The British film director, producer, screenwriter and actor, the husband of the German supermodel and film actress Claudia Schiffer, a friend of the notorious Guy Ritchie is not afraid to experiment, spin up seemingly hopeless projects and even abandon Star Wars. Matthew Vaughn, who produced almost all of Richie’s significant films (“Cards, Money, Two Trunks,” “Big Jackpot,” “Gone”), became a director by chance. But all the accidents are not accidental, if a person is endowed with talent, sooner or later fate will give the topic a chance for self-realization.
If a friend is suddenly ...
Inspired by the triumph of several directorial works by Guy Ritchie, Matthew Vaughn proposes to a friend to film a crime novel by J.J. Connolly “Layer Cake”. But Richie decided to work with Luke Besson and began staging the action-packed gangster action movie Revolver. Then, somewhat disappointed, Vaughn decided to take up the matter personally and took the director's chair of the “Layered Cake” project. As the leading actor, he invited the charismatic Daniel Craig, who has now become the new James Bond, and for other roles - several actors familiar from the movie "Cards, Money, Two Trunks." This was the directorial debut of Matthew Vaughn.
The first pancake is not lumpy!
What did the ex-producer do? Surprisingly, an extremely high-quality film. The director Matthew Vaughn was not prevented by either the lack of staging experience, or even a slightly unsuccessful selection of the cast. The picture is completely different from the work of Guy Ritchie. A simple criminal thriller, deprived of a humorous background, found a response in the hearts of the audience and was favorably received by critics. Won in the debut project found his own inimitable style. The main advantage of the picture is the dynamics of events, the growing unwinding of the storyline and the behavior of the main characters. Everything is shot in a smart, dignified, spectacular and exciting way. Unsurprisingly, critics have characterized the film as the best British crime film since the cult work of Guy Ritchie.
Another confirmation
Soon, the filmography of Matthew Vaughn replenished with an unexpected project. In 2007, he made a film for the whole family called Stardust. It turned out quite an earthly fantasy, in which the characteristics of the key characters play no less role than their magical skills, and the manifestations of feelings go much beyond the bounds of an innocent Garripotter kiss. The picture turned out to be light, dynamic, funny and witty, while remaining a fantasy tale, and not a parody of it. The project with an IMDb rating of 7.70 was another confirmation that Won-director is in no way inferior to Won-producer.
After the movie adaptation of Mark Millar's comic strip “Especially Dangerous”, Matthew Vaughn, who turned into a masterpiece of the movie “Kick-Ass,” found his place in the cinematic environment. In his directorial vision, the film comic about a superhero without superpowers turned into a reckless, but absolutely charming kitsch.
And soon, literally a year after the triumph of the hooligan "Kick-Ass", photos of Matthew Vaughn leaked to the press, in which he was part of the creative team working on the creation of the film "X-Men. First grade". The filmmaker really continued the famous franchise, and at a decent level. His project has a lot of advantages, including a strong plot, global conflict and new mutant heroes, each other is more interesting.
Unrealized opportunity
Matthew Vaughn doesn’t particularly talk about his relationship with Star Wars, but some information is still available. Disney turned to the director of Pipets and First Class with a proposal to work on creating the seventh episode of the epic. At first, the director took the opportunity with enthusiasm, even hastily refused the director's chair in X-Men. Days of Future Past. ” But after that began the continuous notorious "creative friction". The studio insisted on the family format of the project, Won wanted more violence. Matthew wanted to change the main character, "Disney" flatly refused to discuss this issue. Deciding that he could not make the seventh episode the way he wanted, Vaughn broke the contract and ignored subsequent invitations to the dialogue. The recklessly rejected director’s chair in the X-Men franchise was already occupied by Brian Singer by this time, so the director decided to devote himself to a new comic film adaptation.
Yernik spy thriller
The farcical action movie Kingsman. Secret Service ”, released in 2015, became Matthew Vaughn's most commercially significant project. Films "Kick" and "X-Men. First Class ”, he exceeded the box office by several tens of millions of dollars. At the same time, the picture was liked not only by the audience, but also by most critics, who, not without pleasure, attended the show of an ernic tape about a London gopnik who became a gentleman spy. Vaughn’s skill as a director lies in the fact that the episodes in Kingsman, even the most predictable ones, are shot with such spontaneity and ease that they are literally breathtaking, while the narrative does not break into separate pieces. The Secret Service came out voluminous and whole, with gorgeous heroes and antagonists, with sexy killer girls and no less charming partners.
Naturally, the sequel was inevitable. In “The Golden Ring” (2017), Won reappeared in the director’s chair, his new masterpiece came out more fun and crazy than the original film. In all respects, the sequel not only does not concede to the first part, but in some places gives it a head start. Probably, we are witnessing the emergence of a new franchise, according to which, as contemporaries of the Bondian are now, descendants will judge a bygone era.
Future plans
Currently, Matthew Vaughn is considering working on the implementation of the sci-fi film “Courage”. There is confirmed information according to which the Fox studio has already acquired the rights to a draft copy of the script by K. Gaidusek ("Very Strange Things", "Oblivion"). Details of plot twists and turns are not disclosed, but film-makers reading the script tend to compare the idea with the "Faces of the Future" Liman or the "Beginning" of Nolan. In the meantime, Vaughn is working on creating the third part of the Kingsman franchise and the film I Am Pilgrim.