Kingsman: The Golden Circle Review

"We're from the Kingsman tailor shop in London, maybe you've heard of us!"



Kingsman: The Golden Circle was directed by Matthew Vaughn and is the sequel to the highly popular Kingsman: The Secret Service that was released back in 2014. The film stars the likes of Taron Egerton, Edward Holcroft, Colin Firth, Mark Strong, Julianna Moore, Jeff Bridges, Channing Tatum, Halle Berry and Michael Gambon (what a cast!) and follows The Kingsman as they team up with their US counterparts The Statesman to save the world held at hostage by the evil Poppy.

The one question on everyone's mind when it comes to the sequel Kingsman: The Golden Circle is will it be as good as the original film Kingsman: The Secret Service, and well the short answer to that question is..... Yes it certainly is. Whilst I don't think that the film is better than the first film, it certainly holds its own compared to the original film. One of the most successful elements from the original film was its quirky action sequences and a tone that did not take itself too seriously, and that is what made it a really fun and engaging film to watch. The sequel Kingsman: The Golden Circle certainly continuous the trend and tone established in the original film and builds on it to create some truly engaging and over the top action sequences (really fun to watch!!) and some truly funny comedic moments that really kept you engaged and laughing in your seats. Credit is also due to the films amazing cast who manage to embody the films tone and energy extremely well and give of some great performances (seeing Colin Firth annihilate enemy henchman in the most imaginative ways possible never gets old!). I also really liked the inclusion of The Statesman (The American counterpart of The Kingsman) which brought a really fresh and interesting concept to the franchise and the differences between the two spy organisations certainly create some great comedic moments and some great action sequences when the two spy organisations join together to save the world.

Whilst the film certainly is on par with the original there are still some overall issues that for me stop the film from surpassing the original film. Personally for me as an audience member the first act of the film really struggled to get going, whilst the opening action sequence was exciting and definitely a good way to open the film, for me the CGI was a little off and distracting. Whilst the film does have a quirky sense of style in terms of its action sequences, the film's opening in my opinion did suffer from some iffy CGI, in terms of looking too fake and animated which certainly through me out of the film during the opening action sequence. Whilst the CGI does rapidly improve during the rest of the film, it was just the opening CGI that something felt missing and did not make sense compared to the rest of the CGI in the film. I also felt that some of the dialogue sequences (mainly again during the opening first act) felt a little forced and too scripted for my liking. An actor should be able to take the lines written for them and perform them in way that seems truly natural for the character, and whilst this improved during the rest of the film, it left the opening feeling a little too staged for my liking. Whether this is a problem with the script of the film or the actors performance, I am not too sure, my moneys of the script, but I am really glad that it improves during the rest of the film.

Overall I enjoyed this film and personally do believe that the film is on par with the original Kingsman: The Secret Service but unfortunately does not seem to be able to surpass the original film either. If you enjoyed the original film then you will love watching this film and will certainly enjoy seeing your favourite characters back together for another entry into the franchise.

Verdict: 4 out 5 stars