Movie Review Rewind: Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)

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I am going to go on ahead and tell you now, do not make the mistake of thinking the previews show everything Kingsman: The Secret Service has to offer. It is a common error we make as an audience, but the trailers for this movie barely scrape the surface. Director Matthew Vaughn (Kick-Ass, X-Men: First Class) knows how to deliver crazy, unrelenting action in style, which makes him a perfect fit for this absurd, ultra-violent yet hugely enjoyable movie.

I had no idea the movie is based on an acclaimed comic book, but it is. Galahad (Colin Firth) is a veteran agent for a super-undisclosed spy organization that recruits a rough-hewn, but promising kid who will have to endure the agency’s ultra-competitive training program if he wants to be a Kingsman – something his father once was. Since the death of his father, Eggsy (Taron Egerton) has had to take care of his family by any means necessary. But with his step-father pimping out his mother, his childhood has not been great to say the least.

He was heading down the wrong path and got involved with drugs and stealing, but Galahad may have come just in the nick of time. But while Galahad has the task of turning a street kid with a bad attitude in to a sophisticated spy, there is a global threat brewing from a psycho tech mastermind with a lisp. His name is Valentine (Samuel L. Jackson) and in order to get what he wants accomplished, he will first have to make the world go mad.

Personally, it is nice to see Firth let loose a bit. Sure, he still plays a British gent but one that can kill you by just opening his umbrella. I will not give anything away, but if you want to see Firth go nuts, just check out the church scene in this movie. It is phenomenal in a very brutal way. Without a doubt, I think Jackson is having the most fun with his character. He is over-the-top in almost every way, but it fits within this movie. Even with all of his bright-colored, matching clothes, he is never a distraction. However, it is the young Egerton who has the strongest grip on almost every scene he is in. He is definitely surrounded by great company, but he truly holds his own against all of them.

Kingsman is surprisingly impressive and a blast to watch. A sharp-wit vulgar, action spy movie that is not afraid to combine fun and humor with plenty of bloodshed. There are scenes that should not work and would not work if they were in any other movie, but Kingsman knows what to do with the material and, unashamedly, throws right back in your face.

And guess what? You will enjoy every minute of it. Call it old-fashioned, but be careful because it kicks a lot of ass.

“Nature Boy” Brandon Vick is a member of The Music City Film Critics’ Association, the resident film critic of the SoBros Network, and the star of Brandon’s Box Office In Your Mouth. Follow him on Twitter @SirBrandonV and be sure to search #VicksFlicks for all of his latest movie reviews.

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