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

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Ray Austin

Writers:

Sam Rolfe (developer: original series)
Michael Sloan (writer)

Release Date:

5 April 1983 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Thriller

Plot:

When THRUSH steals a nuclear weapon and demands a ransom delivered by Napoleon Solo, UNCLE recalls him and his partner to duty.

Plot Keywords:

Sequel | Movie Spoof | TV Series Reunion | Spying | Acronym In Title

Cast

Robert Vaughn	...	Napoleon Solo
David McCallum	...	Illya Kuryakin
Patrick Macnee	...	Sir John Raleigh
Tom Mason	...	Benjamin Kowalski
Gayle Hunnicutt	...	Andrea Markovitch
Geoffrey Lewis	...	Janus
Anthony Zerbe	...	Justin Sepheran
Keenan Wynn	...	Piers Castillian
Simon Williams	...	Nigel Pennington-Smythe
John Harkins	...	Alexi Kemp
Jan Triska	...	Vaselievich
Susan Woollen	...	Janice Friday
Carolyn Seymour	...	Actress
George Lazenby	...	J.B.
Judith Chapman	...	Z-65

Also Known As:

The Fifteen Years Later Affair (USA) (subtitle)

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

Company:

Richard Sloan Productions

Trivia:

The "J.B." character played by George Lazenby, like James Bond, drives an Aston Martin DB5, and with a license plate saying JB.

Quotes:

Nigel Pennington-Smythe: What are you doing?
Illya Kuryakin: Trying to get an explosive cap out of my boot heel, so I can blast the pipe apart so we can get out of here.
Nigel Pennington-Smythe: Why would they put the explosive cap in your shoe? You'll never get it with us hanging by these handcuffs from the pipe. You'd think somebody would have thought of a better spot to put it.
Illya Kuryakin: Well, thats progress I guess?

Movie Connections:

References Elmer Gantry (1960)

"It would of been a disaster without Vaughn and McCallam!"

Agents Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuriyakin are called back to UNCLE after fifteen years to do battle with THRUSH once more who are holding the United States to ransom with a stolen nuclear bomb.

Enjoyable revival movie with Robert Vaughn and David McCallam looking a bit older and a bit thicker around the middle, but still wonderful as Solo and Kuriyakin. The chemistry between them hasn't faded after so many years. Good supporting cast includes Anthony Zerbe as an evil THRUSH chief, Carolyn Seymour as a Russian ballerina who is blackmailed by THRUSH to do their bidding and Patrick Macnee (ex-Avengers) makes a satisfactory replacement for Leo G Carroll as the new UNCLE chief, the latter sadly died in 1972. The film is directed by Ray Austin who worked on The Avengers as initially stunt arranger and later as a director. Austin made his directorial debut on an episode from the latter entitled "All Done With Mirrors."

This was intended as the pilot for a new series, but sadly it never materialised. Interestingly, there has been rumours of a big budget movie of the series being made, probably like Mission Impossible, but as The Return Of The Man From UNCLE shows without Vaughn and McCallam it will be a disaster.