Rocketman

Rocketman (2019)

Starring Taron Egerton, Jamie Bell, Richard Madden, Gemma Jones, Stephen Graham, and Bryce Dallas Howard

Directed by Dexter Fletcher

Written by Lee Hall

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - Eddie the Eagle

Eddie the Eagle (2016)

Starring Taron Egerton, Hugh Jackman, Jo Hartley, and Keith Allen

Directed by Dexter Fletcher
***This film is currently streaming via HBO Now/Go***

Straightforward as can be, Eddie the Eagle is an inspirational sports movie that hits all the notes expected as it explores the true story of Eddie Edwards (played here by Taron Egerton), a young British man who has dreamed of being an Olympian despite being awkward (to say the least) when it comes to sports.  With the Summer Olympics necessitating strength and speed which is out of the question for the lanky twentysomething, Eddie shifts his attention to the Winter Olympics and ski jumping -- a sport in which Great Britain hadn't competed for over six decades as of the 1980s.  Eddie decides to self-train at a ski jumping facility in Germany where he meets American Bronson Peary (Hugh Jackman), a former Olympic ski jumper who now tends to the snow at the training center.  Bronson eventually (and reluctantly) takes Eddie under his wing, helping him prepare for the Olympic games and also convince the British Olympic Committee to allow him to compete.

Steeped in low budget 1980s-style movie quirkiness including some fantastically retro music, Eddie the Eagle is just offbeat enough to make the clichéd aspects of the stereotypical "sports movie" work here.  Director Dexter Fletcher embraces the kitschy nature of stylized aesthetic -- which includes a somewhat over-the-top, but oddly totally believable and utterly engaging performance from Taron Egerton -- and makes this film better than I expected.  It's a family friendly piece in the best way possible -- it doesn't cater to the kids despite being totally acceptable for all ages with the exception of maybe a curse word or two, but it causes us adults to embrace the wild abandon we've pushed aside for years.  This true story is one with which I wasn't the least bit familiar, but I was thoroughly engaged its entire runtime.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - Kingsman: The Secret Service

Kingsman: The Secret Service (2015)

Starring Taron Egerton, Colin Firth, Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Strong, Michael Caine, Sophie Cookson, Sofia Boutella, and Mark Hamill

Directed by Matthew Vaughn

For a movie I actually enjoyed, I've waited over a month to write this review of Kingsman: The Secret Service.  I think part of my issue is that Kingsman is sometimes like two different movies -- there's an attempt to be James Bond-ian in its take on the British spy genre, but then it also feels very Quentin Tarantino-esque in terms of glorified, bloody violence.  While I find both of those genres appealing (at times) on their own, the meshing of the two never quite fits for me.

That said, the story of a rough-around-the-edges young man named Eggsy (Taron Egerton) who is recruited by the suave, debonair, and mysterious Harry Hart (Colin Firth) to join the ranks of an elite secret British spy agency is thoroughly entertaining.  Typically, I'd grow weary of "origin" stories, but Kingsman (based on a comic book) places its character of Eggsy through a recruitment process that is entertaining, exciting, and surprisingly tense.  As Eggsy gets to know both his potential and the intricacies of the agency for which he may soon work, director and co-writer Matthew Vaughn keeps things uniquely stylized.

At the same time Eggsy is learning the ropes, billionaire Richmond Valentine (Samuel L. Jackson) is attempting to take over the world via his telecommunications company.  Needless to say, it's obvious that the two stories are eventually going to intertwine and while I enjoyed both the Eggsy and Richmond sides of the plot separately, when they begin to come together is when the film begins to falter a bit.  The disjointed nature of the film hits its peak when Firth's Harry Hart finds himself in the midst of an incredibly gruesome attack where more blood is spilled in one scene alone than I've seen since The Bride went nuts on the Yakuza and the Crazy 88 in Kill Bill.  In Tarantino's flick, however, stylized violence played a role from the beginning of the film, whereas here it feels as if Vaughn brings things on too suddenly to feel cohesive.  It's not that the film proves to be a disappointment, it's simply that the writers (and Vaughn as the director) begin to take things too over-the-top in terms of violence.

Despite its imperfections, Kingsman: The Secret Service proves to be an enjoyably fun ride.  Vaughn takes some risks here and while some pay off -- I very much appreciate that no one is safe here in terms of characters making it out of the movie alive -- others don't quite work.  Still, I'd certainly be willing to check out any sequel should it make its way to the big screen as I found the whole flick entertaining enough to warrant a second go with the characters it presents.

The RyMickey Rating:  B-