Summer might be over, but Kingsman: The Golden Circle is the big-ticket blockbuster we could have used a couple months ago, as it's easily one of the most enjoyable sequels / action pictures of the year.
Sequels are a difficult business, and
everybody knows it. They're even harder to execute when your first time
out was such a surprise success, much like director Matthew Vaughn's Kingsman: The Secret Service
was back in 2015. So here we are, with a new outing of a franchise that
loves to wink and nod towards the cheekier side of James Bond's legacy,
waiting for folks to determine whether this is a franchise worth
building on, or something that needs to end rather quickly. Thankfully, I
can say that Kingsman: The Golden Circle keeps the action
cranked, the laughs fresh, and even injects more confidence into its
proceedings, making for what Eggsy (Taron Egerton) himself might call a
fucking proper blast.
One year after the events of Kingsman: The Secret Service,
Eggsy (Taren Egerton) and Merlin (Mark Strong) are thrown into the deep
end, as someone has eliminated the rest of their fellow Kingsman
agents. Following the Doomsday protocol, they hook up with the Statesman
agency -- American counterparts who fancy a good whiskey and Southern
hospitality. Together, they'll embark on a mission to stop a crazed drug
lord (Julianne Moore) with some nasty plans to make herself known to
the world.
There's a fair bit of repetition in Kingsman: The Golden Circle,
as moments and scenarios from the first film are brought up, and
sometimes relived with a slight variance in tow. For the most part, this
doesn't kill the film's vibe, however it does give a bit of an air of
"been there, done that" to some of the film's elements. That said, the
humor of Jane Goldman and Matthew Vaughn's adaptation of Mark Millar's Secret Service
comic is still very much intact. Even if we've seen some of this
before, it's nice to be with characters that we grew to love in the
original film.
It's even nicer to see that, especially in the case of Eggsy, the characters from Kingsman: The Secret Service
have developed into even stronger identities this time around. Even
Mark Strong's Merlin gets to have some fun, as his first field mission
puts him right alongside Eggsy, and you can tell that Strong and his
character are having a blast. But, of course, Kingsman: The Golden Circle isn't totally about revisiting old friends, as some new characters have entered the ring, as well.
The Statesman organization's presence gives us
some fun performances from Channing Tatum, Jeff Bridges, and Halle
Berry; though if there were an MVP for the American side of the action,
it'd have to be Pedro Pascal. From the accent right down to the swagger
in battle, Pascal's Whiskey (yes, with an 'e') is a rootin' tootin' ass
kicker, and he makes it work as the one American agent with the most
screen time. Though, to be fair, Tatum, Bridges, and Berry do so well in
their bit parts, you kind of want a separate Statesman film to exist,
just so they can have more fun on their own.
Of course, this isn't to say that Kingsman: The Golden Circle
is a perfect film, as the one major hiccup comes from Julianne Moore's
villain, Poppy. It's not that she's a bad antagonist. It's just that she
seems a little more hands off than Samuel L. Jackson's Valentine was in
Kingsman: The Secret Service. And while her villainy is
operating in the background, pushing the plot forward, it would have
been nice to see her get a little more action overall. Still, her
sweetly evil demeanor is something to be admired, making her moments in
the film a lot of fun to watch.
Ultimately, that's what Kingsman: The Golden Circle can be boiled down to: fun. Pure, unadulterated, high-octane fun that retains the laughs of Kingsman: The Secret Service,
while amping up the action. The movie starts with a fight / chase scene
that lights a fire under this film's ass, and keeps it running all
throughout. By time the third act of brawling fun arrives, Vaughn's film
has given us characters that are built to last, and action set-pieces
that know how to throw punches, as well as carry a fantastic tune.
Summer might be over, but Kingsman: The Golden Circle is the
type of big-ticket blockbuster we could have used a couple months ago.
It's easily one of the most enjoyable sequels / action pictures of the
year.
Read more >> Battle Of The Sexes Review
Read more >> Battle Of The Sexes Review
