‘Man from UNCLE’ Review: Style and action can’t save ‘bomb’ of Cold War story
Unlike the Mission Impossible franchise, which is set in modern times with modern gadgets, The Man From U.N.C.L.E. stays rooted in the early 1960s with a heavy Cold War theme.
Director Guy Ritchie orchestrates an elegant and stylish spy romp with Man of Steel star Henry Cavill as Napoleon Solo and the Lone Ranger Armie Hammer as Illya Kuryakin. Sadly, the film gets bogged down with its “flair” and stays stuck in the past to be appealing to a 2015 audience.
The CIA spy and the KBB agent are forced to team up with Gaby Teller (Alicia Vikander) to rescue her father from an evil bad lady (Elizabeth Debicki) before they make a nuclear bomb. Using their old-fashioned gadgets, the duo navigate the betrayals and pitfalls to foil the “destroy the world” plot.
Cavill is suave and charismatic next to Hammer’s emotionally torn Soviet is truly engaging, but overshadows every detail about the plot. A teen audience will view this as their grandparents film, full of recycled plot points and cliches and never appreciating the nuiances and Ritchie’s style.
Vikander becomes a sidekick and there is nothing dubious about Debicki. About two-thirds of the way through, the gadgets are abandoned and the film derails into a rushed ending, relying only on Cavill and Hammer’s acting chops.
I don’t think they have, or could have, carved a niche duing a busy summer schedule and should have distanced themselves from MI5. I truly enjoyed the film and would love to see another adventure, but I also can confess to why so many will not like the film.
Hugh Grant’s character is irrelevant and I wish they had landed a more charming Brit, like James D’Arcy, for the role. Sylvester Groth’s ex-Nazi, torture obsessed character becoming a “little girl” was a twist that provided some humor, but made no sense at all.
The Man From U.N.C.L.E. recieves 3 out of the 5 stars.
