Kingsman: The Golden Circle

Right in line with its passable yet far-from-flawless predecessor, Kingsman: The Golden Circle follows Taron Egerton’s Eggsy as he’s once again enlisted to save the world from a megalomaniacal supervillain (Julianne Moore’s Poppy this time around) – with the character receiving able assistance from mark Strong’s Merlin and Colin Firth’s not-quite-as-dead-as-assumed Harry Hart. Though it kicks off with an almost disastrously over-the-top action sequence, one that is so heavy with computer-generated effects it would be more at home in a video game, Kingsman: The Golden Circle segues into a deliberately-paced midsection that’s generally far more entertaining and engaging than one might’ve anticipated. It’s clear that filmmaker Matthew Vaughn’s decision to employ a distinctly deliberate pace, coupled with a refreshing absence of wall-to-wall mayhem, plays a pivotal role in separating Kingsman: The Golden Circle from its mostly ineffective contemporary action brethren, with, as a point of fact, the movie generally faring better than the last few James Bond pictures (up to a point, anyway). The strong chemistry between Egerton and Firth’s respective characters is certainly a key aspect of Kingsman: The Golden Circle‘s mild success, and it’s clear, too, that Moore’s entertainingly scenery-chewing turn continues the franchise’s emphasis on appreciatively larger-than-life baddies. It’s disappointing to note, then, that Kingsman: The Golden Circle ultimately begins to buckle beneath the weight of an absurd and unreasonably overlong running time, with the excessive atmosphere draining the movie’s final stretch of whatever impact it might’ve otherwise had – which, in the end, cements the film’s place as a decent spy caper that could (and should) have been so much better.

**1/2 out of ****