A great combination of action and comedy

Rating: 8/10 (30 January 2015)

Kingsman was originally a graphic novel by Mark Millar (the creator of Kick Ass) and Dave Gibbons. Having read the novel, it's a decent story, that is sort of a coming of age film combined with a James Bond-like setting. It's a decent novel, but in my opinion it is overshadowed by Millar's previous works. However, the movie takes his ideas to different levels, and in almost all aspects it outperforms the novel.
The story is about a less fortunate 'lad' named Eggsy (Taron Egerton), who lives in a council flat after his father; a kingsman, is killed in action when he was a child. The movie centres around the spy world of the kingsman, Eggsy being trained to become a kingsman, and Samuel L Jackson's plot to 'save the world' by killing most of humanity, in what can only be described as a send up of our technological progress in the last 20 years.
Colin Firth is the true star of the show however, displaying the class and mannerisms of the gentlemen that are the kingsman, while kicking some serious ass in some scenes, and making amusing jokes in others.
The action you would expect in a spy movie is there in full force, some scenes are directed extremely well, combining a blend of blissful carnage while a blistering soundtrack plays overhead. The comedy is strong as well, while it may not be laugh out loud all the time, the film ticks along with a constant pace of puns and quips you would expect from this genre.
The movie also pokes fun at the genre throughout the film, whether it by using sarcastic remarks, breaking the fourth wall or using Eggsy's working class background to undermine the gadgets and flair of the 'kingsman'.
While the movie is great fun there were a few minor niggles that annoyed me. Obviously there are changes from the novel that change the story, but there are certain lines (one in particular involving a Swedish princess) that sometimes leave you almost cringing, and really felt out of place in the context of the movie.
Overall, if you are looking for an action packed movie full of entertainment and surprise then this is really good fun movie.