Kingsman: The Secret Service Movie Poster Image

Kingsman: The Secret Service

age 16+
(i)

 

Brash, witty spy film is packed with over-the-top violence.
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  • Review Date: February 13, 2015
  • Rated: R
  • Genre: Action/Adventure
  • Release Year: 2015
  • Running Time: 129 minutes

Kingsman: The Secret Service gallery

What parents need to know

Positive messages

"Manners maketh man" is an enduring message. Also, class and money aren't what define you -- your character does. Loyalty and hard work are rewarded.

Positive role models

Eggsy is coarse and prone to fights, but he's also protective of his mother and sister, has a deep well of kindness and loyalty, and wants to do right by others. Harry is positioned as Eggsy's role model, but not all of his actions are worthy of emulation.

Violence

An endless parade of so-over-the-top-that-it's-almost-cartoonish violence; it's stylized and clearly not realistic, but it's still shocking and brutal. Many gory injuries and deaths, especially during a scene of mass carnage inside a church. Scenes include hatchets to the head, a man sliced in half, gunshots at close range, crashes, stabbings, a man impaled on a pole, explosions, eye gougings, heads exploding, and much, much more. It's gruesome yet glamorized, and the sum total is unsettling.

Sex

A woman's naked backside is shown as part of a tasteless, sexist, sexually provocative joke. Allusions to sexual acts (including anal sex), some kissing/flirting.

Language

Frequent strong language includes "f--k," "s--t," "bitch," "damn," the "N" word, and a homophobic slur.

Consumerism

Mentions of luxury items/products, including a 1962 Dalmont and bespoke suits made on London's Savile Row. Also Adidas, Guinness, and a big, obvious plug for McDonald's.

Drinking, drugs, & smoking

Many scenes show people drinking beer and hard liquor at pubs and at home, sometimes leading to violence. Rohypnol is also mentioned.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Kingsman: The Secret Service is a bold, though at times indulgently violent, action thriller that turns the James Bond genre on its head. It's funny, cheeky, and stylish, but it's also extremely brutal, with exploding heads, gory stabbings, shootings, and utter murderous mayhem (a scene of mass carnage inside a church is especially wince-inducing/stomach-turning). While the violence is presented in a stylized, almost cartoonish way, the sum total of it is likely to disturb some viewers. There's also swearing (including "f--k," "s--t," and some racial/homophobic slurs), sexual innuendo, a gratuitously tasteless scene with a naked female bottom, and drinking. But there's also a smattering of advice about how to be an honorable person in a dishonorable time.

What's the story?

On London's Savile Row sits the Kingsman, a store not just for the fashion-forward but also for James Bonds-ian types seeking truth and justice in a seriously discreet, British way. A Kingsman, after all, is a spy of the highest order, part of a powerful organization unaffiliated with any government. Their representatives are named after King Arthur's knights, with Galahad, aka Harry Hart (Colin Firth), as their anchor. In 1997, a fellow Kingsman saved Galahad's life and died on the job. Forever indebted to his savior, Harry reaches out to the man's widow and offers a promise of help -- one that her son, Eggsy (Taron Egerton), collects on 17 years later. Galahad thinks Eggsy has the skills to be come a Kinsgman, but first the rough-around-the-edges youth must prove his mettle, as a megalomaniac millionaire (Samuel L. Jackson) puts into action his psychopathic plan to cull the planet of people to save it.

Is it any good?

QUALITY

For those who love film and all that is cinematic, KINGSMAN: THE SECRET SERVICE is delightful fun. It's been a long while since a movie of this genre satisfied so much with wit and joy. Director Matthew Vaughn's love for spy films and for this production is so unmistakable that you can’t help but be swept up in it. Every character, every frame, and nearly every line of dialogue is delivered with glee. It's brash and bold and full of cheek.

And it's no copycat. Nearly every spy thriller cliche is turned on its head here and milked for maximum amusement. (A sequence unveiling all the secret weaponry is a pleasure.) The plot is somewhat original, or at least interesting, and the stars are great. That said, a few points off for saddling the villainous (and enjoyable) Jackson with a lisp -- it's a cheap shot -- and for the constant (albeit cartoonish) violence that enjoys itself a little too much. The mayhem is over the top, and Vaughn relies too much on the slo-mo. And there's a crass joke at a princess' expense that feels like nothing more than sexist junk. But look past these issues, and you'll have a grand old time at the movies.

