The King’s Man director, Matthew Vaughn, has explained that the movie’s somewhat more serious, historical epic tone was influenced by 1975’s The Man Who Would Be King, starring Sean Connery and Michael Cain. Furthermore, he considers any future prequels would share that tone, while the modern day films can be “more fun and gonzo”.
Talking to IGN, Vaughn said, “We wrote a backstory for The Secret Service with no intentions of ever making a prequel at that point. And then I re-watched a movie called The Man Who Would Be King, and I just forgot A) how much I loved that film, and B) how brilliant it is. And I was like, ‘Why is no one making movies like that anymore?’ It had everything in it, it was epic, historical, humour, emotion, some very strong political points. And it gave me an itch that I had to scratch.
“I thought, ‘You know what? Let's do a prequel.’ That's where it began,” he said.
“I think the modern ones can be more fun and Gonzo and we just do some stuff that people aren't expecting, and the other side will be more serious, but not boring. And that's the thing that I think we've forgotten is these old epic films. They were commercial entertainment back then. The Man Who Would Be King was not an art house, serious, worthy movie. It was just a great epic adventure. I wanted to try and bring it back because I loved them and I think there's no harm in trying to be a little bit different.”
Aside from its historical epic inspirations, the World War 1 setting also helped provide a bit more gravity to The King’s Man’s tone. “The whole point about this film is it's the birth of Kingsman, and Kingsman was born out of tragedy and out of the world needing to have people who are clever, who are responsible enough to think we should never have another war like this,” said Vaughn. “A pointless war basically, and a war that most people, even historians, cannot pinpoint why it happened, and what the aims were. I mean, it was crazy.”
For more from the world of Kingsman, check out Vaughn's hopes for a prequel series of movies that explore the history of espionage, as well as our exclusive Rasputin clip and review of The King’s Man.
Matt Purslow is IGN's UK News and Entertainment Writer.
Continue reading...
Talking to IGN, Vaughn said, “We wrote a backstory for The Secret Service with no intentions of ever making a prequel at that point. And then I re-watched a movie called The Man Who Would Be King, and I just forgot A) how much I loved that film, and B) how brilliant it is. And I was like, ‘Why is no one making movies like that anymore?’ It had everything in it, it was epic, historical, humour, emotion, some very strong political points. And it gave me an itch that I had to scratch.
“I thought, ‘You know what? Let's do a prequel.’ That's where it began,” he said.
“I think the modern ones can be more fun and Gonzo and we just do some stuff that people aren't expecting, and the other side will be more serious, but not boring. And that's the thing that I think we've forgotten is these old epic films. They were commercial entertainment back then. The Man Who Would Be King was not an art house, serious, worthy movie. It was just a great epic adventure. I wanted to try and bring it back because I loved them and I think there's no harm in trying to be a little bit different.”
Aside from its historical epic inspirations, the World War 1 setting also helped provide a bit more gravity to The King’s Man’s tone. “The whole point about this film is it's the birth of Kingsman, and Kingsman was born out of tragedy and out of the world needing to have people who are clever, who are responsible enough to think we should never have another war like this,” said Vaughn. “A pointless war basically, and a war that most people, even historians, cannot pinpoint why it happened, and what the aims were. I mean, it was crazy.”
For more from the world of Kingsman, check out Vaughn's hopes for a prequel series of movies that explore the history of espionage, as well as our exclusive Rasputin clip and review of The King’s Man.
Matt Purslow is IGN's UK News and Entertainment Writer.
Continue reading...