By Joseph Farella (@farellajoseph)
Kingsman: The Golden Circle is the sequel to the movie Kingsman: The Secret Service which was the surprise movie of 2014. In that movie, Eggsy, played by Taron Egerton, goes from ordinary loser with potential to butt-kicking gentleman with help from Harry Hart, Colin Firth, as he joins a secret spy organization called Kingsman. Think James Bond but with a more comic-book, fun flare.
In the sequel, Matthew Vaughn, the director, does what every comic-book movie –or sequel for that matter – does: ups the ante. In The Golden Circle, as we are shown in the trailers, the Kingsman are essentially taken out by villainous Poppy (Julianna Moore), and only two remain: Eggsy and tech wizard Merlin (Mark strong). To defeat Poppy, Eggy and Merlin must team up with their “American cousins,” the Statesmen.
Let me say this right away: The Golden Circle is not as good as the original, but I don’t think it’s as bad some reviews, or the 50% rotten score on Rotten Tomatoes, would have you believe. These two Kingsman movies, whether you love them or hate them, have some interesting and clever villains who have some equally original plans to accomplish their goals, and Poppy is no exception. I won’t say what her plan is or how she goes about accomplishing it, but it is definitely a clever, if evil, plan.
At times however, The Golden Circle spends too much time on sub-plots that I could have definitely done without. There is a running storyline between Eggsy and his girlfriend that I just honestly did not care about at all. Also, we see the President of the US in a couple scenes and I hated every time he was on screen. We do see Elton John (yes, he’s in this movie) a few times and at first I liked him and his storyline, but then they keep going back to him and I just wanted to move on. The movie is not killed by these sub-plots, but it would’ve been tighter if they had been left out or given less time to.
Where Kingsman does succeed is in its originality and action. The franchise makes a deeper turn into the first’s campiness and does so without shame. The action and the dynamic between the Kingsmen and Statemen is fun, but Egerton is the main attraction here, and his charisma and acting really keep Kingsman interesting and fun.
All in all, Kingsman: The Golden Circle isn’t as good as its predecessor, but is a decent follow up nonetheless. This franchise maintains its originality and creative villains while introducing new characters and organizations. I wouldn’t mind seeing a third movie in this franchise as long as the plot is a little bit more focused. Remember: Manners maketh man.
GRADE: B
