Director Matthew Vaughn blends fact with fiction in The King’s Man, a
highly enjoyable prequel and third outing in The Kingsman franchise.
The plot, while slightly ludicrous but a lot of fun, sees Orlando, Duke of
Oxford (Ralph Fiennes) and his son Conrad (Harris Dickson) becoming mixed
up in various events prior to and during World War 1. The main plot sees
him tackling with Rasputin (Rhyus Ifans) The Mad Monk who is conspiring
with a mad faceless Scotsman (in case you’re worried he does have a face
but his identity his hidden until a Scooby-doo reveal at the end) to change
the course of World War 1 and bring independence to Scotland.
The plan to stop the mad monk involves a poisoned Bakewell tart prepared by
Poly (Gemma Arterton), the Oxford’s nanny who also doubles as a spy in her
spare time and who is in charge of the Oxford’s spy network that’s made up
of maids and butlers in various powerful people’s homes across the world, I
did say that it was ludicrous.
Vaughn peppers his film with a number of exciting set pieces, each one more
elaborate than the one before, a terrific scene set in the battlefields of
The Great War gives the set pieces in Sam Mendes 1917 a run for their money
whilst the ending set on a mountain top is spectacular.
After the awful Kingsman: Golden Circle (1917) Vaughn has managed to
breathe new life into a franchise that looked dead on its feet, The King’s
Man might not be the most accurate history lesson that you’ll ever get but
it sure is a hell of a lot of fun. Don’t Miss
