Every story has its origin, where we start to understand how it all began. This one begins with an event that affects the whole world, World War One. Based on the comic book “The Secret Service” and centering around the first Great War, World War 1 (July 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918), this narrative puts the pieces together on how the war actually originated and how the King’s man came to pass.
Someone is bent on starting WWI; leaking convincing information to Germany’s leader Kaiser Wilhelm (Tom Hollander) starts a war with his cousin King George of England (Tom Hollander). As the battles loom closer, a strain on the English people appears to be imminent. King George desperately needs help from his cousin Tsar Nicholas of Russia (Tom Hollander), because he knows that Britton is outnumbered as the war begins.
Former British Soldier Lord Orlando Oxford (Ralph Fiennes) has been requested to create a team and find out who is behind all of this. Commissioned by longtime friend General Kitchener (Charles Dance) and the King of England himself, he gathers a team of outstanding agents, Polly (Gemma Arterton) house mom and intelligence operative, Shola (Djimon Hounsou) driver, man servant, and right hand man, and his son Conrad Oxford (Harris Dickinson). Together they will all have to figure out why Tsar Nicholas will not support either cousin and if his advisor and catholic priest Grigori Rasputin (Rhys Ifans) has anything to do with it.
Director Matthew Vaughn puts together an excellent origin story that is actually much better than the two previous films. He forms up the storyline that perfectly develops each character to perform a fantastic build-up that finally reveals the true premise of the motion picture. The realistic battle scenes and special effects show how desperate these characters need to be to stop this cruel war.
Wonderfully played out tale that tells us how this agency began, brings you on an adventure through history and attempts to validate its account by showing that these heroes have been among us all along. There are some strong violent scenes mostly centered on the battlefield that demonstrate the realism of these times.
Final Comment: I based my grade on the outstanding narrative, incredible effects during the combat scenes, and the magnificent performance by the actors.
Stars 4 out of 5
Additional Film Information
Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Charles Dance, Rhys Ifans, Tom Hollander, Harris Dickinson, and Djimon Hounsou
Directed and written by: Matthew Vaughn
Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Crime, and Thriller.
MPAA Rating: Rated R for sequences of strong/bloody violence, language, and some sexual material.
Running Time: 2 hours and 11 minutes
Release Date: December 22, 2021
Distributed By: Walt Disney Studio Motion Pictures
Release In: Standard, Dolby Vision, Panavision, and IMAX.