‘Kingsman: The Golden Circle’ Review Roundup: Sequel Falls Short Of Original

When “Kingsman: The Secret Service” came out in 2015, it was a huge, unexpected success. Which is why it then became unsurprising that it earned itself a sequel, which is out Friday.

“Kingsman: The Golden Circle” continues to follow Eggsy (Taron Egerton) and his adventures as a Kingsman agent. In a interesting turn of events, Colin Firth is also reprising his role in the film even though his character Harry didn’t quite make it out alive in the original movie.

New to the franchise are Julianne Moore, Halle Berry, Channing Tatum and Jeff Bridges. But has the extra star power thrown into mix ensured that the sequel’s as innovative and exciting as the original?

Here’s what critics have to say about it.

Forbes – Scott Mendelson

“‘Kingsman: The Golden Circle’ is surface-level entertaining and offers enough colorful diversions and solid action to merit a viewing. But it focuses too much of its energies on undoing its own narrative, while letting everything else of value fall by the side or get outright written out. It is yet another sequel that merely promises you that ‘Next time, you’ll get a straightforward adventure with these fine folks!’ Aside from a few moments of timely politics, it lacks both the danger of its predecessor or the courage that comes with being a follow-up to a well-liked original. It feels less like ‘The Spy Who Loved Me’ and more like ‘James Bond Jr .’”

Screencrush – Matt Singer

“Like a lot of stuff in ‘Kingsman: The Golden Circle,’ its villain’s metallurgical fetish is a callback to old-school James Bond movies. This sequel to 2015’s ‘Kingsman: The Secret Service’ continues its predecessor’s colorful reinvention of campy 70s Bond tropes, and broadens the franchise’s mythology to introduce a whole new group of spies, an American intelligence agency known as Statesman. The new characters and concepts don’t add a whole lot to a film is way too long and plodding in its middle act, but the returning heroes and giddily vulgar comedy and action are still good for some solid laughs and thrills.”

The Hollywood Reporter – Todd McCarthy

“When does a good thing become too much of a good thing? When is enough enough? That’s the main question hovering over ‘Kingsman: The Golden Circle,’ the spirited continuation of Matthew Vaughn’s disarmingly clever 2015 introduction of the bespoke-suited British secret agent that, as with many successful series before it, has already begun to err on the side of overkill with an unnecessarily long 141 minutes. Still, this fleet-footed, glibly imaginative international romp stays on its toes and keeps its wits about it most of the time, with entertaining and pointedly U.S.-friendly cast additions that should provide an uptick from the $414 million raked in worldwide by ‘Kingsman: The Secret Service.’”

Variety – Peter Debruge

“… This is just bonkers and might actually serve best as a send-up of past spy movies. It’s not like anyone has ever accused James Bond of being realistic, but the ‘Kingsman’ series has gotten so outlandish that ‘Moonraker’ suddenly looks plausible by comparison.”

The Village Voice – Bilge Ebiri

“The sequel to 2015’s hit ‘Kingsman: The Secret Service’ won’t make you feel the urgent need to take a shower and/or throw up, like the original probably did. Believe it or not, that’s not always a good thing. ‘Kingsman: The Golden Circle ,’ Matthew Vaughn’s follow-up to his brutal, joyfully degenerate adaptation of Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons’s 2012 comic book, has been crafted to broaden the series’ appeal, to turn it into a legitimate franchise. So, it’s got more stars, more set pieces, more … stuff. The garish violence is still there, as is the profanity. Gone, however, is much of the creativity, the unpredictable, see-what-sticks depravity. The movie has its moments, but the bloat and the blandness take their toll.”

Nerdist – Kyle Anderson

“Despite a whole lot of bet-hedging, there’s still a lot to enjoy about ‘Kingsman: The Golden Circle,’ including a very hilarious extended cameo and some suitably bombastic set pieces. I’d certainly be happy with more ‘Kingsman’ movies, because Egerton is a winning leading man and Vaughn’s action direction remains fantastic, but this movie feels like a victim of its unanticipated success. If the first ‘Kingsman’ left you going ‘Wow!’ this one leaves you saying, ‘Hmm…cool.’ And while it doesn’t reach the same hyperbolic heights as the first film, there are certainly worse things than being entertained for two hours.”

“Kingsman: The Golden Circle ” opens in theaters on Friday.