The Kings Man (2021) Review by Alex Humber

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After 5 delays, the Kingsman prequel finally hits the big screen! But was it worth the wait?

Matthew Vaughn returns to the franchise but the newest instalment has a very different tone than the predecessors.

The tone of the film is significantly more different than the first two, as they were more parodies of the action filled spy movie genre while The Kings Man is more of a war drama with spurts of action. For some, this can be off putting when comparing to the others, but for those expecting a different movie, they will have a great time!

With no returning characters, it was a difficult task to create an engaging story with all new characters, but the films best characteristic is the fleshed out lead character and his journey!

Ralph Fiennes is the focal character and while he is not as memorable and beloved as Eggsy and Harry from the original, he is still a great tragic character that was great to watch. The supporting cast all did their jobs well but there were not ad much standouts as previously, except for one character… Russia’s greatest love machine. Rhys Ifans as Rasputin was very fun! The over the top character works with the franchise and was very nuts to watch. With the film being part revisionist history, watching the pieces come together that “explain” what happened throughout history was clever for history fans but was not isolating the rest of the audience. Gemma Arterton and Djimon Hounsou were very under-utilized which was a shame because their characters were vital to the story. The family element of the story was a highlight because of the decisions and aspirations each character has, you understand both sides and surprisingly, there are not a lot of dumb character decisions!

The tonal shift also hold down the movie as it’s much more dark and gritty contrasted with the fun natured franchise. Although it was a fresh new perspective to view the world under, it was a drag because of the drastic shift that can make the runtime feel longer than what it is. Another element dragging it down was the villain plot twist. Just felt undeserved and predictable.

Keep in mind that mindset and expectations going into the film have been the main cause for division on the film, with the majority of people not liking it we’re expecting something different than what they got and the ones enjoying the movie we’re expecting something different from the franchise.

With all that in mind, The Kings Man was not as bad as reviews have been saying. The main character was very enjoyable to follow and despite the gritty feel, there is tons of fun to be had with the fighting and scale of the newest film in the Kingsman franchise. Here’s hoping the post credit scene is able to come to fruition with another instalment.

The Kings Man (2021) gets 4/5

Thank you for reading. Hold on Hope.