Kingsman: The Secret Service

Directed by Matthew Vaughn

Starring Colin Firth, Taron Egerton, Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Strong, Michael Caine, Sophie Cookson, Sophia Boutella, and Mark Hamill.

Backstory

Kingsman was a film that was only tangentially on my radar.  All I knew was Matthew Vaughn, director of X-Men: First Class, quit Days of Future Past to go do it instead.  All I knew it was some kind of James Bond takeoff, based on a comic book by Mark Millar.  Then I took a step back and realized that it was pretty much the entire same creative team behind Kick-Ass.  And I enjoyed Kick-Ass.  I started wondering if they could do for the James Bond/superspy tropes that Kick-Ass did for superheroes.  And then the first trailers came along, and they looked insane, and I knew I had to see it.

Plot

Eggsy is a young man from the wrong side of the tracks in London.  His father died when he was very young, and he’s been in and out of trouble with the law for most of his life.  One day, in a desperate bid to stay out of prison, he calls upon one of his father’s old colleagues, Harry Hart.  And it turns out Mr. Hart is a man with a particular set of skills.  He’s a member of an elite secret organization called the Kingsman, dedicated to maintaining law and order around the globe.  And Harry thinks Eggsy has what it takes to be a new recruit.  As Eggsy begins going through his training, Harry and the Kingsman begin investigating tech billionaire Richmond Valentine, who seems to be up to some nefarious scheme that seeks harm to the world.  Will Eggsy complete his training?  Can Harry take down Valentine before his plot comes to fruition?

What I Liked

This is just fun.  There’s some fantastic fight scenes, and enough homages and touches and references to the James Bond formula that it helps to pay attention to catch them all.  Much like Kick-Ass, there’s a sharp sense of satire running beneath it.  Yeah, they poke fun at the formula, but it comes from a place of love.  Colin Firth is great as Harry Hart, really shaking that rom-com image he seems to have.  Samuel L. Jackson is a great Bond-style villain, and just the right amount of over the top.  Plus, it is a little nerd-tacular to see Luke Skywalker and Mace Windu sharing a scene.

What I Didn’t Like

Well, kind of the same problem I had with Kick-Ass.  While it does have fun being self-referential and pointing out the tropes of the genre, it winds up following the formula just a little too closely, resulting in the film being a bit formulaic.

Final Assessment

Just a fun movie.  A great skewering and love letter to the James Bond and all of the superspy genre.

3 Nibs

Jupiter Ascending

Directed by the Wachowskis

Starring Channing Tatum, Mila Kunis, Sean Bean, Eddie Redmayne, and Douglas Booth.

Backstory

Yay!  The Wachowskis are back with a brand-new sci-fi epic!  Like a lot of geeks, I’m still a big fan of The Matrix (I’m pretty indifferent towards the sequels, and don’t greet them with hatred), and I know I’m a minority here, but I love love LOVE Speed Racer.  Those two films alone are enough for me to raise my eyebrows in curiosity whenever their next film is announced.  And for their next film, they decided to do a good ol’ space opera.  Of course, there were some bad vibes, as this was originally supposed to come out back in July, but got pushed back to February to tinker with the special effects.  Such delays are rarely a good sign for a film.  But still, I was curious.

Plot

Jupiter Jones, the daughter of Russian immigrants, makes her living in the family business:  they’re cleaning ladies, scrubbing the toilets of Chicago’s elite.  Inspired by stories of her astronomer father, who was killed before she was born, Jupiter often looks up at the stars and dreams of something more.  “Something more” soon falls in her lap, after a visit to medical clinic results in aliens trying to kill her, and Caine, the half-human/half-wolf alien bounty hunter comes to her rescue.  Turns out Jupiter has the exact same genetic code as the deceased queen of the section of the galaxy that Earth falls in.  Under the galactic bureaucracy, this makes Jupiter the heir to the throne.  The queen’s children are all after Jupiter for their own nefarious means, mostly to secure their claims to the throne.  With the assistance of Caine and his old partner Stinger, Jupiter must do battle with the queen’s children, and navigate a galactic bureaucracy, in order to secure her throne.  Will Jupiter ascend the throne and become Queen of Earth?

What I Liked

The Wachowskis once again showcase their talent for world-building, giving us lush alien civilizations, and all manner of alien beings, mostly humans that have been enhanced with animal DNA, giving them animal characteristics.  And it’s cute that there’s a huge scene in the middle dealing with the galactic bureaucracy of Jupiter filing her claim to the throne.  Unlike most cop shows, this one takes the time to show you the paperwork.  And it is kind of funny in places.  While most people speak in the faux-Shakespearian that’s common in most sci-fi films, Jupiter always responds with a very realistic “Holy crap.”

What I Didn’t Like

Sadly, the plot does get a little repetitive, and each royal family member’s plot is discovered and foiled.  And it’s usually foiled in the same way, with Caine charging in at the last minute to save Jupiter.  Despite being our protagonist, Jupiter isn’t very proactive, just kind of going with the flow.

Final Assessment

I got a decidedly John Carter vibe for Jupiter Ascending.  Too much focus on world-building, not enough focus on plot and character development.

2 Nibs