Alan Ritchson’s Insane War Thriller Isn’t Backing Down on Streaming

Alan Ritchson has warmed the hearts of audiences as the burly and principled Jack Reacher, but his 2024 World War II action-comedy is much more flashy. Guy Ritchie’s The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is currently streaming on Peacock and is a spiritual successor to Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds. Richtson stars as one of the members of Winston Churchill’s initiative to fight Nazis through underhanded means.

Aptly called The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Welfare, this band of brothers did not follow the rules of engagement as were established at the time. Instead, they used subterfuge, spies, and murder to combat one of the most evil authoritarians in world history. Their methods were so outrageous that if they were disavowed by the British government and if they were discovered, they would be imprisoned. The stakes were high, resulting in a high-octane action narrative fueled with blood and explosions.

‘The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare’ Blows Typical World War II Expectations Away

Serious and heartfelt World War II stories like Band of Brothers and Saving Private Ryan handle this period with reverence. This was supposed to be the last great war and the last conflict that had a righteous cause. Part of the joy of The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is that it strips all these expectations away. This was a real unit, and all the characters portrayed actually existed. Unlike Inglourious Basterds, which is revisionist history, Guy Ritchie’s movie uses truth to tell an engaging and hilarious story, taking out all the pomp and circumstance of a time that feels so long ago.

The Ministry is led by Gus March-Philips, played with particular glee by Henry Cavill. Opposed to any self-serious roles he has played in the past, this is a refreshing change. March-Philips is characterized by his misanthropic approach to combat and his general disregard for the rules. He is perfect to pull off a mission to diminish the Nazis, though he insists on bringing his own team, who are just as wild as he is.

Cavill’s antics in the film are as hilarious as they are brutal, as are the rest of his squad. Alan Ritchson exercises his comedic chops as the Danish archer, Anders Lassen, who wants as many Nazi hearts as he can get. The violence, paired with the winks at the audience, subverts other war narratives of its kind. It is Ritchie in his purest form and an acceptable continuation of his other pieces of action fare. Its greatest asset, however, is the vigor it brings to killing Nazis onscreen. Nazi-killing has been a fad recently, with bonkers ventures such as Sisu, and it continues to resonate no matter how many times it happens.

The villains of The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare are something that everyone can agree on, which makes this adventure particularly enjoyable to watch. Now streaming on Peacock, the war comedy isn’t typical of the genre, but in the end, that is what makes it a streaming success. The stacked cast of rebels eviscerating Nazis is exactly what viewers are signing up for when taking on this film.