Kingsman: The Golden Circle
A year after the events of the Kingsman: The Secret Service, Eggsy (Taron Egerton) is chased down by former Kingsman trainee Charlie Hesketh (Edward Holcroft). It transpires that Hesketh is working for Poppy Adams (Julianne Moore), who helms the world's largest drug cartel, a sinister organisation known as "The Golden Circle". When she successfully destroys Kingsman's UK bases, Eggsy and Merlin (Mark Strong) must enlist the assistance of their US sister group Statesman, who have successfully saved the life of Harry Hart (Colin Firth), presumed dead from the previous film.
A mixed bag of performances here. I like Egerton, although I thought he was better in "Eddie The Eagle". Strong and Firth once again provide some much needed class to a film I'd probably like a good deal less without them. Moore is totally phoning it in and you'd scarcely believe that this was the same actor who was so brilliant in "Still Alice". But then Samuel L Jackson was similarly unconvincing in the first outing. I like Channing Tatum and Halle Berry but both are underused, whilst Pedro Pascal is the best of the performers from the other side of the Atlantic, providing a nice take on the "manners maketh man" pub fight from the first film.
There's a mixed bag in terms of the visuals too. Occasionally the fight sequences seemed dizzying and repetitive, but with flickers of invention. I've no real idea why Elton John is in this film, apparently kidnapped by Poppy. He can't act, but gets a couple of solid laughs. If nothing else, you get to see him and Colin Firth fight a robot dog,
The main talking point of the film is a tasteless sequence at Glastonbury that there's little justification for, beyond director Matthew Vaughan attempting to one up the closing shot of the first film and stick a middle finger up to those who complained about it. It's frustrating because it's totally unnecessary. An emotive sequence that follows with Harry and Eggsy feels genuine and earned, but jarrs with the sexist nonsense that comes before.
The critical kicking the film has received lowered my expectations going in, but I didn't resent the 2 and a quarter hours I spent in the cinema. It's flawed multiplex fodder, but not without redeeming features. I'd probably go and see a third.
A mixed bag of performances here. I like Egerton, although I thought he was better in "Eddie The Eagle". Strong and Firth once again provide some much needed class to a film I'd probably like a good deal less without them. Moore is totally phoning it in and you'd scarcely believe that this was the same actor who was so brilliant in "Still Alice". But then Samuel L Jackson was similarly unconvincing in the first outing. I like Channing Tatum and Halle Berry but both are underused, whilst Pedro Pascal is the best of the performers from the other side of the Atlantic, providing a nice take on the "manners maketh man" pub fight from the first film.
There's a mixed bag in terms of the visuals too. Occasionally the fight sequences seemed dizzying and repetitive, but with flickers of invention. I've no real idea why Elton John is in this film, apparently kidnapped by Poppy. He can't act, but gets a couple of solid laughs. If nothing else, you get to see him and Colin Firth fight a robot dog,
The main talking point of the film is a tasteless sequence at Glastonbury that there's little justification for, beyond director Matthew Vaughan attempting to one up the closing shot of the first film and stick a middle finger up to those who complained about it. It's frustrating because it's totally unnecessary. An emotive sequence that follows with Harry and Eggsy feels genuine and earned, but jarrs with the sexist nonsense that comes before.
The critical kicking the film has received lowered my expectations going in, but I didn't resent the 2 and a quarter hours I spent in the cinema. It's flawed multiplex fodder, but not without redeeming features. I'd probably go and see a third.
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