The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare

Back in early 1999 i used to buy movie magazines every single month from the UK ( and Swedish movie magazines as well, even though there were only a few of them ) and read about new movies or upcoming films. I had a favourite newspaper and magazine store in Gothenburgh i would always visit to get the latest number. During this time i used to go to the cinema quite often and watched up to 3 movies in the cinema at the same weekend ( ticket prices were not that high which made it worth watching several films in a cinema ). Actually i even watched 3 films on the same day if i saw that there were 3 films that looked interesting. This would of course take a lot of hours from one day but if i had a day off work it was worth it. I loved sitting in a cinema a whole day with my popcorn and soda, just having a great time with cinema magic. Between the film screenings i would pick up the latest cinema magazine i could find and sit at a café just enjoying a coffee and some treats while reading. I especially remember reading about Wesley Snipes latest film Blade that had Swedish cinema premiere in February of 1999 and there were some great interviews in movie magazines regarding that film. I did see the film in cinema twice and fell in love with the film. During the spring of 1999 i heard that director Guy Ritchie´s film Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels was going to be released in cinemas across Sweden. British movie magazines had already praised this film so i did have high expectations going into the cinema at the premiere week. It turned out to be a really entertaining film and was actually one of my favourite British films of that year. Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels is a very loud gangster action comedy with a fantastic cast and the right kind of British tone for a film like this. Director Guy Ritchie became a big name worldwide and he continued to make an impact with films such as Snatch, Revolver, RocknRolla and of course the updated version of Sherlock Holmes with Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law. He did direct the 2002 film Swept Away with Madonna, a film i did rent on DVD back in the day but i never really felt that this was a film for me. I am sure though there are fans of Guy Ritchie who appreciate this film. Speaking of director Guy Ritchie he have done quite a lot of great films in recent years and one of the film i have been really excited to see is a film called The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare taking place during World War II. With a really amazing cast and a very talented director is this another quality film from director Guy Ritchie or is this not as good as i was hoping it would be?

In late 1941, during World War II the United Kingdom is struggling to halt Nazi Germany´s attempts to take over Europe, with Lonon regulary suffering bombing runs at the hands of the Luftwaffe. With their supply and aid ships constantly sunk by German submarines, Brigadier Collins Gubbins ( Cary Elwes ), with the indirect backing of Prime Minister Winston Churchill ( Rory Kinnear ), prepares to initiate Opertaion Postmaster, an off the books black-ops sabotage mission intended to stop nazis from causing more damage.

There is one thing i have noticed when it comes to director Guy Ritchie and that is his amazing way to capture hillarious moments in serious subjects. In this case it is a story surrounding World War II and you might think you can´t really joke about that when in fact it is a perfect moment to bring in some light humour into a war. Director Quentin Tarantino also joked about war in his remake of Inglorious Basterds, the difference with The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare is that this is actually made to be entertaining in a different way with so many wonderful characters. Speaking of characters i was pleasantly surprised over actor Henry Cavill´s performance as the character Gus-March Phillips. I enjoy Henry in several of his films in the past, but i feel that it is in this film where we get to see him shine in a different way than before. I will admit that i really enjoyed his performance in The Witcher but i feel that this film give him an oppurtnity to show a different side of his acting skills. We have to mention actor Cary Elwes ( who i hope everyone have seen in his cult classic The Princess Bride and of course in Stranger Things ) as the character Brigadier Gubbins "M". I have always felt that Cary can take on any character and just magically transform each character into something spectacular and he proves that again in this film. Actress Eiza González ( who i especially remember from Alita: Battle Angel ) bring the strong female character named Marjorie, perfect for this team. There are other really good characters in this film but let´s talk about something that i feel makes this film so charming. There is a simple tone used through the whole film where you combine classic war ingredients with a secret mission, you might think you would get bored but it´s actually much more entertaining than you might expect. Thanks to the charming mentality of the main characters. the smooth story telling from director Guy Ritchie and some lovely violent scenes, this combination makes this film so easy to digest and you are left with an exquisite taste of many wonderful flavors. The action scenes are entertaining, the dialogue is delivered on top notch and the costume design works really well with the time period. The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is perhaps one of the most entertaining films i have seen taking place during World War II and one of the better films from director Guy Ritchie in recent years. I will be getting myself a copy of this film into my collection of Guy Ritchie films and i hope you will as well, this is a top class film for all ages.

Rating: DDDD