How Ungentlemanly of Me

Guy Ritchie's testosterone caper The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is out in theaters today -- watch the trailer here if you missed it. Starring Henry Cavill and Alan Ritchson and Henry Golding and Alex Pettyfer and Hero Fiennes Tiffin plus that lady from Ambulance the movie is basically just a beefed-up (literally -- I mean look at Alan Ritchson there) version of every men-on-a-mission war movie that Hollywood's been churning out since the 1950s at least. I suppose there are earlier examples than that but they really seemed to come into their own in the '50s, when we decided we really needed to solidify our post-WWII savoir complex. Anyway this one isn't American propoganda, given the British director and international cast -- it's sort of Winston Churchill Propoganda but really it's not anybody propoganda. It's just a goof. And as such it's fine enough, although I really think when people have been calling it "Guy Ritchie's Inglourious Basterds" they've been underselling just how thoroughly this movie is xeroxing Tarantino at times, beat for beat and character for character. Basterds actor Til Schweiger has to play the Chistoph-Waltz-ish colorful Nazi this time instead of playing the over-indulgent Nazi killer that he did previously -- it's Ritchson now who plays that part. The lady from Ambulance puts on a shiny dress for the last act a la Diane Kruger, all for the big party slash showdown. It's remixed enough to be different enough but Tarantino should still probably toss a pie at Ritchie the next time they're in the same room. Anyway yesterday I posted some photos from the movie's premiere where I also mentioned that I got violently sick from food poisoning in the middle of watching this movie so you should obviously take my opinion with a great big grain of salt! I was clearly somewhat distracted! It's a fun enough slab of muscular entertainment. Just the way Henry Cavill likes it.