advertisement
Facebook
X
LinkedIn
WhatsApp
Reddit

The Man From U.N.C.L.E review: A solid hour and a half of fun

If you’ve never heard of it before, The Man from U.N.C.L.E. was a TV show that ran from  1964 to 1968 about counter espionage agents, and which starred Robert Vaughn. If you’ve never heard of him, he was the bad guy in Superman III.  

So The Man from U.N.C.L.E. the latest in a long line of vintage TV shows that have been re-imagined as feature length movies – 21 Jump Street, The A-Team and Charlie’s Angels among them.

Even though the new spy flick stays with the TV series’ Cold War setting, it’s directed by Guy Ritchie, whose last film was Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, which, while a bit dim for its subject matter, had some of the best action sequences we’d seen before. If you’ve never seen “the forest scene” before, you’re in for a real treat.

The Man from U.N.C.L.E.  features all the usual hallmarks of Guy Ritchie’s work; unorthodox transitions, jump cuts, solid action, chase scenes (tame enough to maintain the film’s PG-13 rating) and a plot and characters that are simple but functional. And none of these are bad things.

The plot, such as it is, involves Russian and American teaming up to stop a clandestine organisation that is creating nuclear weapons. The US agent, Napoleon Solo (Henry Cavill) is sent on a mission at the beginning of the film to capture Gaby (Alicia Vikander), a German stuck in East Berlin who has ties to the mysterious group.

During the mission Russia’s agent, Illya (Armie Hammer) intervenes to take Gaby off Solo. After an entertaining chase (something the film makes a habit of) the two agents are forced to put aside their rivalry at the behest of their commanding officers. Yes, Russia and the USA decide the threat of nuclear holocaust is more important than the Cold War – which, in itself, is basically a precursor to nuclear holocaust.

From there the movie contains some subtle twists and turns, but nothing mind shattering. 

The pacing is great throughout; the plot develops at a steady clip and never dawdles on one detail too long. Although plot’s developments and twists are telegraphed from a mile away, they’re still enjoyable. The humour and scenes of levity that break up the action feel just right – the movie never feels exhausting.

Despite both Henry Cavill’s and Armie Hammer’s previous movies being widely regarded as “utter rubbish” (Man of Steel and The Lone Ranger respectively), the pair acquitted themselves rather well. Cavill looks like he was born to play a besuited secret agent and, while some say Idris Elba should be the next James Bond, we’ll take it as a personal offence if Cavill doesn’t scoop the role.

Hammer’s portrayal of a damaged Soviet spy was also convincing, if a bit ham-fisted as the movie couldn’t resist some stereotypical national-pride-pissing-contests between the two spies. Alicia Vikander, though, is relatively unknown in our eyes and plays a more understated character, providing a decent foil for the male leads.

The essence of the film is summed up in a sequence that takes place right in the middle of the movie. Our two spies, after trying to jump into a lake and landing on the pier (ouch) steal a boat in hopes of escape. A regular chase scene plays out only for Solo to fall off the boat and casually swim to shore while the pursuers chase Illya. Solo then takes the time to hijack a truck, enjoy a cheese sandwich and wine while listening to Italian folk music, and then get back into action to save his comrade. It’s pulled off well, will make you laugh and is so unexpected you’ll find yourself grinning like an idiot.

In a lot of ways, The Man From U.N.C.L.E. recalls the recent Kingsman: The Secret Service, another light-hearted spy movie that’s very easy to adore. Naturally, it’s also up against  the new 007 movie, Spectre, for best spy movie of 2015. While they’re certainly at odds, we’ll have to wait until November to see who wears the suit better.

Verdict Consistently funny and heaps of fun all the way through 80%

advertisement

About Author

advertisement

Related News

advertisement