“Kingsman: The Secret Service” is perhaps one of the best spy films to date, delivering intense action alongside a surprisingly good deal of comedy. Don’t expect a serious spy flick like Daniel Craig in “James Bond” or Robert Ludlum in “Jason Bourne.” “Kingsman” often pokes fun at itself as well like classic spy movies — even subtly breaking the fourth wall in a few scenes. It has the occasional dry humor of Bond films, too, as well as the sort of crude humor that a younger audience will find very funny.
The character development in “Kingsman” is simply excellent. All of the Kingsmen have distinct personalities, shaped and changed throughout the movie but not to unrealistic extremes. Eggsy (Taron Egerton), the lead character, for example, does not lose his aggressive manner and deft hands, despite changing in other ways throughout the movie. One minor issue with “Kingsman,” though, is the youthful appearance of Taron Egerton, which takes some getting used to because of the more mature scenes in the movie.
That being said, the acting in the movie was satisfactory and fit well with the characters’ ages and backgrounds. The villain of “Kingsman,” Richmond Valentine (Samuel L. Jackson), is interesting and has a dark sensibility that proves to be fairly humorous. Valentine is a genius who, in his own twisted way, is trying to save the world through mass genocide. While that may be incredibly evil, Valentine’s reasoning makes sense within the plot, and as a result he’s actually a believable character, unlike the stereotypical villains of most other spy movies.
While “Kingsman” may be a hair satirical, its action sequences are some of the best to date. The first half of “Kingsman” certainly has its share of action, but the movie hits its stride in the second half. Perhaps the most glorious fight scene ever produced happens in the latter half of the movie, during a scene in which Eggsy’s mentor, Harry Hart (Colin Firth), is in a church investigating a lead on Valentine. The tension carries throughout the movie and combines with a hilarious ending to make “Kingsman: The Secret Service” a fun and refreshing take on the spy genre.
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