Does Kingsman hold up 5 years later?

It's interesting how much has changed in 5 years, especially in the film industry. Giants have risen and some have fallen. In the last five years Garry 'Eggsy' Erwin has become a Disney princess and his actor has become the new hot ticket, now gathering Oscar buzz for his career defining portrayal of Elton John in Rocketman. Kingsman is one of my favourite franchises. I saw The Golden Circle in its opening week and still swoon over the suits, laugh at the quips and feel no shame enjoying the ridiculous action that defies any sense of logic. But as fun as Golden Circle was today we're going to be looking at its predecessor, Kingsman: The Secret Service and if five years later it's still worth talking about.

I re-watched the film only last night after feeling in the mood for extreme violence and good looking people doing backflips. It had been a while since I watched the original so it was only the big set-pieces that I remembered such as the opening car chase which never fails to make me laugh and of course the church sequence which is still one of the coolest and yet most uncomfortable things to watch ever. I was concerned that after seeing it already that I wouldn't get as much enjoyment out of this film... I was wrong, but not for the reasons you might think.

The first thing that struck me was how fresh the film still feels. After a James Bond movie that can only be summed up as "boring" and multiple spy films following an already worn formula Kingsman still feels like the new kid on the block. The new R-rated, drugged up beyond all reason kid on the block. It's cheeky, self-referencial, theatrical and most importantly has characters the audience will stick with through all of this madness.

For those not aware, Kingsman is about an unemployed 20-something delinquent called Garry "Eggsy" Erwin. Or just Eggsy. After his father died 17 years ago a strange, immaculately dressed Harry Heart (Colin Firth) came to his house and gave him a medal, telling him to ring the number on the back if ever he needed help. When Eggsy is arrested for stealing his step-brothers car (in a scene which never gets old) he decides to try the number, resulting in Harry bailing him out and recruiting him to become a Kingsman agent, an extremely flashy "secret" group of gentlemen spies that his father was in before him. However one does not simply become a Kingsman and in order to join Eggsy must partake in the most dangerous job interview in the world. Meanwhile a villainous Samuel L Jackson hatches a ghastly plan to half the worlds population (back off Thanos, Valentine did it first)

Kingsman's characters are what elevate it from parody pulp into something genuinely exciting. Every character has a backstory, something that endears them and unlike most action films we're given enough time to get to know them and sympathise with them. Sure your action sequences might be incredible but if we don't care about the people in them... well, we don't care. Taron Egerton is brilliant as Eggsy to the point where I can't imagine anyone else in the role. Colin Firth gives us his best Bond but with a vulnerability and hints of a dark side that you can't help but find compelling. Harry Heart is both a father figure to Eggsy and a mentor while also being the most violent character in the film. Also Sophie Cooksman as Roxy deserves a special mention. What were they thinking of killing her off in Golden Circle. This woman is a brilliant character we know far too little about and yet brings something fantastically cool to every scene she's in. Roxy deserves better and this film is the perfect advertisement for that. #justiceforroxy

Talking of Roxy's unfortunate mis-use. The film does have some gender discrimination problems... and some representation problems... It's still better than Bond but that's really not hard now is it? Bond is a low bar for representation, we can unanimously agree on that. You could argue that the lack of representation in Kingsman is a statement more than an oversight. Kingsman is the very definition of patriarchy full of people who were born "with a silver spoon up their arse". A lot of the comedy comes from this exploration of class with Eggsy being the only recruit not from a prestigious university, Roxy one of two female recruits and no ethnic representation to be seen. Sure this might be the point... but is it really that funny. Five years ago, yeah kinda. These days its just kind of sad. Kingsman is still seen as the ultra cool secret service we should all want to be part of and yet just represents something all too depressingly old fashioned.

Now to Samuel Jackson's Valentine. At the time people were generally divided about his turn at Bond villain. His lisp... is a problem for me. I know it was based of his stutter as a child but, well, it's not a stutter is it? It's a lisp, and for the most part it seems to be taking the Michael. How you feel about Jackson's villain depends how seriously you want to take this film. It's an unfortunate failing of the film that it sometimes takes itself a little seriously meaning the audience can sometimes be confused as to what the joke is. On the one hand Jackson is having the time of his life, evil lair and all. On the other hand it's Samuel Jackson with a lisp...

One thing that surprisingly held up however was the plot itself. Valentines evil plan of trying to save the planet by reducing the population is relevant in the most over the top kind of way. His evil sim card plan is something that would most likely work (lets be honest if you were given a sim with free calls and free internet for free you'd take it). The toxins in the sim cards turning people homicidal is about as extra as it gets but it gives us some great action sequences which I can't help but enjoy. And his aversion to violence himself makes him entertaining enough to watch. He is the campy villain we've been missing for a while. Funny in his exuberance but unmemorable in the long run.

So, five years later is Kingsman: The Secret Service still worth remembering? Does it hold up?

In many ways... er... no. It owes too much to spy films of the past for that. But in a way I don't think Kingsman was ever meant to hold up. It is a piece of popcorn entertainment not a die-hard classic. That doesn't mean it doesn't have re-watchability though. Like I said earlier the characters surpass the film in so many ways to the point you could have a scene between Harry, Eggsy and Merlin in a plain room just talking and I'd be entertained. There are still some funny moments that stand up. Eggsy getting JB the pug comes to mind, and the ending still gets a chuckle from me and I'm a sucker for theatrical, interestingly shot action sequences. Plus the production design while cheesy is downright iconic. One thing I do know for certain though is that it stands up way more than its sequel. Doesn't mean I can't love them both as guilty pleasures though.