Sunday, February 15, 2015

Kingsman: The Secret Service

Movie Name: Kingsman: The Secret Service
Year of Release: 2014
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Stars: Colin Firth, Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Strong, Taron Egerton, Michael Caine, Mark Hamill, Jack Davenport, Sofia Boutella, Geoff Bell, Sophie Cookson, Edward Holcroft, Hanna Alstrom, Corey Johnson
Genre: Action, Adventure
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7

Synopsis:
After revitalizing the X-Men franchise with the intelligent "X-Men: First Class", director Matthew Vaughn returns with another adaptation of a comic book (from co-writer Mark Millar, who also wrote "Kick Ass", another of Vaughn's film adaptations). The film focuses on an agency by the name of Kingsman, ultra secretive, designed to stop enemies of liberty and state throughout the world. One of their top agents, Harry Hart, takes under his wing the rebellious and kind hearted Eggsy, coincidentally the son of one of his previous colleagues, who sacrificed himself in the line of duty to save Harry and other agents. They have to battle a deranged maniac by the name of Valentine, a multi-billionaire, with ambitions to save the planet, and sacrifice a part of its population in the process.
Matthew Vaughn has by now made a name for himself as an intelligent director, capable of mining established trends and concepts and make it into something fresh and interesting. "Kingsman" offers a fresh view on the traditional James Bond franchise, making it edgier, but also aware of itself. The characters are adequately drawn out for the narrative being presented - in this case we have the veteran spy played with charisma and charm by Colin Firth, who instructs the young impulsive Eggsy in the ways of becoming an agent, but also a mature and responsible adult. The villain is also played with humor and just enough menace, avoiding campyness, thanks to Samuel L. Jackson. The action set pieces are well staged, and the film benefits from an impeccable production design work from Paul Kirby. A very entertaining film worth watching.

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