As a fan of the Kingsman franchise – more the first film than the second – I was excited about this origin story, THE KING’S MAN. That excitement started waning about 40-minutes in and then took a complete nosedive into the pool of utter frustration. “The King’s Man” opens in U.S. theaters on December 22, 2021.
ABOUT: A collection of history’s worst tyrants and criminal masterminds gather to plot a war to wipe out millions, one man must race against time to stop them. Discover the origins of the very first independent intelligence agency in “The King’s Man.” “The King’s Man” is directed by Matthew Vaughn and stars Ralph Fiennes.
The story tries really hard to weave its way in to the world of The Kingsman. To be honest the film could have just been another historical action flick set in the past with no reference or connection to the other flicks. It would have still been a mediocre film, but at least it would not have reflected poorly on an otherwise decent franchise.
Ralph Fiennes is Orlando Oxford; a well to do gentleman trying hard to keep his son Conrad from joining the British forces during a horrible world war. Conrad wants to man up and fight alongside his peers. Orlando prefers to fight behind the scenes and use his high profile connections. This family struggle goes back and forth the whole time.
The film does include several intriguing characters from history. Grigori Rasputin (Rhys Ifans), Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria (Ron Cook), Mata Hari (Valerie Pachner), King George / Kaiser Wilhelm / Tsar Nicholas (all three played by Tom Hollander), and President Woodrow Wilson (Ian Kelly). The mix of fact and fiction was a grand foundation to build a story on. Yet somehow it manages to also include ridiculous character direction and lacks any sort of cohesive guidance.
The only saving grace is the character of Rasputin. This mystic, visionary, prophet is fun to watch and as about as eccentric as you could imagine. His fight scenes are the only time you truly feel like you are watching a Kingsman movie due to the style and outlandish choreography. I should also give a nod to Gemma Arterton and Djimon Hounsou who both needed more screen time.
The rest of the film is just white noise – to quote Miles Finch – with a plot twist that literally made me yell, “booooooo”. My daughter echoed the sentiment, and almost refused to keep watching. I will not go into these reasons as the are legitimate spoilers. But trust me, you will know them when you see them.
THE KING’S MAN is rated R for sequences of strong/bloody violence, language, and some sexual material. Like the other films it is adult in nature. I can only give it 2 out of 5 vodka shots. Sadly writer/director Matthew Vaughn lost his way with this one.
About The Author
