Taron Egerton and Colin Firth return to the spy world with this new sequel to the 2015 hit film. But what have critics been making of The Golden Circle? 

The Guardian: *** ” It’s a film that is utterly maximalist, stuffed to the gills with gadgets, gimmicks, ideas both good and bad. An exhausting, exhilarating watch.”

The Telegraph: * “Just getting to the end of Matthew Vaughn’s new film feels like chewing through a 15-tog quilt.”

NME: ** “For a larky spy movie, there’s far too much static exposition. Action is scant, with wobbly CG and without the energy of the first’s church massacre or anything as imaginative as the blade-legged henchwoman, Gazelle.”

Empire: **** “There are a lot of toys for Vaughn to play with here, and for the most part he plays well, but there’s not quite enough to justify the unwieldy 141-minute run time.”

Den of Geek: *** “provides another slice of original insanity, peppered with colourful characters, great performances and yet another soundtrack to purchase.”

Radio Times: *** “though there are some cracking if ludicrous action sequences and the cast is evidently having a ball playing secret agents, the momentum is often becalmed for flimsy narrative reasons.”

Vanity Fair: “Vaughn has an odd, but sincere, affection for this world, and it’s curiously contagious.”

Rolling Stone: ** 1/2 “Even when Kingsman: The Golden Circle goes off the rails, and it inevitably does, this cracked caper wears you down with action and giggles. Sometimes overkill can hurt so good.”

Entertainment Focus: “Kingsman: The Golden Circle always threatens to be amazing and it just falls short. But it’s bags of fun nonetheless and guarantees a great night’s escapism at the pictures.”

Hollywood Reporter: “What seemed, at the outset, to be too, too much finally feels quite all right by the end.”

IGN: “As an action film, Kingsman: The Golden Circle does not disappoint.”

Metro: *** “It’s best to think of Kingsman: The Golden Circle as less of a sequel, more an American remix. It’s still a thrilling ride with action sequences unmatched in their high-velocity blasts, but the new additions struggle to conceal the familiarity beneath this secret service.”

Digital Spy: *** ” this sequel at times runs around and around in circles, even if it often looks golden whilst doing it.”

Kingsman: The Golden Circle is released in cinemas on the 20th September.