Movie review - The King's Man

The King’s Man ** (out of 5) (R) I’ve come to expect a certain amount of sequel drop-off, but this one delivers prequel dropoff from two delightful Kingsman features of recent vintage - The Secret Service and The Golden Circle. Both were set in the present. This one goes back to World War I for the origins of the clandestine organization of British gentry who fight megavillains who threaten the world with the type of megalomanic schemes that drive all the James Bond flicks. Those films were elevated by stunning special effects and scripts that developed appealing protagonists with an adroit mix of action and humor. Most of that was missing here.

(Author’s note: Since the films are based on a series of comics I haven’t read, my perspective may vary from those who have. Look elsewhere to learn how faithful these are to the source material, and how eager its fans should be to see those pages translated to live action.)

The concept of the origin story is fine. Weaving actual figures and events from history into the tale is a mixed bag of pros and cons. Some bits go too far in fictionalizing facts without enhancing the tone of the product. No specifics here, since any details would serve as spoilers. Same for one very surprising plot twist that would have been a standout move in a film that featured more engaging characters.

A tragic death in the 1902 opening sequence shaped the lives of the Duke (Ralph Fiennes) and his son Conrad (Harris Dickinson), primarily in the form of dad cloistering the lad on their sprawling estate, excessively sheltered from the harsh realities of a dangerous world. But when the film resumes 12 years later, war looms on the horizon, and involvement becomes impossible to avoid. 18-year-old Conrad is eager to do his part, and bristles at his father’s refusal to let him join the ranks from the get-go. The rest of the film occurs during the war, with a few first-rate action sequences scattered among a lot of blah time.

Until now, Keven Costner’s Robin Hood was arguably filmdom’s dullest incarnation of a heroic English character. He was so non-charismatic that the standard inspirational speech to the troops before the big battle (Mel Gibson in Braveheart, for example) was delivered by Morgan Freeman. When Errol Flynn was Robin, he didn’t need a hype man for the Big Moment. But Dickinson takes dull to new heights, accentuated by comparison to Taron Egerton’s engaging persona and evolution from Eggsy the slacker to Eggsy the superspy in the previous Kingsman adventures. Fiennes mopes for too long before embracing what we all know will happen in their future from the two films we’ve seen in our past. Djimon Hounsou is underutilized, while Rhys Ifans’ camped-up gig as Rasputin is more annoying than entertaining. The deft humor of the other two films is sorely lacking here, making it seem much longer than its two hours of running time.

If you’re geared down for this relatively somber extension of the franchise, you might be more satisfied with what you get. For me, Colin Firth, Samuel L. Jackson, Sofia Boutella, Egerton and the others set the bar too high for this one to clear.

(In theaters 12/17/21)