We headed down to London as Universal Pictures invited us to check out Argylle before its February 1st release date and the Vue West End cinema provided the backdrop to this outrageously fun yet at times, confusing spy flick.

 
Reclusive author Elly Conway writes best-selling espionage novels about a secret agent named Argylle who’s on a mission to unravel a global spy syndicate. However, when the plots of her books start to mirror the covert actions of a real-life spy organization, the line between fiction and reality begin to blur.
Bouncing back and forth between fact and fiction Argylle finds itself twisting and turning like a rubix cube to the point of insanity but manages to grasp you with comedic moments, solid performances and some rather majestically choreographed fight sequences that ooze that Kingsman movie quality.
Director Michael Vaughn helmed the first two Kingsman movies and whilst Argylle steps outside of the shell the characters are still based in the same Universe and as the credits roll on Argylle even more twists and turns present themselves leaving the door wide open for future instalments.
Argylle feels like its in the works and not quite completed as this James Bond spoof doesn’t quite hit home for me for the most part but it just about scrapes through on cast acting merit and comedic moments alone.

Whilst Argylle at times is hard to follow there’s no denying this fun and frenzied world exploring espionage action flick that never truly settles, merely bouncing around and having a great time whilst trying to steer the ship around the inundated plot holes that the script presents.
Henry Cavil is advertised as the lead on all marketing materials but merely takes a back seat as novelist Elly Conway (Bryce Dallas Howard) and Super Spy Aiden (Sam Rockwell) are front and centre of this one with Henry Cavill and John Cena merely providing imaginary context to the words that Elly is writing.
There’s more positives than negatives in this fast paced action packed romp and whilst for me it’s weaker than the Kingsman movies I feel as though feeding it into that universe could help to solidify it should a sequel be green-lit.
Argylle Screening at Vue West EndHaving this movie separate within the Kingsman lore certainly feels like the best option as Argylle lacks the finer tuned scripts and that quintessential British class that oozed from the first two. What annoyed me the most about Argylle is the blurring between reality and what was happening in real life. Suddenly a CGI fight sequence or unrealistic car chase went from an imaginative thoughts (forgiven) to what was actually happening in real life and this affected the movie tremendously.
Expect sequences that defy the laws of physics and gravity as this novel well and truly comes alive before our eyes. A story within a story which allows liberties to be taken when depicting the variety of chase and fight sequences that come thick and fast in this movie.
The ending of Argylle perfectly tees up the world they are trying to create with a wonderful finale that for the first time in the entire movie has that air of class to it. I’m not quite sure how they’re going to pull it off as certain actors have two different roles in the Kingsman / Argylle films but I’m sure they’ll make it work! 
Argylle certainly dropped in the ball in many departments but there’s no denying how outrageously fun it is from start to finish.

Our Rating

Summary
Fight sequences and a strong cast gloss over the convoluted script and manage to pull the cat out of the bag (quite literally at times) in this outrageously fun spy comedy.