REVIEW: Kingsman: The Secret Service

Starring: Taron Egerton, Colin Firth, Samuel L Jackson, Mark Strong, Sophie Cookson, Michael Caine

Running time: 129 minutes

Released: January 29 (UK & Ireland)   

BRITISH director Matthew Vaughn, who made his name with Stardust, Kick-Ass and X-Men: First Class, directs – and co-scripts, with Jane Goldman - this irreverent and rather violent spin on spy capers, based on the comic book series by Dave Gibbons and Mark Millar.

Taron Egerton plays Gary ‘Eggsy’ Unwin, a bright, streetwise young man living in a tiny flat in a high rise with his mum – who is abused by her horrible boyfriend - and baby sister.

Ending up on the wrong side of the law and facing imprisonment, he uses his one get-out-of-jail-free card, a phone number on a medal which was given to him as a boy after his father died.

After calling the number, he’s saved from the clink by dapper gent Harry Hart (Colin Firth) who, it turns out, is a Kingsman secret agent boasting many and varied skills, including a superior level of brolly combat.

And what’s more, Harry mentored Eggsy’s dad before he was killed in the line of duty.

Harry puts Eggsy forward for an elite training programme to find a new Kingsman, and just in the nick of time too, as the world is under threat from megalomaniac technological wizard Valentine (Samuel L Jackson, who speaks with a lisp throughout).

As Valentine and his henchwoman Gazelle (Sofia Boutella) – who has deadly blades instead of legs – up the ante on their twisted ecological plans for the future of the planet, Eggsy must endure a baptism of fire in order to try and prevent chaos worldwide.

Fans of Vaughn’s previous work, particularly Kick-Ass, will embrace Kingsman whole-heartedly. Its key cast deliver winning performances and quite a chunk of it is stylish and fun.

It is, however, incredibly violent and possibly more suited to an audience of those aged 18 and above. Changes were made pre-release on the advice of the BBFC in order to secure a 15 rating. Quite a bit of the film is visceral and explicit, particularly one carnage-filled set-piece in a church.

As you’d expect from Vaughn, said content is beautifully choreographed and well soundtracked throughout.

Relative newcomer Egerton has an appropriately cheeky charm and it’s certainly a thrill to watch a former Mr Darcy executing edgy moves with such flair.

Sadly, things do go tonally awry throughout and Kingsman’s unevenness ruins its potential.

This is particularly noticeable during the penultimate showdown when the imperilment of a young child – and an unnecessarily crude motivating statement directed at the hero - is a jarring distraction during what has previously been a cartoonish and rather fun world-saving sequence.