Kingsman:The Secret Service
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Starring: Colin Firth, Samuel L Jackson, Taron Egerton, Michael Caine
Four stars
It seems 2015 is the year of the old-school spy. Still to come, there is Guy Ritchie's reboot of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. and, of course, the return of James Bond in Spectre.
For now, we have Colin Firth in Kingsman: The Secret Service, a rollickingly old-fashioned caper from Matthew Vaughn, the British director who gave the superhero genre a boot up the backside with Kick-Ass. And like that film, Kingsman is based on a comic book by the Scottish writer Mark Millar – 2012's The Secret Service.
Kingsman is an elite espionage agency that is so British, its secret base is in London’s luxury tailoring street, Savile Row. But while this team values a gentlemanly code of conduct at all times, this is no nostalgia trip to a bygone era.
Scripted by Vaughn's regular writing partner Jane Goldman, Kingsman is very much a modern-day tale – with the villains ranging from gangs of pub-dwelling thugs to Samuel L Jackson's lisping technical genius, Valentine.
Playing Kingsman's top man Harry Hart (code name Galahad) is Colin Firth. The British star of The King's Speech is hardly known for his action chops, but an early sequence in which he dispatches a roomful of Neanderthals with a few twirls of his trusty umbrella soon puts that concern to rest. Forget Bridget Jones's Diary – he should have played 007.
While Hart seems heavily inspired by The Avengers' John Steed (as played by Patrick McNee in the classic 1960s British TV show), there's a touch of My Fair Lady in the mix, too. As the agency tries out new candidates after the death of one of their members, Hart recommends council estate-raised Gary "Eggsy" Unwin (Taron Egerton), the Eliza Doolittle to his Henry Higgins, who hardly seems like Kingsman material.
It turns out that he is the son of a fellow agent who died due to a mistake made by Hart. Now Hart hopes taking the youngster under his wing will go some way to repaying the debt.
Egerton, who also appears in Testament of Youth (also opening in cinemas on Thursday, February 12), is an appealing presence as Eggsy. It's not long before Eggsy is battling Oxbridge toffs for the right to join Kingsman. Vaughn has a riot with some of the training sequences – an aerial scene in which the candidates jump out of a plane, only to discover one of their parachutes isn't working, is utterly thrilling.
Valentine, meanwhile, is cooking up a plot for world domination that involves controlling everyone via their mobile phones. Rather like his lament for the “far-fetched diabolical” plots “like the old Bond movies”, it’s entirely ludicrous, so it is just as well that Kingsman never for a second makes the mistake of taking itself too seriously.
With Michael Caine also along for the ride as Firth’s boss – reminding us that he too played a suave 1960s spy in the Harry Palmer films – inevitably the two plots dovetail.
In truth, the final act is not quite as satisfying as the set-up, missing the banter of Hart and his protégé. But this is still a blast, seamlessly blending thrills and smarts.
Mr Bond and those men from U.N.C.L.E. had better watch their backs.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
HWJN
Director: Yasir Alyasiri
Starring: Baraa Alem, Nour Alkhadra, Alanoud Saud
Rating: 3/5
Ferrari
Director: Michael Mann
Starring: Adam Driver, Penelope Cruz, Shailene Woodley, Patrick Dempsey
Rating: 3/5
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Confirmed bouts (more to be added)
Cory Sandhagen v Umar Nurmagomedov
Nick Diaz v Vicente Luque
Michael Chiesa v Tony Ferguson
Deiveson Figueiredo v Marlon Vera
Mackenzie Dern v Loopy Godinez
Tickets for the August 3 Fight Night, held in partnership with the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, went on sale earlier this month, through www.etihadarena.ae and www.ticketmaster.ae.
Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar
Director: Neeraj Pandey
Rating: 2.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Company: Eco Way
Started: December 2023
Founder: Ivan Kroshnyi
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Electric vehicles
Investors: Bootstrapped with undisclosed funding. Looking to raise funds from outside
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Revibe
Started: 2022
Founders: Hamza Iraqui and Abdessamad Ben Zakour
Based: UAE
Industry: Refurbished electronics
Funds raised so far: $10m
Investors: Flat6Labs, Resonance and various others
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: SmartCrowd
Started: 2018
Founder: Siddiq Farid and Musfique Ahmed
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech / PropTech
Initial investment: $650,000
Current number of staff: 35
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Various institutional investors and notable angel investors (500 MENA, Shurooq, Mada, Seedstar, Tricap)
THE SIXTH SENSE
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Rating: 5/5
What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
- Grade 9 = above an A*
- Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
- Grade 7 = grade A
- Grade 6 = just above a grade B
- Grade 5 = between grades B and C
- Grade 4 = grade C
- Grade 3 = between grades D and E
- Grade 2 = between grades E and F
- Grade 1 = between grades F and G
PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE
1 Man City 26 20 3 3 63 17 63
2 Liverpool 25 17 6 2 64 20 57
3 Chelsea 25 14 8 3 49 18 50
4 Man Utd 26 13 7 6 44 34 46
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5 West Ham 26 12 6 8 45 34 42
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6 Arsenal 23 13 3 7 36 26 42
7 Wolves 24 12 4 8 23 18 40
8 Tottenham 23 12 4 8 31 31 39
What is cystic fibrosis?
- Cystic fibrosis is a genetic disorder that affects the lungs, pancreas and other organs.
- It causes the production of thick, sticky mucus that can clog the airways and lead to severe respiratory and digestive problems.
- Patients with the condition are prone to lung infections and often suffer from chronic coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath.
- Life expectancy for sufferers of cystic fibrosis is now around 50 years.
Company Profile
Name: Direct Debit System
Started: Sept 2017
Based: UAE with a subsidiary in the UK
Industry: FinTech
Funding: Undisclosed
Investors: Elaine Jones
Number of employees: 8
Race card
6pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round 1 – Group 1 (PA) $50,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
6.35pm: Dubai Racing Club Classic – Handicap (TB) $100,000 (D) 2,410m
7.10pm: Dubawi Stakes – Group 3 (TB) $150,000 (D) 1,200m
7.45pm: Jumeirah Classic Trial – Conditions (TB) $150,000 (Turf) 1,400m
8.20pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round 1 – Group 2 (TB) $250,000 (D) 1,600m
8.55pm: Al Fahidi Fort – Group 2 (TB) $180,000 (T) 1,400m
9.30pm: Ertijaal Dubai Dash – Listed (TB) $100,000 (T) 1,000m
SPECS
Engine: 4-litre V8 twin-turbo
Power: 630hp
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: 8-speed Tiptronic automatic
Price: From Dh599,000
On sale: Now
Specs: 2024 McLaren Artura Spider
Engine: 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 and electric motor
Max power: 700hp at 7,500rpm
Max torque: 720Nm at 2,250rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
0-100km/h: 3.0sec
Top speed: 330kph
Price: From Dh1.14 million ($311,000)
On sale: Now
DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin
Director: Shawn Levy
Rating: 3/5