The Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E.: The Fifteen Years Later Affair (1983)

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Back when the old Man From UNCLE series was going I thought it was a radical concept. Here we had as the top agents an American and a Russian in an agency run by a British man to the manor born all cooperating against a conspiracy to rule the world headed by some evil folks. Detente a generation ahead of its time.Leo G. Carroll has passed on, but the United Network Command for Law Enforcement has another titled Britisher in Patrick MacNee heading it. A master criminal Anthony Zerbe has escaped and who better than the two guys who borough Zerbe in back in the day to get him.So Robert Vaughn and David McCallum are recruited from the lives they now lead, Vaughn as Las Vegas gambler and McCallum as fashion kingpin. Zerbe has also stolen a thermonuclear bomb and plans to blow it up unless he gets a hefty sum of cash. UNCLE's nemesis THRUSH is back in action.It was nice to see Vaughn and McCallum back in their old roles. Hard to believe that the kindly old medical examiner from NCIS was something of a teenage heartthrob back in those days, but The Man From UNCLE gave McCallum some short lived bubblegum popularity.I can see why this version failed though, it tried for satire and fell on its face. No wonder this was not picked up to revive the series

Talk of a 'Man From U.N.C.L.E.' movie has recently resurfaced, this time with Stephen Soderburgh's name attached. Not being a fan of his work, I cannot say I'm too thrilled, but let's wait and see.In 1983, writer/producer Michael Sloan ( future creator of 'The Equalizer' ) reunited Robert Vaughn and David McCallum for this entertaining television movie. THRUSH has stolen a nuclear device, and threatens to use it unless a hefty ransom is paid. Furthermore, it must be delivered in person by none other than Napoleon Solo, now a computer salesman. Solo agrees to return, provided Illya Kuryakin follow suit. If you can believe this, the ex-Russian agent now works as a fashion designer! The chief villain, Justin Sepheran ( Anthony Zerbe ), is an old enemy of Solo's and wants revenge...'Return' is generally disliked by U.N.C.L.E. fans for several reasons, one of which was keeping Solo and Kuryakin apart much of the time, greatly reducing the potential for interaction. A lot of episodes were like that too as I recall. The main plot is a retread of the Bond picture 'Thunderball', but money was clearly spent on the movie ( there's location filming in Las Vegas and a 007-style gun battle climax at a dam in Libya ) and the supporting cast is good. Keenan Wynn and Geoffrey Lewis are among the villains. British actors Simon Williams ( from 'Upstairs, Downstairs' ) and Carolyn Seymour are also in evidence. Leo G.Carroll having passed away, who better for the job of U.N.C.L.E.'s new boss than good old Patrick Macnee from 'The Avengers', in the role of 'Sir John Raleigh' ( there's a wonderful fan fiction story online - 'The Avengers Affair' - in which it is revealed that Raleigh is really John Steed! ). Gayle Hunnicutt ( once tipped to play 'Major Anya Amasova' in 'The Spy Who Loved Me' ) is absolutely awful though as defecting Russian ballerina 'Andrea'! Of the leads, McCallum seems to have weathered the passing of time better than his co-star, but they are still able to recapture the old magic. The film's tone is rather less campy than the series, and that was to be expected. As McCallum said in an interview at the time, there's no way you can be treat terrorist groups in a light-hearted fashion in these troubled times. There is humour though. When Solo's pen communicator suddenly bleeps in a casino, he says: "Excuse me, my pacemaker needs a new battery!".Director Ray Austin is better known for his work on 'The Avengers'. Overall this is good fun, vastly superior to 'I Spy Returns', 'Wild Wild West Revisited', and the 'Six Million Dollar Man'/'Bionic Woman' reunion films. But the cherry on the cake is George Lazenby's cameo as ( wait for it ) 'J.B.'. We first see him at the wheel of his Aston Martin waiting for traffic lights to change, when he witnesses Solo's car chased by K.G.B. thugs. He decides to give his colleague a helping hand, and deploys the car's gadgets to wipe out the opposition! For those of us who loved 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service' ( 1969 ) and wanted to see George back as James Bond, this scene is an absolute joy. Incidentally, Sean Connery and Roger Moore were both filming Bonds - 'Never Say Never Again' and 'Octopussy' - when this was made!Despite the respectable ratings, there were no more movies of this kind. It remains to be seen whether or not 'M.F.U.' can work in the 21st century. I hope Soderburgh ( or whoever directs it ) does not make the mistake of treating it like a big joke, as sadly happened with 'I Spy' and 'Starsky & Hutch'.

Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E. was a superb reunion movie. When you watch a lot of reunion movies they're never as good and there seems to be no continuity with the original series. Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E. provided plenty of continuity.David McCallum and Robert Vaughan had no problem in reprising their roles and the continuity was there; they had no problems slipping back into their roles.The late Leo G. Carroll was not back as UNCLE Chief Alexander Waverly (Mr Carroll had died in the 1970's). He was replaced by Patrick Macnee. However, this movie did acknowledge Mr Waverly and reference to his passing away was made. This was good because usually in TV reunions, major characters are omitted without any explanation.This movie was just as fun as the original series. Despite having aged, Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin did a great job saving the world again.Most reunion movies are rubbish. This wasn't one of them.One other thing of interest. Former James Bond actor George Lazenby had a cameo in this movie. He was clad in a bow tie, driving a car with the initials J.B. on. Now I wonder who he was meant to be? Hmmm! Must think about that one.

Reunion TV-movies based on old series rarely capture the spirit of the original, but Return of the Man from Uncle taps into the campiness of the series as if it never was off the air. The leads have fun acknowledging their age, and the whole thing neatly turns into a parody of spy films without becoming a parody of itself. I rated it a "9" not because it is great art but because compared to all other TV reunion movies it is head and shoulders above the rest!