By CYNTHIA BIDDLECOMB“Kingsman: The Golden Circle” is the second in what promises to be a fun franchise, loosely based on a UK-made series of spy action-comedy comic books that were first published by Marvel’s “Icon” Comics in 2012.
A sequel to “Kingsman: The Secret Service” (2014), The Golden Circle features some of the same central characters; but the threat of world domination is posed by a very different villain. Support for the good British guys comes from a new quarter, an American underground spy service.
Taron Egerton’s central character, Gary “Eggsy” Unwin, who went through training in the first film, has come into his own as a Kingsman. This organization of super spies uses a high end tailor shop in London as their front; each of them dresses in expensive suits; the tools of their trade are cool inventions like an umbrella shield/gun, and cars with special equipment, as in the James Bond movies. And as you might expect, the film opens with a car chase and the use of the cool gizmos.
The Kingsmen have nicknames from King Arthur’s Roundtable. Their American counterparts, the Statesmen, have the names of alcoholic beverages: Champagne (“Champ”) is played by Jeff Bridges, and his top guns are Whiskey (Pedro Pascal) and Tequila (Channing Tatum). Support and technical staff have related nicknames: Merlin (Mark Strong) for the Kingsmen, Ginger Ale (Halle Berry) for the Statesmen.
The villain is Poppy (played by Julianne Moore), a whip-smart Ivy League grad who plans to be as infamous as she is successful as a drug queen-pin. Her hold out in the jungles of the notorious Golden Triangle of Southeast Asia is filled with American retro pleasures. And she has a very famous hostage! Poppy’s methods of disposing of disappointing employees may gross you out if you take it too seriously, so don’t. It is only a movie, and, at that, a silly movie that goes over the top to make a point.
Instead, focus on the fact that the film’s cast includes five Oscar winners: Julianne Moore (2015), Halle Berry (2002), Jeff Bridges (2010), Colin Firth (2011) and Elton John (1995 Best Song). This film won’t win them any new Oscars, but you will love them for the fun they are having playing these characters! Enjoy the international locations, the snappy dialogue, and the inside jokes found in the details depicted. Please note that I’m not giving very much of the plot away here, so be surprised!
Kingsman: The Golden Circle is “Rated R for sequences of strong violence, drug content, language throughout and some sexual material.” Grown ups with a sense of humor, who love to laugh out loud, will love it!