Families can talk about...

  • Families can talk about the violence in Kingsman: The Secret Service. Does its over-the-top nature lessen its impact? Or does the sheer volume make it impossible to ignore? How do the consequences compare those in movies with more realistic violence?

  • How does the film refresh the spy movie genre? What does it have in common with other spy movie? How does it differ?

  • Talk about why Harry truly wants to mentor Eggsy. And why is Eggsy willing to be mentored?

Movie details

Theatrical release date:February 13, 2015
DVD release date:June 9, 2015
Cast:Colin Firth, Samuel L. Jackson, Taron Egerton
Director:Matthew Vaughn
Studio:Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
Genre:Action/Adventure
Run time:129 minutes
MPAA rating:R
MPAA explanation:sequences of strong violence, language and some sexual content

This review of Kingsman: The Secret Service was written by

S. Jhoanna Robledo
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are conducted by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

Quality

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  • Very Good: Engaging; good learning approach.
  • Good: Pretty engaging; good learning approach.
  • Fair: Somewhat engaging; OK learning approach.
  • Not for Learning: Not recommended for learning.
  • Not for Kids: Not age-appropriate for kids; not recommended for learning.

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Parent Written byLadyRed February 28, 2015
age 18+

Weird movie

Parents need to know that although it looks like a fun action flick, it's got a few red flags. The f-bomb is dropped every other sentence - no exaggeration - and there are a few g-d's as well. It's definitely not for kids. Also, the movie jumps the shark while two things are happening: (Spoiler Alert) as a reward for "saving the day," a woman offers our hero not the kiss that he asks for, not the sex he hopes for next, but to let him sodomize her. There was no buildup to this, no other funny jokes to tie it in, nothing - just a really crude offer that he can go up her ---hole that seems to come out of nowhere. The movie ends with a close-up of the girl's naked backside, scooting up to the camera. The other shark-jumping moment occurs when the mom, affected by the villian's plot, starts attempting to kill her helpless toddler and hacking down a door with a knife to get to her. The baby is screaming, terrified, and the mom is hacking maniacally at the door. It's a really disturbing image. They could have gone with a neighbor, another innocent person, whatever - there is something that kind of turns off in you when you see a terrified toddler being hunted by a mom with a knife. Great cast, some genuinely funny moments from Colin Firth and Michael Caine. The kid playing the lead was very likable. Samuel L. Jackson's character is the "silly evil" type - meh. It would have been fine, but for those two issues that kind of drove it off a cliff. Those took it from a high B to a low D for us.
What other families should know
Too much swearing
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Parent Written bydhesslerjr February 19, 2015
age 17+

Appalling violent and pointless

Remember pulp fiction? That wasn't for kids either. This is a james-bond version of that movie. Amazing casting couldn't save the gross use of wanton violence. An entire church full of people turn on each other with graphic violence slowed down so you can see it all. Want to see a preacher stabbed through the head with a flag pole? This is your movie. Absolutely pathetic. Try to make exploding the heads off hundreds of people silly by showing colorful mushroom clouds where their heads used to be? Its amazing to me that other reviewers think this is "fun". This strikes me as a stupid attempt to take video game violence and turn it into a movie, and wrap a thin plot around it. I can not understand why Colin Firth agreed to this.
What other families should know
Too much violence
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Adult Written byava's dad February 28, 2015
age 18+

DON'T LET KIDS SEE THIS!

Crude humor, nudity, constant swearing, but that's NOT the problem. This film glorifies violence and the idea that anyone who thinks differently from you should be killed. I was disgusted by fellow moviegoers who were laughing during a 10-minute scene in which everyone in a church slaughtered each other in the most grisly manner possible. Just because these people happened to be "racist hatemongers" it is not OK to laugh at their deaths. This is not the new James Bond or X-Men. It is a new genre of films that threatens to desensitize all our children to killing and violence. Boycott this movie and tell everyone you know to do the same.
What other families should know
Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
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