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Some of the music was re-tracked from Nelson Riddle's score for The Spy In The Green Hat/The Concrete Overcoat Affair. Riddle recorded that score in between Batman assignments.
Thanks for the Wasp-Thrush clarification.
You and @delfloria are bountiful founts of Uncle background knowledge.
One more movie to go in the 10-film, Uncleathon which of course is thus
1. To Trap a Spy
2. One of Our Spies is Missing
3. One Spy Too Many
4. The Spy With My Face
5. The Spy in the Green Hat
6. The Karate Killers
7. The Helicopter Spies
8. How To Steal the World
9. Return of the Man From Uncle: The Fifteen Years Later Affair (released 1983 with Lazenby as Bond cameo)
10. The new Guy Ritchie film on blu-ray.
The Karate Killers: excellent. Featured roles for both Curt Jurgens and Telly Savalas, but Herbert Lom is the big villain. Great romp. A tad silly in parts but so what, the Uncle vibe permeates throughout. The great thing about '60 Uncle is that it's all prime stuff. The series only had a 4 year run, but all at the height of the '60s spyfy mania. I consider it all solid gold.
The Helicopter Spies and How To Steal the World are both culled from the final 4th season, which had a darker tone- just enough that you would notice, so these films have a little more of an ominous spy vibe.
The transition from the romp that is Karate Killers to Helicopter Spies is noticeable.
Personally I am equally good with both. Both tones work. Both are vintage Uncle.
I love Carol Lynley as Annie. Great Uncle girl, but man.. Lola Albright as the villainess Azalea really does grate. I do accuse her of overacting. I know she pastes that fake smile on her face for effect, but it doesn't work. Rather it grates. Bradford Dillman though does a real nice job as lead villain, head fanatic, Luther Sebastien.
How to Steal The World ties up the whole phenomenon. It was the last film, derived from the last TV episode.
Another great cast including Leslie Neilsen and Barry Sullivan.
The girls though are rather meh in this film.
Another wild plot. Some great location stuff. Both Vaughn and McCallum bring some extra heft to their role, but without losing the spyfy vibe.
Which brings me to the sensational Return film. The conclusion of the Uncleathon is being held up as I have watched this movie twice before moving on to the new film.
I think I might watch it again, as it is that good
There is so much to love about this film. For one thing it really does make effort to come across a Rog-era Bond film. There are girls galore, great sets, overthetop villainy and villain lairs, not to mention the thrilling appearance of the great Lazenby as Bond, coming to Solo's aid in Vegas.
The scene where Laz pulls alongside Vaughn as Solo is chilling. I had to pause, rewind and replay. Authentic Bond and authentic Uncle side by side in the same film. Wow!!!
Laz's uber smooth Bond persona only reinforces what a great Bond he would have made for the whole '70s '80s Rog run. Not to take away from Rog, but I really do like Laz's Bond portrayal in both OHMSS and again in Uncle.
Uncle has changed. Solo and K have moved on to private life, but both have kept their pen communicators just in case.
Leo G Carroll has passed on in real life, so Alexander Waverly has also departed this mortal coil. Waverly is dutifully revered by the modern Uncle, including by his successor and even senior Thrush operatives.
Anthony Zerbe, the chief Thrush baddie, Justin Sepheran, waxes eloquent about the class and style of the departed Waverly and his former top agents Solo and Kuryakin.
The movie is jam packed with smart tributes to the legacy of the original show.
The retired Solo and K have achieved legend status within the Uncle ranks.
And what a choice of successor to Waverly. None other than Patrick friggin MacNee who plays an older John Steed clone, Sir John Raleigh, a direct descendant of the famous Raleigh lineage.
So we've got Solo, Steed and Bond all in the same film, and all played by the authentic '60's actors.
Sure Laz isn't Connery but he's still real deal '60s Bond. That's why I am watching this move 3x in a row. Can't get enough of all the nifty nods and tributes deftly weaved through the film.
Solo now runs his own computer sales firm and lives in a swank NYC penthouse.
There is a great scene where he visits Del Floria, thinking its still the Uncle secret HQ entrance.
Solo's casino re-introduction is also a direct lift from Connery's intro in DN. Deftly done.
Kuryakin now runs his own dress shop (hilarious stuff) and fashion line. Surrounded by beautiful models.
Naturally both former agents are lured back into action. Uncle needs them.
The newly reconstituted Thrush under the direction of Sepheran requires their attention.
In fact Sepheran demands it, so its back into the breach. Edge of the seat stuff. Goosebumps.
but speaking of Sepheran. I am left scratching my head. @alexanderwaverly or @delfloria or anyone. What is his history? I can't place the character. Solo and K are well aware of him. He's of course is also well aware of them. In fact he practically indulges a Thrush-Uncle bromance. Almost a riff on DAF-Blofeld's fascination with Connery Bond and their shared history.
