Taking an unusual direction from the previous two Kingsman movies, The King's Man ends up being far more serious and heavily influenced by historical events that happened a hundred years ago. Because of how much the film tries to tie these events into the story, it can feel confusing and messy with what is going on. Depending on expectations, people may end up being disappointed with this prequel.
Matthew Vaughn's stylistic direction still flourishes in the action sequences and panning shots. The new set of characters in this prequel/origin story include standouts such as Rhys Ifans playing the crazy Russian Rasputin chewing the scenery and acting crazy, and Ralph Fiennes' Oxford playing a dad who ends up bringing some genuine strength and emotion to the spy role with great stability.
Other characters also play their parts well, and the film looks pretty good in terms of production values and historical accuracy. If one thing is missing, it's the sense of charm and silliness of the first two films. That being said, the last third of the film did get me invested again. However, it wasn't quite enough to make up for the first hour or so of the film. The little glimpses of humour is present, but much rarer as the film focuses more on Drama.
My overall thoughts on The King's Man is I appreciate them trying something different here, despite not staying as consistently entertaining as the first two films. The twists and turns are a little hit and miss, but the way it ties into Kingsman at the very end works really well. In the end, I'd say The King's Man is worth at least a single watch, despite being much different and more different in perspective.
6/10.
