“The Man from U.N.C.L.E” is a Cold War-era spy movie adapted from the 1960s television series of the same name. It stars Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer as rival spies forced to work together on a mission to prevent some generic evil people from starting a nuclear war. Cavill plays a deep-voiced, smooth-talking American spy hilariously named Napoleon Solo, who, as he puts it, “specializes in the art of complicated acquisitions” (i.e., he steals really well).
Hammer, in many ways, plays the yin to Cavill’s yang, portraying a ruthless but skilled KGB agent named Illya Kuryakin, a man whose troubled past often leads to violent outbursts. The two are sent on a mission to transport a criminally connected woman, played by Alicia Vikander from “Ex Machina,” across the Berlin Wall and around Europe to find her father, who is being forced to work on a nuclear bomb. Along the way are car chases, shootouts, bathroom brawls, double-crosses, island invasions and all the traditional spy tropes we’ve come to know and love.
To start with the positives, the score to this film was stellar. The opening is set to a period-appropriate jazz song, which helps to set the mood for the rest of the film. Snazzy flutes play absurdly quickly during chase scenes, imitating the sounds of frantic panting from the running spies. When Kuryakin’s finger starts tapping before his fits of rage, the percussion beats play to the same time and enhance the buildup. If nothing else, the soundtrack is worth a listen, even if the rest of the film doesn’t fit your style.
The direction of Guy Ritchie, who is known as the talent behind the Robert Downey Jr. “Sherlock Holmes” movies of recent years, was also solid work. Some huge set pieces take place in this film, with cars exploding and boats being crushed by aforementioned exploding cars and missiles blowing up all the rest of the leftover pieces of the cars and boats. But while the environments, action and characters are all pretty to look at, the movie starts to fall apart when it comes to its story and character development.
I’m just going to come out and say it: Henry Cavill is too good looking for this movie. Let me explain — no matter the situation, whether in the middle of a car chase or during his own torturing scene, Cavill looks like he just walked out of a Gucci commercial. Even when double-crossed and poisoned, he calmly lies down on a couch, folds his hands over his perfectly-ironed suit and closes his eyes, all without showing a drop of emotion or worry. The actor’s big puppydog eyes and seemingly god-sculpted jawbone are great for his role as Superman in Zack Snyder’s “Man of Steel,” but here, he looks like he’s more worried about keeping his appearance up rather than — I don’t know — saving the world from nuclear destruction?
Along with Cavill’s character not fitting in, the movie’s tone never quite hit its stride. Certain parts seem like they are meant to be funny, but they are sandwiched between dark and serious scenes, so no one in my theater laughed. A Nazi torturer gets a long backstory as a mad scientist, building up suspense and fear, only to be joking like a cartoon character as soon as his plans are foiled.
In my opinion, the biggest flaw of “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” is the title. Without going into spoilers, the man who is from the secret group named U.N.C.L.E. is a minor character, and it didn’t make sense for the whole movie to be called that. Maybe it made more sense for the ’60s television show, but here, it was as random as taking “Toy Story” and renaming it “Mr. Potato Head and Friends.”
Finally, the most disappointing part of “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” was the story. If it sounded a little boring when I was explaining it before, that’s because it is. Two spies who don’t like each other are forced to work together by their grumpy bowlerhat-wearing bosses and learn to appreciate each other’s talents, all while fighting against a rich person with nuclear bombs and an island fortress. It gets boring and repetitive despite its slick action, and it ends on a bizarre note that didn’t sit right, leaving me confused as I left the theater.
_MOVE gives “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” three and a half out of five stars._
