Throughout history there have been a number of events that changed the momentum of a war, and as a result altered the world we know today. Examples like the Battle of Saratoga, the Battle of Gettysburg, and even the bombing of Pearl Harbor have shown that specific moments can be pointed to as those that tipped the scale and changed history. Some of those stories have gone untold, and The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is one.
Guy Ritchie is back with a cast that includes Henry Cavill, Alan Ritchson, Alex Pettyfer, Elza Gonzalez, Babs Olusanmokun, Rory Kinnear, Cary Elwes, and Til Schweiger. Based on true events that takes place during the Nazis’ occupation of Europe in WWII, German U-boats are making shipping hard on Great Britain. Winston Churchill comes up with a undercover ops-teamed plan alongside Brigadier Gubbins (Elwes) and led by the incarcerated Gus March-Phillips (Cavill) alongside a separate spy team of Marjorie Stewart (Gonzalez) and Heron (Olusanmokun). At an island off the coast of Africa, they work to disrupt a large shipping tanker filled with cargo for the U-boats, which would cripple the German Submarines and make trade for England possible again and turn the war in their favor.
There is a huge supporting cast of well know actors from Hollywood, and they all work together really well. I really liked that the performances are done in a way that no cast member tried to outshine the others but at the same time, there were some stand out performance like Alan Ritchson. His portrayal of a man who is very innovative and emotional while still be an accomplished assassin works in a way that impressed me. The film also looks great and took the time to make sure each detail fits within its time period. Being an international war film, this is important, and the filmmakers pulled it off.
I would describe this film as a sequel to Inglourious Basterds meets the killing innovation of John Wick. If I didn’t know who did this film as I went in, I honestly would have believed the first part and would have been shocked to find out it wasn’t. It’s right at two hours long but flows well and kept me interested by mixing action, comedy (which is done REALLY WELL), and story. A lot of films like this overdo the comedic elements, but this film has a number of great moments that made me laugh even when someone was being killed. I do have to warn that the film is violent in many ways, but I will still recommend The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare as a Red Box rental.