary about our obsession with tech and social media, but it doesn’t beat you over the head with its message. That’s about the only subtle bit of this film, though. Over-the-top is a good way to describe it.

The action is ridiculous, the situations are insurmountable, the violence is in-your-face, and the skills of these Kingsmen are almost to the level of absurd... but that’s what makes it so much fun. Within the world of the film, everything works together without too many leaps of logic, though. When you crank the insanity meter up to 11 from the very start, you can do just about anything - including having a bulletproof umbrella that can also fire explosives.

One thing that I have to mention is Samuel L. Jackson as Valentine. He’s a tech genius with a weak stomach for violence (yes, you read that correctly) and a lisp. Oh yea, and he also has a very unique and violent way to save the Earth via population control. He is a very cool and effective bad guy because he thinks he is doing the right thing. He doesn’t just want to see the world burn, he honestly thinks he is helping. That makes him compelling. And it’s Samuel L. Jackson; he’s always fun!

The only issue I find with the flick is it seems a bit divisive with mood at times. Sometimes it is bordering on ridiculous spoof (like Kick-Ass) but other times it is very, very dark and gritty (like Christopher Nolan super-hero films). I don’t mind the drastic shifts in mood but it could be rather jarring for some folks and makes the film seem a little unbalanced.

Overall, Kingsman, is an exhilarating thrill ride with stunning action scenes and strong acting. It even keeps you guessing with a handful of twists and turns that I seriously doubt you will see coming. If you aren’t easily offended by bad language or violence and you’re a fan of impeccably directed action scenes, see this film. You won’t regret it.