Sepheran has no basis in the original series. He's a character created for Return. Presumably, he got to the top of the Thrush heap sometime after Webb's plot to take over the Kingsley project in How to Steal the World/The Seven Wonders of the World Affair.
A point about the latter, my opinion only. The scene where Solo confronts the "Seven Wonders" is one of Robert Vaughn's best scenes in the entire series. This scene typlifies how Solo is different than Bond.
One more piece of trivia: That originally was not going to be a two-parter/movie for international audiences. But with the show facing cancellation, Norman Felton had it expanded to get one more international movie out of the show.
The Helicopter Spies/The Prince of Darkness Affair was written by UNCLE stalwart Dean Hargrove. He wrote his first two UNCLE episodes toward the end of the first season, wrote quite a few in the second (including writing Alexander the Greater Affair/One Spy Too Many) and worked on other projects during the third.
When Hargrove returned, there was a new day-to-day producer, Anthony Spinner. Spinner a veteran of writing for series produced by Quinn Martin, imported a tougher tone.
Hargrove, in an interview for the extras on the DVDs that came out in 2007, said he and Spinner had their share of disagreements over the two parter. Hargrover refers to Spinner as coming "from the Quinn Martin School of Melodrama."
Helicopter Spies/The Prince of Darkness Affairs seems more like a second-season show than a fourth-season one. Even so, there's some fourth-season darkness here and there (such as when Bradford Dillman kills a bunch of his lackeys by remote control).
Spinner, meanwhile overspent the budget. There were more sets than usual, even for a two-parter. Spinner was trying to juice things up, but this caused Norman Felton some headaches.
https://uncleepisodeguide.wordpress.com/season-four-1967-68/
Personally, I quite enjoyed the sillier third season. It was still great Uncle fare- just got a little campy at time, but I don't think it lost its way.
There really is a consistency to the 4 year series arc. Season Two is peak Uncle, but the rest is damn good too.
Regarding Justin Sepheran. Thanks @waverly for confirming what I thought. Thrush unlike Spectre does not have a clear boss. It's run by the nebulous Thrush Central whose membership is ever changing, no doubt due to never-ending coups and plotting within the ranks.
It allowed the producers to introduce new villains as they saw fit.
Bond can do the same thing now with Spectre.
Blofeld can move in and out of the background as needed, with Bond battling various and sundry Spectres schemes.
That's how I would like to see the Bond movie series move forward.
Any thoughts on an Uncle movie sequel?
Here's how I would do it. Brand a sequel as an Uncle film as opposed to Uncle Part Two, much the way the '60s movies were promoted.
Come back with a catchy Bond-like title starring Cavill and Hammer or whoever as the Uncle agents, and off you go with a fresh cinema adventure.
Budget modestly so that a profit can be realized and build the new franchise.
Otherwise bring back Uncle in HBO mini-series form from year to year.
https://hmssweblog.wordpress.com/2016/06/03/the-acronym-which-really-isnt-that-wont-go-away/
How Joseph Gantman, who worked on the UNCLE pilot, had key roles on other 1960s shows, particularly Mission: Impossible.
https://hmssweblog.wordpress.com/2016/06/04/joseph-gantman-on-the-ground-floor/
After reading that last piece I suddenly have urge to buy complete Voyage To The Bottom of the Sea and Mission Impossible complete series.
Both were classic espionage thrillers of the day.
MI, I think was the most exciting show on TV.
btw, I am becoming hooked on the new Uncle film.
It really does lend itself to repeat viewings.
The blu-ray transfer is crisp and clean. I am up to three viewings now.
Did an Uncle Spectre double bill on weekend. The two films work very well together.
Someone hopefully can make a sequel.
The ending sets up real well for an Uncle relaunch.
Guy Ritchie is now among my favourite directors.
Uncle movie moves at a nice pace. Dialogue is smart, urbane. I find it a very watchable film.
Alicia Vikander is yummy.
Is Gaby Teller supposed to be new Girl From Uncle I wonder?
It's fun freezing the closing credits and studying the new Uncle bios.
We learn that Solo is notorious womanizer, very much in the 007 mode, although unlike Bond, Solo has never crossed line into Mayday territory :P
I would second that motion.
https://hmssweblog.wordpress.com/2016/07/13/u-n-c-l-e-survives-first-round-of-mtv-voting/
It defied the odds just by being nominated, much less making it through one round of voting. At this point, the UNCLE movie is playing with house money.