Comparison between Skyfall and Kingsman

In this analysis, I am going to be comparing the two films: Kingsman and Skyfall, focusing particularly on genre, narrative and representation. Kingsman was directed by Matthew Vaughn and he also wrote the screenplay along with Jane Goldman which was based upon a comic book by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons. It was produced in 2014 by Matthew Vaughn, Adam Bohling and David Reid with 20^th Century Fox (also the distributer). Skyfall, on the other hand, was directed by Sam Mendes and written by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and John Logan. It was produced in 2012 by Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson with Eon Productions, with the distributer being MGM. Both films were of a high budget: Kingsman was $81 million and Skyfall was much higher at $200 million. Regarding their box offices, Skyfall became the highest grossing film in the UK as well as the highest grossing film worldwide for MGM and Sony Pictures after it made an incredible $1, 108 million. Kingsman also did very well, grossing an overall total of $412.1 million which made it Matthew Vaughn’s most commercially successful film. I believe Skyfall did better in the box office than Kingsman because the James Bond films have been a running series since 1962 (Dr. No) so it has developed a wide audience base since then who will keep coming back to watch the newest Bond movie as they know what to expect. Also Kingsman was released at the same time as Fifty Shades of Grey which may have stolen some of its limelight due to its strong controversy.

Both films have a different cast with Kingsman starring: Colin Firth (Harry), Taron Egerton (Eggsy), Samuel L. Jackson (Valentine) and Sofia Boutella (Gazelle) and Skyfall starring: Daniel Craig (James Bond), Judi Dench (M), Javier Bardem (Silva) and Ralph Fiennes (Gareth). They share the genres of action, adventure and crime because they both follow a spy-agency, resulting in the usual conventions such as missions, murders, ‘saving the world’ and of course, both protagonists have a goal. The goal of Eggsy is to become a Kingsman by competing in a series of tests against the other recruits and to help prevent the antagonist, Valentine from destroying the world with his newly invented sim card. Similar to Eggsy, Bond’s goal is to defeat the antagonist, Silva and therefore save his agency, M16. As the Bond films have been running since 1962, the audiences are likely to have expectations regarding the elements that make up Skyfall, therefore suggesting that the series has established its own genre. For example, the opening scene of Skyfall and other Bond films jumps straight into intense action, clearly illustrating its genre and immediately sparking the audiences interest, meaning they are gripped within seconds. Kingsman also did exceptionally well with their opening and it transported the audience straight into the action genre, giving them an insight into what to expect for the remainder of the film and I feel a strong opening scene is particularly important for these genres because the audience have expectations for a fast paced, action-packed experience so want their interest to be gained immediately.

Within these genres, there are additionally expected plot situations such as chase and fight sequences which are seen in both of these films, however executed in slightly different ways. Skyfall takes a more traditional approach with explosions, fast paced editing and rapid cuts which makes the audience feel as if they are a part of the action and although Kingsman also includes these elements, it has the added genre of comedy which provides a sense of humour to some of the fight scenes. An example of this is the church scene because although the characters have been turned ‘evil’ by Valentine, there is upbeat music playing in the background which would usually be used to create a positive atmosphere so therefore it is being juxtaposed with the violence in the scene. Audio codes are key in action films and Bond movies are known for their recognisable sound tracks and unique theme tunes and of course, Skyfall has incorporated this into their ‘plot situations’. For example, the fight scene between James Bond and Patrice that takes place at Shanghai incorporates a build-up of dramatic, non-diegetic music that creates tension and the low key lighting results in Bond and Patrice being silhouettes against the city lights, showing their fight in a sophisticated manner and for both Skyfall and Kingsman, the action sequences are ‘stylised and professional’.

Both Skyfall and Kingsman follow a linear narrative structure but with multiple strands within it, which is known as a flexi-narrative. In Skyfall, the narrative strands include Bonds goal to defeat Silva, Bonds struggle to cope with his ageing and vulnerability and the threats towards M and the pressure this is causing her and all of these intertwine with the as so mentioned plot situations to create a more challenging narrative. The different strands in Kingsman are: Eggsy training to become a gentleman spy, the problems caused by the invention of Valentines new sim card and family issues regarding Eggsy’s mum and step-dad. These all combine together to increase the complexity of the narrative which furthermore challenges the audience and keeps them watching.

Todorov’s theory fits in with the narrative of Kingsman and Skyfall but again, it is more complex and there is more than one disruption/realisation in each. I am going to break each of them down in a list format.

Skyfall

Equilibrium: Action sequence at the beginning of the film because it is expected of this genre.

Disruption: The ‘death’ of Bond.

Disruption 2: When Silva hacks M16’s system and steals the details of all the undercover agents.

Realisation: Bond returns to active service to eliminate Silva.

Realisation 2: Final action sequence that takes place at Skyfall, it is the big climax to the whole narrative.

New Equilibrium: The end scene leaves the audience with enigma codes regarding Bonds new mission, he is back to active service again.

