Kingsman: The Secret Service

Writer, director and producer Matthew Vaughn (X-Men: First Class, Kick-Ass) has, with Kingsman, established himself as one of the most exciting movie makers in the business.

With multiple direct in-movie references to the action films of old, if you’re looking for an action drama that more than fills the witty, laugh-out-loud funny and extreme violence quotas you so desperately desire, this is your film for summer. Lead performer Taron Egerton is hilarious as the chavvy Gary ‘Eggsy’ Unwin, who is saved from the lower-end street life by the ever-classy Harry Hart (Colin Firth, star of the show) to undertake in a series of intense training sessions to become a kingsman as his father was. At the same time, a global threat is arising from the twisted tech genius Valentine (the hilariously lisping Samuel L Jackson), and all of a sudden it’s up to Hart and Eggsy to save the world.

The film is full of cracking back-and-forth banter between almost every main character and there’s a heap of Bond-esque moments throughout, although what separates Kingsman from other contemporary action films is that Vaughn has well and truly managed to flesh out his characters; there’s a real sense of development throughout the film, and too many fall short with one-dimensional characters simply going about their business. It’s melodramatic to say the least, but Kingsman is the most fun you’ll have in a cinema this year.