Review of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015) by Quincytheodore — 26 Aug 2015

The 60's have stylish production, cool soundtracks and lots of sexual innuendos.

In a throwback to classic spy thriller, The Man from U.N.C.L.E. spares no expense in producing incredible amount of flair. It's almost as though they took the cues from old James Bond flicks, then overdoses it with jazz and posh. At its core, the story is just slightly above average, but the production keeps the interest going and prevents it from getting stale.

Henry Cavill plays as Solo, Napoleon, not Han. He's a United States spy tasked in securing a high value target Gaby (Alicia Vikander) in hope to gain information on his scientist father who allegedly finds a way to produce nuclear weapon. Along the way he must face and also inexplicably joins forces with Russian spy Illya (Armie Hammer). These colorful characters eventually banter their way through the movie.

It resembles odd cop buddy premise a lot as the two spies understandably don't work nicely with each other. Although the plot doesn't have striking development, the two leads have chemistry and the movie relies on them to create humor. Both actors perform in light fashion, there are a couple heavy themes, yet it mostly plays around with comical stunts or verbal jabs between them.

It has no shortage of retro music as they play almost every five minutes. The pop vibe is infectiously effective in creating merry spirit. While many thrillers opt for darker premise, the movie stays in the exuberant mood, literally throwing sexual puns, occasionally so bad they're good. Visual looks fitting for the era, though slightly embellished to emphasize the suave personalities.

Honestly, it doesn't possess much depth or that shocking of a twist. What it does unabashedly well is presenting the characters in much charming and playful tone against the contrast of their hazardous mission, and it’s enough to be delightfully enjoyable.