The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare – A Fun WWII Action Film

The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is directed by Guy Ritchie and is co-written by him alongside Paul Tamasy, Eric Johnson, and Arash Amel. Starring Henry Cavill, Alan Ritchson, Eiza González, Alex Pettyfer, Babs Olusanmokun, Cary Elwes and more, the film brings a secret history come to life. While it is not just a work of fiction, it is a cinematic adaptation of the true story of Operation Postmaster, as detailed in the 2014 book Churchill’s Secret Warriors: The Explosive True Story of the Special Forces Desperadoes of WWII by Damien Lewis.

World War II films are a genre unto themselves. This film is not Apple TV+’s faux vintage-lensed Masters of the Air, and it’s not Inglourious Basterds either. Predictably and splendidly bloody, it is a true-to-form Guy Ritchie film. Although there is a deep gravity and high stakes for the mission, it doesn’t take itself 100% seriously, instead letting the cast play (sometimes at sea!) in what’s typically a strait-laced world of British espionage. (The one-liners alone are worthy of Sherlock Holmes himself.) The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is not remotely as off the rails as this year’s Argylle, but for those who liked the Matthew Vaughn picture, this will more than satisfy the same big-ticket British stylish spy fun tickle.

The actual Operation Postmaster took place off the coast of Africa and was essentially unsanctioned (for which the film details the complexities of), tasking commandos go in and steal Italian and German boats that were vital to the Nazi U-boat resupply operation. Loosely follows story of the operation, it essentially saw Superman and Reacher pull off a boat heist given to them by their version of “M,” otherwise known as Cary Elwes’ Brigadier General Gubbins. Cavill plays Gus March-Phillips, the leader of the sea shenanigans, with Ritchson’s Anders Lassen and Pettyfer’s Geoffrey Appleyard backing him up. Eiza González and Babs Olusanmokun, as Marjorie Stewart and Richard Heron, are the team’s land-based saboteurs. Together, with a lot of occasionally oddly paced bloodshed and explosions, they succeed in their mission and help turn the tide of the war.

The cast is overflowing with talent, but they are saddled with a very plot-driven narrative, audiences sadly don’t get the chance to experience who they are as people in a deep way as it was all about the mission. Though never caricatures, they hint at familiar archetypes, and as a result, audiences are left to mentally fill in a lot of their depth. While this is through no fault of the acting; so much within the story itself is going on that the aim was to be more economical than sprawling, leaving little room for any more. Except for one character, they never truly have the chance to become more than broad strokes. Ultimately, that’s okay because this isn’t a character drama. Here, the team of black ops specialists are collectively the main character. Audiences get a general approximation of the other individuals at play, including Winston Churchill (Rory Kinnear) or even Ian Fleming (Freddie Fox). It works, on can’t help but want more.

While Cavill and Ritchson are huge (literally) draws, Olusanmokun is also absolutely fantastic as an original character, Richard Heron, aka Agent Heron (his second outing with Ritchie, following 2021’s Wrath of Man). Although his character is based at a bar and casino in Fernando Po (now Bioko), Olusanmokun brings wisdom to the character that makes one believe he knows things out of an experience far greater than the tiny island has to offer. He owns every moment he’s on camera. In the end, this is a team film, and the stakes for the world are huge, even if the tension never quite reaches levels befitting that. Ritchie aggressively lets audiences in on this fact. If the team weren’t successful at every step, including the somewhat low-tech jailbreak of Appleyard, it would be a feather in the cap for political apologists (gentlemen) too good to get their hands dirty crying “neutrality!” (War, it turns out, is a messy business.)

Though this may not be its intent, a strong thread of optimism (amidst the Nazi busting joy) is carried throughout. Perhaps there’s a message there worth taking away amongst all the violence that while there’s a lot of darkness now (as there has been in the world before), there’s still quiet bravery and heroism ongoing behind the scenes. Even when unintended, a film, like art, can hold deeper meaning upon reflection and interpretation. The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is possessed by a positivity and unspoken (and yes, sometimes spoken) sense that things will work out in the end.

For audiences who have never seen a Guy Ritchie film, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is a great place to start. It’s not perfect, but it is fun. It will keep one’s attention throughout its two-hour runtime, and is a film that one won’t regret seeing it in theaters instead of waiting for the eventual streaming release.

still courtesy of Lionsgate

If you liked this, please read our other reviews here and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter or Instagram or like us on Facebook.

Ayla Ruby

movieswetextedabout.com/