Movie Review: ‘The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare’

A newly released movie directed by Guy Ritchie, “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” is a fictionalized retelling of a true story. The story finds its origin in Winston Churchill's classified files that were released to the public in 2016.

The story that is retold in the film is that of a World War II mission labeled “Operation Postmaster.” The soldiers featured in this film are nothing more than criminals who are given a top secret mission by Churchill to destroy the supply line for German U-boat submarines. This would allow U.S. Forces to cross the Atlantic Sea and join the war. 

This film does feature some of the atrocities that occurred during the war. However, it is more in dialogue than an actual visual representation. A warning should go out to those who are uneasy with violence as there are a few grisly scenes that may disturb audiences with senseless violence.

In typical Ritchie style, this film's pacing is spread evenly between segments of extreme fast paced action and a slow burning yet interesting plot that still manages to be tense — even when scenes are not chock-full of shooting. Also in typical fashion, this film is violent, very violent. It is safe to say that this film is best suited for an audience that can handle other violent films such as the “John Wick” or “Equalizer” series. 

Audiences should also be prepared for violence for violence sake as this film takes a comedic stance on the Allies perspective of the Nazi regime. This means that the protagonists kill with no hesitation or remorse while often doing so in good spirits — making jokes and laughing all the way. The film is a very typical action movie and if viewers are adverse to whimsical and casual violence, they may not enjoy this film. However, fans of hand-to-hand combat in a film will surely be satiated.

That being said — if you enjoy a little bit of dark humor — you are in luck. “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” carries a similar humor to other Ritchie films such as “Snatch” or “The Gentleman.”

To carry all of the film’s humorous action, viewers will enjoy a stacked cast that includes Henry Cavill as Gus March-Phillipps, and Alan Ritchson as Anders Lassen. March-Phillipps is a Major in the British Army — as well as the main protagonist — and Lassen is one of his subordinate soldiers. 

The mention of these characters in particular are not intended to downplay the rest of their supporting cast, but these characters were the two most memorable protagonists. 

Alongside the main protagonists, we have their secret spy counterparts — Mr. Heron played by Babs Olusanmokun — and Marjorie Stewart — played by Eiza González. Without these two characters and their story running parallel to the main protagonists’, this truly would just be a film full of whimsical violence for no reason. This addition to the story keeps the balance between plot and mindless slaughter, and actually puts the violence second-string to the bigger plot. 

As stated, this film is not entirely full of violence thanks to Olusanmokun and González, specifically Stewart as a character. 

Stewart's character is shown throughout the film to be involved in a cat-and-mouse game of mental fortitude with the antagonist, Heinrich Luhr. Towards the end of the film viewers receive breaks between scenes of violence — where audiences watch on as Stewart sings to Luhr. 

González impressively improvises a song in German under the spontaneous direction of Ritchie, which is a testament to her skills as an actress. 

When talking about Luhr, we must bring up that he is portrayed by Til Schweiger. Schweiger may be famously recognized among western audiences for his role as Sgt. Hugo Stiglitz in “Inglourious Basterds.” 

According to IMDb Trivia, when being cast for Stiglitz, Schweiger was openly opposed to wearing a Nazi uniform and only agreed to the role upon finding out that the character would be killing Nazi soldiers in the film. 

To see Schweiger step into a role where he plays such a sadistic and convincing Nazi seems counterintuitive to his personal morals. 

When switching back and forth between the two parallel stories, the audience is taken by drone on wide panoramic shots that allow viewers to see the beauty that was often overshadowed by the cruelties of the war. 

Terrible things happened in naturally gorgeous locations. This specific story takes place on the island of Fernando Po, a Spanish colony off of the coast of Africa in Equatorial Guinea, now named Bioko. 

Bioko is a beautiful mountainous tropical island covered in lush green foliage. The war did not care about the beauty of the world, and would take its bloodshed wherever was strategically advantageous. Of course we as viewers are actually seeing Antalya, Turkey when watching the film, but the message is all the same. 

Ritchie succeeds in the respectful portrayal of war as he maintains balance between the animalistic violence carried out by March-Phillipps and his crew, and Mr. Heron and Stewart with their mission of espionage throughout the film. 

Although some liberties in accurate source material were taken regarding the plot, this film may be a good way to open the door to further educating audiences on the more subtle, yet pivotal moments of World War II.

Overall, “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” is a film that sets out to draw attention to a significant event that changed the course of World War II forever in a stylized manner that still remains respectful to the source material, and it succeeds.