Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)
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| justcharlee.ca |
Writers: Jane Goldman (screenplay), and Matthew Vaughn (screenplay), based on the comics written by Mark Miller and Dave Gibbons.
Cast: Colin Firth (Harry Hart / Galahad), Mark Strong (Merlin), Jonno Davies (Lee), Jack Davenport (Lancelot), Samantha Womack (Michelle Unwin), Mark Hamill (Professor Arnold), Velibor Topic (Big Goon), Sofia Boutella (Gazelle), Michael Caine (Arthur), Taron Egerton (Gary 'Eggsy' Unwin), Geoff Bell (Dean), Jordan Long (Poodle), Theo Barklem-Biggs (Ryan), Tobi Bakare (Jamal), Morgan Watkins (Rottweiler), Edward Holocroft (Charlie), Sophie Cookson as Roxy, and Samuel L. Jackson as Valentine.
Remember the days when you find the time to sit in on your recliner, or whatever comfortable zone that pleases you. Pop open a cold drink, slide the DVD of that old James Bond film. Sean Connery's smile in the 1962 Dr. No. Clearly your senses go overload, after all it is a Bond film; And the older films are my favorite, at the end of the day you could pretty much relax and put in another spy film, binge watching is on the main list of things to do for the weekend. Those days will never be over, because in my opinion the Bond films will never cease, fade, die, as long as we have some sort of record keeping process, i mean a way of recording, you bet your butt! my Bond days will never stop, or at least until my wife says so.
Spy films back in the day are pretty good especially the old Bond films that make up a very good franchise, heck you could still watch the 1962 version of Dr. No and never be bored or have issues with it being dated. The new spy films, or at least the Kingsman use a unique filming style of fighting, the 2015 version of fight scenes mixes technology and stunts all together. A way of pulling folks in to the new spy Franchise. James Bond aka 0007 uses old school stunts, punch, kick, jump out of a plane, etc. The newer films for some reason the production teams use special effects in conjunction with the fight scenes, some are slowed way down, others speed things up to make it look all pretty. Back in the day the scenes didn't have the technology that they have today, but it still made a point, a well balanced film, the fight scenes were done so good even for it's time, so the films today really have no excuse for the speedy action sequences, because they look bad, the emotion of the scene is gone. Not busting on Kingsman, just making a point about the new way of fighting. In this review i wanted something fun, different and that's where Kingsman: The secret service comes in; So without further ado, here is Kingsman: The Secret Service a film that has really good moments, anyway here we go.
The film starts off fresh, the look and feel of the film is right, even though the main character is out of place in a world filled of spies, intrigue, danger, well you know were I'm going with this. The character Eggsy suffers from being penned the wrong way, i mean his whole concept is out of place. The kid's father died a hero as a Kingsman, his partner Harry Heart (Colin Firth) was at the location when an explosion took the life of a good man,a friend. The organization wanted to take care of Eggsy's mom, or mum depending on where your from. The fact that a young man was approached by a secret organization, which happens to help him recover from the loss of his father. The changed events, the terrorists that were responsible for his change in life dealt him a bad hand, his life went from good to bad. Eggsy's (Taron Egerton) went to the life of crime, before he came to terms of what his life was all about, his direction was wrong, all he had to do was call a number, remember the code word he was given by a long time friend of his deceased father, Harry Heart. His life will begin, a changed boy becoming a man, a well deserved life.
The main problem with the film is the action, not really a fan of the speedy action sequences, it destroys the integrity of the film. Not all spies have a extreme martial arts ability. Every good guy has weaknesses which gives the character a flaw, but at least it keeps it real. The film strives to be something it's not and to be honest, i liked the film but it had some problems. Spy films, even comedies have a special place in my heart; they can sad, gritty, dark, but ultimately they all use the same formula, which is simple, story, technology mixed in with cool slick extreme action. James Bond jumped, kicked, managed to survive all those feats that make up a good spy. And as for Kingsman, Heart was perfect but the action was unrealistic, granted the film was not based on real life but it still must follow guide lines; The slow puch to the face while disarming a goon is still good if shot right, but the use of effects kills the emotion and the delivery. Colin Firth is a good actor, why not have him do fight scenes without the speed. The emotion will be there, especially the Church scene in the film. Imagine if that whole scene was shot normally, no speed, just good old fist a cuffs. Trust me the film would've had a stronger delivery.
The actors did a wonderful job in every scene, especially Michael Caine, who by far is an awesome actor, loved his role in the film. Mark Strong who plays Merlin, great actor as well, Strong's scenes were really good, in fact they worked well. All the actors were taken to another level, they had to play serious, but yet the hint of comedy made this film one of the top ten in comedy, action, adventure. Comedies like i have mentioned before in my reviews, can get away with changing the laws of physics, and anything that comes to mind. The reason behind the comedy thing is simple, folks love to laugh, and in a movie of this kind can get away with so much, especially the major transitions.
The Kingsman: The Secret Service overall was a good movie, it has problems but what movie doesn't, even the best films have issues. The acting down to the screenplay is done well, love the progression of the characters; You could see the changes, from the start till the very end. Samuel L. Jackson is a pretty good villain in the film, his demeanor in the film is awesome, the guy knows how to play a bad guy. A man with the plan, using Global Warming as a main plot, and taking advantage at the people that believed in his free access internet, on a world wide bases; Was a pretty cool idea, even if the plot has been used before, it's a comedy, so it works. When your in the mood for a fun, lite, spy film, check out Kingsman: The Secret Service. The film has gadgets, cool actions, if you like the speedy sequences, and if that's your thing, then this movie will definitely be right up your alley.
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