Kingsman The Beginning: The Action Movie Prequel Reviewed
from Nils Ahrensmeier 
on January 15, 2022, 16:29 | Write a comment
With "Kingsman The Beginning" Matthew Vaughn brings the long-awaited prequel to the very successful "Kingsman" films to the big screen. We watched the film.
The Kingsman films "The Secret Service" and "The Golden Circle" were one of the biggest action surprises of the last decade. They combined the British gentleman style with action-packed fights and funny villains, which quickly filled the box office. The first part made back four times its production costs, the second part almost reached that amount. It was logical that another film was only a matter of time, but few had expected a prequel.
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Kingsman The Beginning Synopsis
The film takes place about 100 years before the first two parts, at the time of the First World War. Because of this time jump, completely new characters had to be created, which is always a risk in a successful series. The main character is the British Duke Orlando Oxford, who loses his wife while working for the Red Cross. On this day he swears to protect his son, who saw the death of his mother as a child, from danger forever. This also includes preventing future wars, without which he would not have had to take part in the mission. So he founds a spy network with his maid Polly and his butler Shola to prevent future conflicts between great powers. But in the background someone wants to set the great powers against each other to create a big war and when Conrad (Oxford's son) wants to serve in the British military, the drama takes its course.
An important part of the film is the lead actor's father-son relationship. (Image: The Walt Disney Company)
A mix of dark drama and historical action
Anyone hoping for over-the-top action with lots of humor will be disappointed. The film is very different from the other two films. The film is darker, has fewer action scenes than its predecessors and the humor isn't as exaggerated either. In addition, the background story is not fictitious like in the Kingsman films, but is based on historical events. The cast is very high quality. As the main role, Ralph Fiennes (also in: Harry Potter, Schindler's List, James Bond) plays the role of the Duke of Oxford very authentically and not too "over the top". Harris Dickinson, who has been relatively unknown up to now, also knows how to convince in his role as Conrad.
But many of the roles, which are well cast, are not given enough time to develop. One example would be Daniel Brühl, who became known as "Fredrick Zoller" and plays the con man Erik Hanussen in the film. He is one of the puppet masters who is supposed to start the First World War. But you don't really learn much about the person, because after a few minutes the next storyline has to be continued. And that is precisely the big problem with the film.
Too much to tell, already too long
Vaughn has taken on a lot with The Beginning. On the one hand, he wants to tell a family drama with a father-son story, which should then also explain the founding of the Kingsman. Incidentally, the third story line is still running, which would like to explain the historical events. At 130 minutes, the film is very long, but still doesn't manage to tell everything completely. A few questions and logic holes stayed with me after leaving the cinema hall, which in a hinted sequel in the probably "2. World War Setting” could be solved. A little less scope and more focus on important storylines would have done the film good.
Three strands of film is too much even for 130 minutes. (Image: The Walt Disney Company)
Despite a critical eye: 130 minutes of pure entertainment
But that doesn't mean I didn't feel entertained. From a technical point of view, the film is completely convincing. Large pictures, outstanding cuts and exciting action scenes ensure constant entertainment, and the fans are also served with a few allusions to the other two films. You don't necessarily have to have seen the films, it's just an advantage. One of the string pullers is dealt with in more detail and probably makes for one of the highlight scenes in the film. Rasputin, played by Rhys Ifans (also: Spider Man, Notting Hill), provides the strangest scenes and brings a bit of the classic Kingsman style to the otherwise serious film.
Despite small logical errors, the film is very entertaining for more than 130 minutes.
(Image: The Walt Disney Company)
Conclusion
Kingsman "The Beginning" leaves me a little torn. The film seems too overloaded, which is especially noticeable in the ridiculous antagonist and the too many storylines. Nevertheless, he offers a very strong cast, which convinces with technically excellent pictures. I would like to highlight Gemma Arterton as Polly and Harris Dickinson as Conrad. As a fan of the first two films, I was able to experience many allusions and backgrounds to the first two films, but these are disturbed by logic holes in connecting the storylines.