Common Sense Media Review
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Lots of shooting and explosions in semi-true WWII story.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare
What's the Story?
In THE MINISTRY OF UNGENTLEMANLY WARFARE, it's 1942, and German U-boats are making life difficult for Great Britain, sinking desperately needed supply ships. It's learned that a ship loaded with U-boat fuel and equipment will be docked at Fernando Po, an island off of Cameroon. Under orders from Prime Minister Churchill (Rory Kinnear), Brigadier Gubbins (Cary Elwes) calls in Gus March-Phillips (Henry Cavill) to lead an unofficial team to sabotage the ship. He chooses outcasts Anders (Alan Ritchson), Henry (Hero Fiennes Tiffin), Freddy (Henry Golding), and Geoffrey (Alex Pettyfer) to join him. Agent Heron (Babs Olusanmokun), who's already stationed on the island—which is populated by German, Italian, and Spanish officers—keeps the group occupied and entertained at his bar. Agent Marjorie Stewart (Eiza González) is in charge of distracting the head Nazi stationed there, Heinrich Luhr (Til Schweiger). Before the heroes set sail, posing as an innocent fishing crew, they must break into a Nazi prison to rescue Geoffrey. Finally, after avoiding many obstacles, they arrive in Fernando Po, only to learn that their plan of blowing up the ship won't work. So they decide to steal it.
Is It Any Good?
This kind of twisty, lighthearted, impossible-caper movie is the kind of thing that director Guy Ritchie does best. It's not very deep, but it's funny and swiftly paced, and it tells a great story. The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare was inspired by a nonfiction book containing details from Winston Churchill's papers, which were declassified in 2016. But rather than presenting a stodgy retelling, Ministry has fun with it, flinging itself into absurdly gleeful action sequences and superhuman feats of derring-do. (Its story is similar to Operation Mincemeat, and, incidentally, both movies feature the future James Bond author Ian Fleming as a character.)
Much of the movie probably veers pretty far from the reality of what happened, but the characters' scoundrel-like qualities are immensely appealing. (Despite their reputations, they're rarely rude or unpleasant.) And Ritchie keeps up an admirable juggling act with his many characters, while scattering the details of the mission cleverly throughout the story so that there's always a fresh obstacle to overcome. Ultimately, a probably unhealthy percentage of The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare consists of explosions and shooting or slicing up Nazis, rather than storytelling or characters, but somehow that's OK.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare's violence. How did it make you feel? Was it exciting? Shocking? What did the movie show or not show to achieve this effect? Why is that important?
How are drinking and smoking depicted? Are they glamorized? Are there consequences? Why does that matter?
How accurate do you think the movie is to what happened in real life? Why do filmmakers sometimes change the facts in movies based on true stories?
Do you consider these characters anti-heroes? Why, or why not? What's the impact of anti-heroes on the greater culture?
Movie Details
- In theaters : April 19, 2024
- On DVD or streaming : May 10, 2024
- Cast : Henry Cavill , Eiza Gonzalez , Henry Golding
- Director : Guy Ritchie
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s) , Latino Movie Actor(s) , Asian Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Lionsgate
- Genre : Action/Adventure
- Topics : History
- Run time : 120 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : strong violence throughout and some language
- Last updated : September 18, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate