One Spy Too Many

The "The Man from U.N.C.L.E." TV-adaptations-into-movies are never off British TV rotation for long, although nostalgists like myself would be far happier if the rights to the complete original TV series could be picked up and shown the same way that classic British-made ABC shows like "The Champions", "The Avengers" and "Department S" more frequently are. I for that matter would love the chance to see other classic US fantasy / spy series like "The Wild Wild West", "I Spy", "The Green Hornet" and even "Get Smart" which somehow seem to have been permanently mothballed since their 60's heyday, certainly as far as British TV is concerned.

This U.N.C.L.E. composite shows its soldering too easily despite professional enough titles front and back-ending it. It doesn't strike me as one of the more memorable adventures Agents Solo and Kuryakin enjoyed, although it has its, albeit minor, moments. David McCallum gets most of the action here, neck deep in a marshy swamp, stripped to his shorts (no doubt his myriad teenybop fans of the time would have appreciated this) and suspended from a ceiling to be made into a modern-day mummy (it sounds strange just typing that never mind witnessing it), while Robert Vaughn does his usual debonair bit, courting the ladies, although here Yvonne Craig (later to become the leather-clad Batgirl in the "Batman" TV series) as his minor Miss Moneypenny interest, seems absurdly, as she was 30 at the time, almost too young for our hero. Another oddity is the crude insertion, at the end of master-villain Alexander's plane exploding mid-air in vintage black and white - talk about regurgitating your old stock footage!

The story is run of the mill spy-caper fare with Rip Torn (looking at times a ringer for Ralph Fiennes!) getting off on an Alexander the Great(er) global domination kick and coming unstuck at the hands of Solo and Kuryakin with the usual token meddlesome tag-along female in tow, played here with relish by Dorothy Provine.

To be truthful there are few real thrilling and suspenseful moments and even the stars' quips seldom raise a smile but Vaughn and McCallum look the part in their suits and haircuts and that great Jerry Goldsmith theme music is never far away.

Probably for 60's kids like me only, although, not unnaturally the child in me remembers TV series like this and the above-mentioned with rose-tinted glasses probably lacking today. Not that that will stop me watching the others in the series!

It's 2 TV episodes spliced together so why am I even bothering to review it?

'One spy too many' is two episodes of the Man from UNCLE TV show put together to create a film length version. Alexander (Rip Torn) is breaking each of the ten commandments as he carries out his master plan towards world dominance. When he steals a chemical weapon from a military base, leaving a number 8 behind, UNCLE agents Napoleon Solo (Vaughn) and Illya Kuryakin (McCallum) join forces with Alexander's estranged wife (Dorothy Provine) to stop his plan before it's too late.

Like most UNCLE films this is has TV-show production values and is generally not meant to be taken too seriously. Having said that the plot is not that ridiculous compared to some of the spy spoofs' other storylines, and Rip Torn makes for a good villain. The story manages to be fun without being too silly. However the idea of a drug that makes you calm and peaceful will probably not seem too farfetched for many of us!

Vaughn has the most fun as ladies man Solo and gets the lead role of the two agents. McCallum always seemed strangely sidelined and here is no different. He doesn't get any girls, any laughs and doesn't get that many fights either. However the two do manage to have a type of disapproving chemistry between them. Provine is a bit annoying as Tracy Alexander and is not a great female lead. Other minor female characters aren't key to the story but do provide a flirtatious sexy feel to the film especially the beautiful 'Control' (Yvonne Craig who also played Batgirl!) and Princess Nicole (Donna Michelle who played another role is the earlier UNCLE film "The spy with my face"). They both provide tasteful sexiness that feels at home in a 1960's film.

Rip Torn is almost unrecognisably young as the lead villain and plays him well - with an air of uncaring evil as he calmly goes about his businesses. There are actually no really bad performances in this film! Also, having been left out in "The spy with my face" that old friend makes a reappearance - the UNCLE theme tune! It now feels more like an UNCLE movie.

It's all a bit of fun, but it manages to have good performances, a reasonable plot and some dated action in order to make itself a fun, Saturday afternoon family film. Any fan of the TV series should be a fan of this.

The series Man From Uncle ran from 1964 through 1968. this film, also with Robert Vaughn, came out in 1966. "directed" by joe sargent, who had done a lot of television, including.. Man from Uncle. and the first Taking of Pelham 1,2,3. it's kind of like a long episode of Get Smart. or Man from Uncle, which it is! some spy tricks and gadgets. when the opposition steals a secret nerve gas, it's up to Solo to track them down. It's actually footage from the original tv show, stapled together with added material by Yvonne Craig (Batgirl!) they are invited to a party hosted by Alexander (Rip Torn). a fun outdoor chess game, using live people. and then we're off to explore a tomb, with a whole lot of trick photography. it kind of goes on and on. like a usual spy flick, the good guys and bad guys take turns winning the battles. it's okay. just okay. two demerits for mostly reusing television footage. watch the Taking of Pelham 1,2,3. That one is really quite good.

This is the best 'Man From U.N.C.L.E.' film combining humour, action and adventure.

The grittiness of "To Trap A Spy" had gone as the series settled down to be a smooth tongue-in-cheek weekly action adventure. Illya was now Napoleon's fully fledged partner and gets his own good scenes, and there are bonuses with Rip Torn as the megalomaniacal villain 'Alexander The Greater', Dorothy Provine as his dippy blonde former wife who has her own reasons for pursuing him, David Sheiner is alternately scary and funny as a henchman, Yvonne Craig as Napoleon's contact at Channel D and there are some memorable set pieces like the human chess game, the giant blade swinging over its victims, Napoleon's fight with Ingo in the gym, a mummified David McCallum and more. (One of the things I always liked about these films is the way that coloured gas suddenly emits from everyday objects and knocks out anyone who breathes it in.)

Here's what I wrote about it in my book "What We Watched In The 1960s (In The Cinema)" when it arrived in Glasgow during week commencing 6th February 1966.

1966 would be the year when the spy craze peaked. Audiences were turning out in their droves for spies in all shapes and sizes, and on Thursday evenings 'The Man From UNCLE' was a Top 10 rated show, which had already provided two successful spin-off films using existing episodes with additional material that may have been too strong for American TV, but the two-part episode - 'The Alexander The Greater Affair' - which kicked off season two in the USA, was released in Britain as "One Spy Too Many", with no additional material, and very good it was too. Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryeakin were after Rip Torn as a modern day Alexander The Great who wants to take over the world and break each of the commandments on his way. His ex-wife Dorothy Provine hinders them as they go all over Europe and the US, which always manages to look like the MGM back lot. The support feature was a made-for-US-TV movie, "Your Cheatin' Heart", which told the story of country singer Hank Williams, ably played by George Hamilton with Williams' son providing the vocals. It was an excellent double-bill at both the ABC Regal and Green's Bedford.

Trivia: In early 1966 this film outperformed the new Bond film "Thunderball". Director Joseph Sargent went on to helm "The Taking Of Pelham 1 2 3" in the 1970s.

Jim Doyle is the author of 'What We Watched In The 1960s (In The Cinema)', 'What We Watched In The 1970s (In The Cinema)" and 'What We Watched In The 1980s (In The Cinema And On Video)'