Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.0

The King's Man 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman March 8, 2022

When Kingsman: The Secret Service became a perhaps unexpected smash when it was released in 2014, it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out there were going to be follow ups, and indeed Kingsman: The Golden Circle was released in 2017, to sometimes withering reviews (including a not overly positive assessment by yours truly), but to once again encouraging box office returns. And so we now have The King's Man, writer-director Matthew Vaughn's attempt to offer viewers "the rest of the story" in terms of how Kingsman came to be in the first place. From an "epic adventure" standpoint, The King's Man is probably a step up from Kingsman: The Golden Circle, and it certainly manages to stuff in a veritable grab bag of "real life" historical figures into a story set largely around a nascent World War I era, but it's another overly labored effort that, rather like the first film, has a hard time deciding what its tone should be.

The film begins in 1902 with Orlando Oxford (Ralph Fiennes) visiting a concentration camp being run by Lord Kitchener (Charles Dance) in South Africa during the Second Boer War. Tragedy ensues when Oxford's wife Emily (Alexandra Maria Lara) is killed by a sniper in front of the Oxfords' young son, Conrad (Alexander Shaw). As she expires, Emily extracts a promise from Orlando that he always keep Conrad safe and away from any warlike activity. The film then segues forward a dozen or so years to find England on the cusp of World War I, with Orlando, who sustained a serious leg injury in the attack which killed his wife, attempting to mentor a now teenaged Conrad (Harris Dickinson), who is eager to suit up for his country should the need arise. The Oxford household is also populated with two ostensible servants, Shola (Djimon Hounsou), a butler who was actually also with the Oxfords during the opening vignette; and Polly Watkins (Gemma Arterton), a maid who seems to have a somewhat more personal relationship with her employer than might be expected, given class differences and all.

Into this general historical milieu co-writers Karl Gajdusek and Matthew Vaughn have woven a perhaps inordinate amount of supposed real life figures, as evidenced by the inclusion of Lord Kitchener himself. But aside from the expected world leaders like King George (Tom Hollander, also playing George's cousins "Nicky" and Wilhelm), there's a scene stealing turn by Rhys Ifans as Rasputin, as well as vignettes involving Mata Hari (Valerie Pachner), Franz Ferdinand (Ron Duke), his assassin Gavrilo Princip (Joel Basman), Alfred DuPont (Todd Boyce), Woodrow Wilson (Ian Kelly), Vladimir Lenin (August Diehl) and Adolf Hitler (David Kross). Another real life character whose name I suspect will strike many as being even less familiar than that of Gavrilo Pricip is Erik Jan Hanussen (Daniel Brühl) also figures prominently into the convoluted story, which sees a conspiracy that would give a certain Q and/or the Illuminati a run for his/her/their money being led by a literally shadowy figure known only as the Shepherd. The fact that Scottish independence from England proves to play an important motivating force in this tale may strike some as downright comedic.

But merely a reference to even unintentional comedy may point out what is often so disconcerting about The King's Man. At one moment it's a tragic tale of a boy wanting to prove his manhood by doing the honorable thing, even if it's against his pacifist father's wishes, and the next minute it's played for laughs, or at least whimsy, with portrayals of squabbling cousins who grow up to be world leaders. As such, the film veers wildly from heartstring tugging moments surrounding the relationship between Orlando and Conrad to decidedly more fanciful sequences like Orlando attempting to parachute into a clifftop refuge where the Shepherd hangs out. In terms of this arch villain, without posting any spoilers, any analyst of how presentational aspects enter into the fray is going to be wondering from the get go why the Shepherd is never seen clearly in any of the scenes involving him, with the answer being only one of two possibilities: the "big reveal" is going to "out" either some famous historical character which will ostensibly blow minds, or some other supporting character in the film is going to have a "secret" alter ego. One way or the other, it's never explained how exactly the Shepherd brought every real life bad guy and gal together to form an A Team of infamy, or why exactly he has such power over them. That would seem to be especially relevant to such legendary quasi-mesmerists as Rasputin and Hanussen. How all of these people repeatedly get to and from Scotland so easily in an era when there wasn't commercial air travel is also elided without comment.

If some aspects of the film unabashedly defy credulity, there are some fun ways that Vaughn and Gajdusek manage to weave actual history into a completely outlandish plot. While perhaps nothing quite matches the mayhem of the biggest set piece in the first film, there are some fun vignettes in this film, including the aforementioned scene involving Orlando, a parachute and a biplane, as well as the film's standout sequence, a knock down, drag out fight between Rasputin, Orlando and, ultimately, Conrad, Shola and Polly, all played to the exuberant strains of The 1812 Overture.

The King's Man 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The King's Man is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of 20th Century Films and Disney / Buena Vista with a 2160p transfer in 2.39:1. Captured with a variety of Arri Alexa and Black Magic models, and perhaps surprisingly finished at "only" 2K (given the fact that source resolutions often exceeded 4K, at least according to the IMDb), this is by and large a very sharp, well detailed and appealing looking presentation. The 4K presentation noticeably ups fine detail levels across the board, and potential problem areas like the fine tweeds worn by some of the men offer no resolution issues whatsoever. There's really appealing clarity and sharpness for the most part which elevates even some very wide framings from a general detail perspective. The palette has a bit more nuance here than in the 1080 version courtesy of HDR, but I wouldn't term it an overly dramatic change. As I mentioned in my review of the 1080 version, there are some passingly curious anomalies that seem to afflict what I'm assuming may have been greenscreened material, where edges of (real) objects (props or actual humans) lose a bit of clarity, and where there can be swirly ripples surrounding objects in motion, an aspect which I found to be more noticeable in this version than in the 1080 version for whatever reason.

The King's Man 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The King's Man features a Dolby Atmos track which arguably ups (no directional pun intended) the DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track included on the 1080 disc, though I'd suggest not by a ton. There are some clear engagements of the Atmos channels in expected moments like battle scenes with explosions overhead or the biplane scene with Orlando, but I found the Atmos rendering to be very similar to the (admittedly excellent) DTS- HD Master Audio 7.1 track on the 1080 disc. There's the same appealing directionality and immersion that the 7.1 track offers, and even some relatively quieter scenes have nice attention paid to discrete channelization of ambient environmental effects. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English, French, Spanish and Japanese subtitles are available.

The King's Man 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The 4K UHD disc has no on disc supplements, and the score above reflects that fact. The 1080 disc included in this package includes the supplements detailed in our The King's Man Blu-ray review. Additionally, a digital copy is included and packaging offers a slipcover.

The King's Man 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There's a lot to like about The King's Man, and I personally found it to be generally more enjoyable than Kingsman: The Golden Circle, which may admittedly be damning with faint praise. I just wish Vaughn and his team had provided a bit more information about the Shepherd and his hold over such a gaggle of notorious villains as well as maintaining a more consistent tone, which may have been well nigh impossible given this film's bizarre mashup of anti-war sentiment with visceral battle scenes and then almost slapstick laden comedy bits. There are some hugely enjoyable performances here, though, including a great scenery chewing effort by Rhys Ifans as an unforgettable Rasputin. Technical merits are generally solid, with the 4K version offering some nice upticks in detail levels, for those who may considering making a purchase.