‘Kingsman: The Secret Service’ Reviews: Way More Fun Than ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’
The action-comedy directed and co-written by Matthew Vaughn is the perfect Valentine’s Day alternative for couples who prefer to keep violence out of the bedroom
Director and co-writer Matthew Vaughn‘s adaptation of a comic book by Mark Millar (“Kick-Ass”) and Dave Gibbons (“Watchmen”) has received a majority of glowing reviews for being a fun, stylish and subversive action movie about a super-secret spy organization that recruits an unrefined, but promising street kid into the its ultra-competitive training program.
The 20th Century Fox film has a 75 percent “fresh” approval rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, while “Fifty Shades” — an adaptation of author E.L. James‘ best-selling erotic romance novel — has been declared “rotten” with just a 43 percent approval rating.
TheWrap‘s James Rocchi hailed the action-comedy combo as Vaughn’s “best film,” beating out “Kick-Ass,” “Layer Cake” and “X-Men: First Class.”
“‘Kingsman: The Secret Service’ is a startlingly enjoyable and well-made action film leavened by humor and slicked along by style, made by, for, and about people who’ve seen far too many Bond films,” Rocchi wrote in his review. “As for the construction, it’s superb. The action may be ludicrous, but it’s also engaging and delightful; the production design is all tributes and nods to other films and other bits of pop culture, but ‘Kingsman’ also creates a coherent world for itself. The script’s tone, with a few notable disappointments, is also zesty but rarely sour, knowing yet rarely cynical.”
Entertainment Weekly critic Joe McGovern gave the “pure fanboy ecstasy” a “B,” and praised performances from Oscar winner Colin Firth and younger leading man Taron Egerton.
“A sequence in which Harry slaughters a churchful of rednecks hits the right anarchic note, showing Firth, at 54, with the balletic prowess of someone half his age,” McGovern wrote. “Speaking of young men, newcomer Taron Egerton, playing Harry’s protégé, delivers a star-making performance flush with the kind of charm and unexpected gravitas that no amount of flashy filmmaking can fake.”
Village Voice critic Alan Scherstuhl believes Vaughn has “whipped up the most interesting” comic book movie of the last few years — during which there has been too many to list here — for contradicting “jolly do-goodism and its brutalizing sadism.”
“Everything in ‘Kingsman’ is familiar, cribbed from James Bond and a thousand other sources, yet every setup gets twisted twice, and then once more, just when you think you’re ahead of it,” Scherstuhl wrote. “He invests the nastiest elements of kill-‘em-all entertainments with giddy invention, going so far over the top that you might worry, as the movie swells up bigger and bigger with its madness, that at some point it must collapse, crashing back into formula, the way most Bond and comic-book movies do. But somehow he keeps the craziness comin.”
Time Out London critic Tom Huddleston opined, “‘Kingsman’ is undoubtedly worth the ticket price. Just try not to think too much.”
Rolling Stone critic Peter Travers positioned it as a healthy theatrical alternative to “Fifty Shades of Grey” for those turned off by BDSM, but aroused by “unstoppable fun.”
“As sadistic toys go, I prefer the spy gadgets Harry Hart (Colin Firth) unleashes in ‘Kingsman: The Secret Service’ to anything Christian Grey brings out of his room of pain in ‘Fifty Shades of Grey.’ But, hey, that’s just me,” Travers wrote. “‘Kingsman’ is all over the place, sometimes to its detriment. But you won’t want to miss the surprises it delights in springing.”
New York Post critic Kyle Smith was among the 25 percent minority of critics that could not, and would not recommend the move to their readers.
“‘Kingsman: The Secret Service’ borrows the tone, story, characters and humor of ‘Kick-Ass,’ only this time in a 007 world instead of Batman’s. Nearly everything it does, it does poorly: This one is ‘Weak-Ass,'” Smith wrote. “Directed (like ‘Kick-Ass’) by Matthew Vaughn, ‘Kingsman’ is a mad clutter of ‘Austin Powers’-style parody, campy comedy and gory action. It’s like a salad composed of lettuce, tomatoes, butterscotch pudding, raw liver and motor oil.”
15 Movies You Already Forgot About: TheWrap's Best & Worst 2014 (Photos)
"I, Frankenstein": Alternatively titled, "I, Forgot This Move Ever Existed," the modern take on Mary Shelley's horror icon is most memorable for being a bad idea star Aaron Eckhart probably already turned into a repressed memory.
