Review: Kingsman: The Golden Circle

"Kingsman: The Golden Circle" is an action-packed sequel that contains much of what audiences loved from the original 2015 British spy flick, a little too much actually.

Director Mathew Vaughn's "Kingsman: The Secret Service" was an action-spy-comedy that turned out to be one of the biggest surprise hits of that year, grossing over $400 million worldwide at the box office. Vaughn and the original cast return joined by a handful of new stars to create a follow-up that ends up being pretty good, just not great.

Taking place a year after the events of the first film, this sequel finds the independent British intelligence agency under attack from a mysterious group known as the "Golden Circle." With their resources and many of their agents taken off the board, they must turn to their American counterparts the "Statesman" for help in saving the world from another powerful threat.

With the original film being such an unexpected hit, fans were eager for this second installment to hit theaters. While the movie does include a lot of what was great about the original (cool gadgets, stylishly shot action, campy dialogue) it can't help but suffer from sequel syndrome. It takes the things people liked about the first movie and dials them up about 20 notches. Unfortunately it gets to the point where it stops being fun and starts being a bit ridiculous. The film also has what I'm calling "Guardians of the Galaxy" syndrome working against it. Here I mean that the first movie was such a surprise smash with both audiences and critics alike, expectations for the sequel were set very high and it's tough to live up to that hype.

Now don't get me wrong, there's still a lot of stuff to like in this movie. It just manages to go overboard with a most of it. Starting with the cast, Taron Egerton still shines as plucky Kingsman agent Gary "Eggsy" Unwin. He brings back his trademark charm and wit to the role that people love. Also returning is Mark Strong as tech support specialist Merlin and - in a not-so-surprising twist since they gave it away in the trailers - Colin Firth as Eggsy's mentor Harry Hart; the father-figure thought to be dead after a gunshot to the head in the first movie. I won't give away the story surrounding Harry's return but I will say that it is equally ridiculous and satisfying. This charming core trio provides a lot of the emotional depth to the film and it's obvious these three actors work well together. Their relationship to each other helps keep the heart of the film intact. Unfortunately that's something I can't say for the rest of the cast.

This movie was marketed as having a huge ensemble cast featuring big stars Jeff Bridges, Halle Berry and Channing Tatum as Statesman agents. In reality, these roles are barely above the cameo level. Hell, even Elton John has more screen time than Tatum or Bridges and he's just the random celebrity comic relief. That being said, the Statesman agency as a whole is a fun, rough, Western foil to the sophisticated wit of the Kingsman. Pedro Pascal is the standout Statesman as agent Whiskey, who joins Eggsy and Harry on their mission. His style of fighting using a whip and lasso make for some really creative fight sequences.

If I can paraphrase a line from the original, a spy movie is really only as good as its' villain. This time around we get Julianne Moore as Poppy Adams, the leader of the titular Golden Circle and head of the world's largest drug cartel. I have to be honest that it's really tough to replace a villain that was as equally entertaining and diabolical as Samuel L. Jackson's Richmond Valentine from the first film. While maybe not living up to his memory, Moore's Poppy does shine all on her own. She is entertaining every time she's on screen and her outward sweetness obviously masks her underlying psychopathy. Sophisticated yet unsettling, like every good spy movie villain should be. I'm still not exactly sure what her motivations were throughout the film but she was amusing to watch.

The action sequences are just as exciting and beautifully shot as they were in the original. Vaughn proves once again that he has a knack for filming a fight scene. While the film's story leaves a lot to be desired, the action serves to drive it forward. It's stylish, visually impressive, and fun to watch. It gets your heart racing and will satisfy any action movie enthusiast. I feel like I keep using the phrase "fun to watch" and truth be told this movie is fun to watch, but not much more. Like I said before, the film tries to take everything that was great about the first movie and do it again, only bigger. It just goes to show that bigger isn't always better as it all starts to come off as too over-the-top and sometimes so campy it's laughable - and not in a good way.

The core trio of Merlin, Eggsy and Harry do a great job of making viewers care about what's happening to them but the supporting cast really only serves to present exposition and help move the somewhat predictable story along. The action is great from the film's opening scene, to the assault on Poppy's hide-out, but too much of it results in some almost whiplash-like changes in the movie's pace. It's a fun movie to watch... as long as you turn your brain off. Vaughn has stated he already has plans for a third installment. Here's hoping he dials it back a little next time instead of trying outdo himself again.

Final Thoughts: "Kingsman: The Golden Circle" contains all the stylish action, British wit and campy fun of its predecessor on a larger scale, but fails to bring the same wow factor that captured audience's affections the first time around.

Overall Grade: C+

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