Kingsman: The Secret Service (2015)

*** out of ****

As a kid I had a good friend who was a monstrous fan of the James Bond movie franchise. When we were about 11 or 12 he would invite me to stay over at his house to stay up half the night watching old Bond movies, eating popcorn and basically acting like we were considerably more sophisticated about the ways of spies (and women) than we really were.

Luckily the camaraderie was excellent, because for the most part the movies were not. The occasional Connery-as-Bond one was watchable, but for the most part they were sophomoric drivel full of cartoon characters. The modern ones are much better, but the old ones for the most part stink.

While it's clear that the writer and filmmakers of “Kingsman” were also big fans of James Bond, and offer considerable nods to that franchise throughout, they have gone out of their way to create their own identity for the"Kingsman". Colin Firth is Harry Hart, a longtime member of this society of secret agents, and he dives into the role with gusto. A proper English gentleman who also happens to have combat moves straight out of the Matrix and a pocketful of gizmos that would make Q jealous, Harry blames himself for the loss of a comrade 17 years ago. As a result he has kept an eye on his friend's son Eggsy (Taron Egerton) and when an opening in the “Kingsman” society becomes available, he proposes him as a candidate.

Much of this comes straight out of “Men in Black” (1997) where Eggsy is the Will Smith character, the one candidate from the wrong side of the tracks that doesn't seem to fit in with the rest of the group. But as the trials get more and more challenging, Eggsy is one of a couple of candidates that seem the clear favorites.

In the meantime, uber-villain Richmond Valentine (Samuel L. Jackson) is plotting a world domination scheme that Dr. Evil himself would envy. He is giving away free internet and cell calling in an altruistic manner similar to giveaways from other super-rich tech geniuses. But what nobody knows is that he actually has an agenda for this – the sim cards can cause the phones to release a sonic pulse that turns everyone into the “rage disease” freaks from “28 Days Later”. Basically, it makes them kill anyone they see or even know is nearby.

Valentine's reason for this despicable plot is his obsession with climate change – to prevent man's ongoing consumption of every natural resource, he needs to cull the population back to manageable levels. Having them kill each other seems perfectly logical, right?  The Kingsman society need to figure out what he's up to and put a stop to it.

Oh yeah, did I mention that he has a personal bodyguard (Sophie Cookson) that makes Gogo from “Kill Bill” look like Darla from the Little Rascals? She has no legs but walks on razor sharp Oscar Pistorius-type artificial blades, and shows early in the film that she can cut you in half with them. Vertically.

Most of the film is all in good fun, though I felt that some of the fight scenes are overly long and gratuitously violent (though beautifully choreographed). The nods to other film franchises come often and are usually entertaining (though a particular nod to Bond at the end of the film – where James always gets the girl – was a bit over-the top). Basically good fun and enjoyable throughout, it's non-stop action and I hope there will be a followup.

That's the good. But there is some bad.... namely Samuel L. Jackson as Valentine. I have great respect for Jackson – especially when he takes on roles that really challenge him. Jules in “Pulp Fiction”, Ordell in “Jackie Brown”, Stephen in “Django Unchained”.... all excellent. But when he takes on rather milquetoast roles where he isn't challenged, I generally find him hard to take. This film is a perfect example – any number of actors could have played this role, which is critical to the plot but pretty simple from an actor's point of view. Jackson tries to salt it a bit by adding a silly lisp and over-the-top colourfulness to the part, but I found it all rather painful. Valentine is supposed to be some kind of genius but due to the treatment the part gets he is just a fool. I would have much preferred someone to take on the part who would play it more straight and draw out the folly of the character through irony instead of idiocy.

But those small criticisms aside it is a fun movie for action movie fans, and great fun for spy movie fans.  If your looking for high drama you won't find it, but if a good time at the theater is the goal, you'll be very satisfied with "Kingsman".