Kingsman: The Golden Circle
Kingsman: The Golden Circle starts with a bang and so does its predecessor. Both films start with a car chase featuring the Pan zoom shot, a signature of director Matthew Vaughn. The first car chase displays the rather “docile” action of carjacking. Kingsman: The Golden Circle, however, takes a much more extreme approach, full of car door sliding off, mechanical arms detaching, and even car surfing this scene represents how Kingsman: The Golden Circle is a much more extreme take on undercover agent action. What was unique to the first Kingsman was its fun and exciting take on the James Bond Esque genre of films. Some of the originality of the first is lost in the second, with the second films much more explosive take on the genre, it fails to capture the full potential that was achieved in the first film. This is not to say that Kingsman: The Golden Circle is a bad film, it is incredibly funny, exciting, and even heartbreaking at some points. What helps the film capture these emotions can be accredited to its soundtrack, the actors, and the visual effects.
The soundtrack in Kingsman is great. Whether it be the song featured in the final battle or songs hummed by characters throughout the movie, each musical note seems to have a purpose. “Kingsman Hoedown” is the official name given to the final track, but within the song, there are bits and pieces of songs we have all heard. The song helps capture the American essence that was the focus of the film. It also provides a fast-paced beat that coincides with every punch thrown. Nonetheless, the song that steals the show is the campfire classic, Country Roads. This song was first introduced when Merlin, played by Mark Strong, started to hum the classic tune. From then on it warped around the storyline and created a familiar note for the reader to refer back too.
The actors’ personas in the film radiated off the screen to be consumed by the hungry-for-more audience. Eggsy, played by Taron Egerton, is the protagonist in this film, as well as the last. He is supported by A-listers such as Julianne Moore, the film’s villain, Channing Tatum, Halle Barry, and Jeff Bridges. Colin Firth also makes a return from the original film to play Lancelot once again, but the person who stole the show is once again Taron Egerton. He perfectly portrayed the confused teenager, who was looking for something more in the first film. In Kingsman: The Golden Circle his portrayal of a confident agent is executed beautifully. Another surprise standout is Elton John, who makes an elongated cameo, in which he provides more than a few hilarious remarks. Mark Strong was also great when playing Merlin. He kept the same ride-or-die attitude he had in the first movie, which is made that much better with his Scottish accent. Overall Kingsmen is a Funhouse, that when entered is hard to return from.