Lionsgate
"The Monuments Men": What happens when director and star George Clooney recruits acting titans Bill Murray, Matt Damon, Cate Blanchett, John Goodman and recent Best Actor Oscar winner Jean Dujardin to make a World War II drama? Critics write bad reviews, and the Nazis lose, or something. It's hard to remember more than that, since Clooney's BFF Brad Pitt put out a much better entry in the same genre eight months later.
Columbia Pictures
"Pompeii": This Carrie-Ann Moss and Kit Harington disaster flick about ancient Rome feels like ancient history, but it actually hit theaters in Feb. 2014. We're sure Sony Picture Entertainment would love for all traces of the seismic flop to be buried under a mountain of ash -- much like Pompeii was itself -- and permanently forgotten.
Sony Pictures
"The Pyramid": This found-footage thriller was dead upon arrival when it opened wide on Dec. 12. Fortunately for first-time director Gregory Levasseur, he wrote the screenplays for "High Tension" and "The Hills Have Eyes" remake, which will hold a place in horror history for years to come.
Twentieth Century Fox
"Men, Women & Children": Director Jason Reitman earned rave reviews for "Thank You for Smoking," "Juno" and "Up in the Air." His latest effort, however, failed to impress critics. Even the trailer failed to impress viewers, because it only grossed $1.7 million worldwide.
Paramount Pictures
"The Legend of Hercules": Not one but two movies about legendary Greek mythology hero Hercules came out this year, but neither made much of a splash. Kellan Lutz never had a chance with "The Legend of Hercules," which had a January release, but maybe he can rest easy knowing that even Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's August "Hercules" came and went without anyone noticing.
Summit Entertainment
"Need for Speed": A popular video game franchise, cool car chase and Jesse Pinkman from "Breaking Bad" sure seemed like a recipe for success, but the video game adaptation failed to create much excitement amongst any of the various fan groups that DreamWorks and Disney were banking on.
Walt Disney
"Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit": Tom Clancy's famous literary spy Jack Ryan has been on screen so many times -- played by A-list leading men Harrison Ford, Alec Baldwin and Ben Affleck -- that a new iteration seemed inevitable. But then director Kenneth Branagh's reboot starring Chris Pine came and went without many people noticing. Expect another reboot before you see a sequel.
Paramount Pictures
"Blended": Third time was definitely not the charm for Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore. While the Warner Bros. comedy tripled its budget at the box office, it will only be remembered for being one of Sandler's worst comedies yet, providing audiences didn't immediately wipe it from their memory when they walked out of the theater.
Warner Bros.
"Walk of Shame": Elizabeth Banks should actually be grateful that this movie has already escaped the minds of moviegoers, because the reviews weren't just bad -- they were atrocious.
Focus Features
"Into the Storm": Who can forget that flying cow in "Twister"? The giant tidal wave crushing Téa Leoni in "Deep Impact"? Or Steven Tyler's vocals in "Armageddon"? Now who can remember the names of the actors that ventured "Into the Storm" for Warner Bros. last summer?
Warner Bros.
"As Above, So Below": You can't tell from the title, but this is a found footage horror movie about people exploring the catacombs beneath the streets of Paris. And if you didn't know that, then you can probably also tell it didn't do very well in theaters.
Universal Pictures
"Brick Mansions": People are too busy looking forward to seeing Paul Walker's final performance in "Furious 7" to remember his in the American remake of French action flick "District B13."
Relativity Media
"Before I Go to Sleep": This psychological thriller boasted a star-studded cast, including Nicole Kidman, Colin Firth and Mark Strong, yet it only made $15 million worldwide when released in October.
Clarius Entertainment
"The Good Lie": This Warner Bros. release starring Reese Witherspoon actually earned rave reviews. Too bad it only earned $2.6 million at the box office. Luckily, Witherspoon managed to generate some awards buzz and secure a Golden Globe nomination for a different drama the critics loved.
Warner Bros.
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Remember when Aaron Eckhart played Frankenstein’s monster? Neither do we
"I, Frankenstein": Alternatively titled, "I, Forgot This Move Ever Existed," the modern take on Mary Shelley's horror icon is most memorable for being a bad idea star Aaron Eckhart probably already turned into a repressed memory.