Brat Farrar (bratfarrar) wrote,
Brat Farrar
bratfarrar

Review: Kingsman (film)

Well, this is certainly a movie that knows its genre and plays that out to the fullest. And has a very competent composer/sound director--got my heartrate up every single time they wanted.

But, to be fair, this is basically The Avengers (1998) with a bit more razz-ma-tazz, a heart-warming underdog subplot, and Samuel L. Jackson chewing up the scenery instead of Sean Connery. And the surreality is confined pretty much to one scene instead of spread throughout the whole thing--which is kind of to its detriment: when that scene (if you've seen it, you probably know the one I mean; Pomp & Circumstance) happens, the tonal whiplash was enough to throw me entirely out of the story. In fact, it made me wonder if the writer/director set up the entire movie solely to justify that scene--that's how much of a disconnect there is to the rest of the movie.

The testing/training bits were the best part, and I would happily have watched an entire movie built around them, with the supervillain plot shoved deep into the background, or out of the picture all together. Would have allowed a little more focus on the characters, so they could be developed beyond just character traits with faces.

But I suppose that's where TV (and Supernatural in particular) has me spoiled a bit. Long-form storytelling can allow writers and actors to build characters to the point where the seem like real people that could walk off the screen and onto the street, complete with childhoods, favorite foods, and their own TV-viewing habits. It's hard to do that in a mere 1.5-3 hours.

So, bottom line: was this movie fun? Sure. Something I'll watch again? Probably not, although if I was with a group that wanted to put it on I wouldn't mind.
Tags: reviews & recommendations
Subscribe

  • Dr. Boli forever!

    One of the delightful surprises of going through and spring-cleaning my Dreamwidth blog was discovering that DrBoli.com is still alive and kicking.…

  • Tennis balls, my liege

    I'm currently reading through the Henriad with some friends, and today we did the scene from Henry V where the crown prince of France sends…

  • 30-second review: Top Gun Maverick

    Lots of airplane/military visual porn, thought the retired fighter pilot I watched it with says all the military stuff is absolute gobbley gook.…

  • Post a new comment

    Error

    default userpic

    Your IP address will be recorded 

    When you submit the form an invisible reCAPTCHA check will be performed.
    You must follow the Privacy Policy and Google Terms of use.
  • 0 comments