Kingsman

Equilibrium: Eggsy lives at home with his mother and step-father. Stealing the car (this is his normal lifestyle).

Disruption: Eggsy gets sent to prison but then gets freed by Harry.

Realisation: The pub scene, Eggsy realises what he is getting himself into.

Disruption 2: Valentines invention of the sim card in which he is set to destroy the world.

Disruption 3: Eggsy does not make it as a Kingsman.

Realisation 2: Eggsy discovers the gun he would have used to shoot his dog was a blank.

Disruption 4: Harry dies.

Realisation 3: Eggsy helps to save the world by eliminating Valentine.

New Equilibrium: All the antagonists have been destroyed and Eggsy celebrates with a girl he met.

The most immediate comparisons I have made between Kingsman and Skyfall revolve around representation and there is a huge variety of different portrayals but I am going to discuss masculinity, age and class. Masculinity and what it is to be seen by a society as a ‘true man’ is huge in both of these films as they are both a ‘test’ of the protagonist’s masculinity and it is believed that they have to fit into the stereotype of being: strong, heroic, brave, independent and popular with women. In Kingsman, Eggsy has to undergo a series of tests which examine him on most of these qualities, meaning in order to be a true Kingsman, he has to tick the boxes of masculinity. However saying this, the representation of the ideal man is definitely challenged in the film because Harry encourages Eggsy to be respectful, protective and fair towards women and near the beginning of the film, we also find out that Eggsy used to be a gymnast to which he was forced to quit by his step-father as he did not see the sport as ‘manly’, showing their juxtaposed opinions on masculinity and gender roles. Also, Eggsy’s masculinity is challenged when he could not shoot his dog to reach the next stage of becoming a Kingsman and this event was foreshadowed at the beginning of the film when he swerves and crashes a car to avoid hitting an animal on the road, showing him to have a strong heart. Similarly, Skyfall also challenges this subject matter because although at the start of the narrative, Bond survives what could have been an awful death, gambles, drinks and sleeps with women which are stereotypical ‘masculine’ traits, as the narrative progresses we as an audience can see a transformation in Bond who has become physically weaker, shown through his tests in which he is unable to shoot accurately and struggles with his stamina, highlighting his vulnerability. Throughout the film, Bond is trying to prove himself as a man and overcome the barriers that are preventing this but we are constantly seeing him struggle meaning the audience cannot help but emphasise with him.

Kingsman focuses on the representation of youth whereas Skyfall more so focuses on the representation of older age. At the beginning of Kingsman, youth is represented negatively because we see Eggsy and his friends steal a rival gang’s car and they get into a car chase with the police, resulting in Eggsy ending up in prison. This represents young people, specifically males, as being ruthless, careless, violent and as ‘troublemakers’ which is enhanced by the iconography at the beginning which includes an estate and ‘chav’ like clothing. However, as the narrative progresses and the audience see Eggsy slowly transform into a gentleman, our views on his youth change and he is now respected and looked upon in a positive manner. It is awful that in order for Eggsy to be seen as a good figure in society, he had to wear a suit and act like a ‘real man’ because it illustrates the harsh stereotypes forced upon youths. Skyfall represents older age in both a positive and negative manner. It is represented positively within the character of ‘M’ who is an older woman with a significant amount of power in the government and therefore has the ability to be in control. However, the negative impacts of ageing are strongly highlighted in Skyfall because M is at times portrayed as vulnerable due to her age and I believe that throughout the film, this is foreshadowing (spoiler alert) her death at the end. Bond’s older age is a big focus in the narrative and there are many close ups of him that express his exhaustion and vulnerability and this along with the fact he failed his tests and was told he can “stay dead” conveys he is no longer fit for the job, representing people of an older age as weak and almost ‘useless’.

Our dominant ideology (straight, white, middle-aged, middle-class males) plays a huge role in the representation of class and it also explains why our main protagonists in both Kingsman and Skyfall fit into most of these categories, because the producers are members of our dominant ideology and have designed characters that mirror themselves, making them more “relatable”. Skyfall only represents those of the middle/upper class, portraying them to be the superior beings and it suggests that in order to have a significant amount of power, you have to dress, act and be brought up in the same environment as the characters in this film. However, in Kingsman, Eggsy comes from a working class background and he proves that you do not have to be higher class in order to become a Kingsman and this is reinforced by Harry who tells him that being a gentleman spy is not about your class, accent, clothing choice etc. but in fact, is about being “comfortable in your own skin”. This provides a much more realistic representation for the audience who will now be able to relate to Eggy to a greater extent because negative classism is not being forced upon them like it is in Skyfall.

In conclusion, there are many similarities and differences between Kingsman and Skyfall regarding genre, narrative and representation and I feel there is a lot to discuss in each meaning they are both rich media texts. Due to its comedic side, I preferred Kingsman and I also found it more ‘refreshing’ compared to other spy films I have seen. Overall, they are both excellent films and I would rate Kingsman 9.5/10 and Skyfall 7/10.