Vintage Espionage

The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

2015 is the year of the Spy. With nine films dealing with espionage being released this year, I believe that 2015 has definitely been a boost in the spy genre. What I found most amusing about at least two of the 2015 spy films is that they are both based on 1960s Cold War spy television shows. However one of the aforementioned TV shows has updated itself and has been quite successful at their modernization. The other TV show, though, as decided to stick to its roots and see if they can make the 60s spy popular again. The Cold War is heating up with Warner Bros. newest, The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

The CIA’s most suave agent, Napoleon Solo (Henry Cavill Man of Steel), is on a mission in East Germany to find Gaby Teller (Alicia Vikander Ex Machina), the daughter of Nazi Germany’s most intelligent bomb maker. Of course this being the 1960’s in the midst of the Cold War, the KBG’s best, Illya Kuryakin (Armie Hammer The Lone Ranger) is also on the hunt for Ms. Teller. Beating Kuryakin to Gaby, Solo barely escapes East Germany with her only to be blindsided by learning that he must now work with his Russian counterpart. Their mission is to use Gaby to find her father and stop a criminal organization from creating a hydrogen bomb using his research. The only problem is that can these two super spies get along long enough to complete their mission?

It is becoming very clear to me that director Guy Ritchie (Sherlock Holmes) has an uncanny ability to resurrect forgotten franchises and make them stylish again. Ritchie’s take on legendary detective Sherlock Holmes was marvelous and he has somehow done it again with U.N.C.L.E.. The mix of humor and action was magnificent and the chemistry between the three leads was amazing. Ritchie was able to create a very remarkable 1960’s feel to this film and even used some of the filming styles of the era. I really gained a lot of respect for Ritchie because he chose to keep the film based in the 60s. The film is littered with bright costumes and set pieces giving this spy film a unique feel to it.

Stepping away from the cape and S shaped symbol for a little bit, Cavill couldn’t have done any better as Solo. His charm and womanizing ways are ironically reminiscent of Sean Connery’s take of another one of Ian Fleming’s creations.  Cavill’s opposite, Hammer is just as enjoyable to watch. Kuryakin is a brooding action first type of guy and Hammer is brilliant at peeling back some of the layers of Kuryakin. As great as these two were separate, they become even more impressive when they have scenes together. The two have great chemistry, playing off each other so seamlessly.

The only problem that I found with the film is two things. First was the down play of the women in this film. I am falling in love with Vikander, however in this film she just wasn’t utilized to her full potential. She has some great scenes with Hammer, but not has much as I would have liked.  Going along with this point, the main villainess Victoria Vinciguerra played by the beautiful Elizabeth Debicki (Everest) also never fully blossoms into the villain that she could have been. Which goes into my second point, the villains of the film were very tame. The film seems to focus more on  the two main characters and never on the antagonists of the film. It was like the villains were an afterthought to the script.

Equipped with a great cast, wonderful costumes/sets, and entertaining action The Man from U.N.C.L.E. is a very worthy addition to the spy genre and an awesome summertime movie. If you enjoyed Kingsman: The Secret Service from earlier this year, then I highly suggest U.N.C.L.E. mainly because it is a spectacular throwback spy film.

The Verdict: Worth Your Time.