Matthew Vaughn shows that he is fully capable of pulling off a sequel, although the formula is relatively the same. The more than entertaining fight scenes and witty dialogue proves that Kingsman: The Golden Circle is a worthy box office hit.
******WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS******
The sequel immediately starts off outside the Kingsman tailor shop, with a well-dressed Eggsy, (Taron Egerton) leaving only to find ex-Kingsman trainee, Charlie (Edward Holcroft). We get a high-speed car chase showcasing Vaughn’s signature action shots, with the slow-motion stunts and fast-paced movements, along with demonstrating the ultra-cool gadgets the Kingsman possess. However, we don’t get to see the Kingsman for long, including newbies Arthur (Michael Gambon) and Lancelot, aka Roxy (Sophie Cookson). The film’s new villain, Poppy (Julianne Moore) takes care of that by blowing up all the Kingsman branches, and homes; RIP Eggsy’s dog, J.B. At this point, all ties to the previous film have been severed. Eggsy and Merlin (Mark Strong) leave for America with their Doomsday protocol, and thus a new era begins.
The Statesman, the American cousin to the Kingsman get off to a rocky start, thanks to Tequila (Channing Tatum), who ties them up and uses scare tactics to get them to speak. It is then when we find out Harry (Colin Firth) is still alive!! But how? He got shot in the head. Ginger (Halle Berry), the American Merlin, came to the rescue when she got a signal that one member was in the area. With a device made specifically for head shots, she manages to save Harry, but he recovers with amnesia, returning to a state of mind before he joined the Kingsman. Harry is aloof and clueless with a soft, kind heart. Eggsy and Merlin try to trigger Harry’s memory, but when he finally recovers, he still has PTSD which causes him to be a loose cannon. He becomes someone who is unreliable at times and the audience questions if he can be back in the game.
So the plot? The story-line? A villain makes a product that is distributed to the majority of people around the world. Something within that product will go off at a set time and cause the users to die. Oh, and all the people who join this organization will have something on their bodies to signify they are a part of a secret business. Sound a bit familiar? I understand that it is another save the world situation, but Matthew Vaughn follows his first film to a tee. It isn’t the trainee movie we get in the first one, but the end of the world situation is similar. It is still entertaining as heck and a wild ride from start to finish, with ridiculous fight scenes, electric lassos, and deaths by meat grinder.
But let us get to the best part of the film: ELTON JOHN. Who knew that this singing icon would play such a role in this film? Being a huge contribution to the comedy factor of this film, he is forced to play the piano for Poppy, but he resists in the end, fighting off baddies in Gucci™ and leather heeled-boots. A true icon, indeed.
Kingsman: The Golden Circle doesn’t disappoint with the action and comic-like fight scenes with a soundtrack that keeps it entertaining. The original score by Henry Jackman plays with the spy theme and gives us something to look forward to as it closes the film, a third movie. This time, with Channing Tatum in a dapper suit instead of denim and a cowboy hat. 4/5 Stars.
