The first Kingsman film was a blast. An adrenaline shot of humor and energy from beginning to end. So it was a no –brainer that a sequel would happen.
The second round, Kingsman: The Golden Circle, brings the fun and energy – especially the opening sequence that finds Eggsy (Taron Egerton) in a fast-paced car chase while Prince’s ‘Let’s Go Crazy’ plays in the background – but goes a little overboard and add too much with the world of secret secret agents.
After their headquarters are destroyed by Poppy (Julianne Moore), a deranged June Cleaver-like drug lord, Eggsy and Merlin (Mark Strong) head to America in search of another spy agency, Statesman. The two agencies join forces to find and destroy Poppy, who has just released a deadly drug on the world.
The thing is Poppy’s demands aren’t exactly end of the world danger: she wants the world’s leaders, particularly the American President, to make drugs legal. The way she does it is wrong, obviously, but you’d think the filmmakers have had her demand something more… diabolical?
The film introduces a handful of new characters that work for Statesman: Tequila (Channing Tatum), Champagne (Jeff Bridges), Halle Berry (Ginger Ale) and Whiskey (Pedro Pascal). None, though, are as remotely interesting and fun as the original Kingsman crew. They don’t have that gravitas and distinguished presence the British crew has. And Pascal, in his cowboy hat and mustache, looks so much like Burt Reynolds that it’s almost distracting.
What works are the scenes between Eggsy, Merlin and the not-dead Harry (Colin Firth), who Statesman rescued after the climactic battle seen in the last film. The three have such great chemistry that it’s almost frustrating when the American’s are in them.
Still, with the frenetic action scenes and the original cast saving the day, the film will satisfy fans until part 3 rolls around.
