Customer Reviews

The Man From U.N.C.L.E [Region 2 Import - Non USA Format]

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This series, groundbreaking & innovative in more ways than I can count, deserves -- nay, DEMANDS -- a fully restored DVD treatment!

Ted Turner made a halfhearted attempt to release the series on VHS & laserdisc during the late '80s, but the effort was spotty & disorganised; the entire series wasn't released, the episodes weren't in chronological order, & a lot of the less popular ones from the near-fatal 3rd season were amongst the ones that did get released.

While this series had it's share of less-than-stellar instalments (one can look at any of the "Star Trek" series to see this example), "The Man From U.N.C.L.E.", overall, did more to popularise the spy genre than even 007 did. American actor Robert Vaughn as the hyper-cool & super-suave agent Napoleon Solo & Scottish-born David McCallum, cold as ice & tough as nails in his portrayal of agent Illya Nickovetch Kuryakin, had nearly insane success & fame in the mid-to-late '60s thanks to "MFU", easily on par with Sean Connery & The Beatles, thanks to this clever spy series, which set the bar for all that followed.

In light of the espionage series that have been released successfully to DVD (The Avengers, The Prisoner, The Saint, I Spy), & especially in light of some of the crap that's been released up 'til now, it's shocking & appalling that "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." languishes in a vault somewhere until someone gets his or her act together & realises that there is indeed a strong fanbase for this series out here in TV Land, & that means MONEY for all involved.

(In all fairness, 5 of the 8 "U.N.C.L.E." movies, mostly consolidated from 2-part episodes aimed at overseas theatrical release, are available in a DVD boxed set in the UK, but once again, "MFU" & its fans gets short shrifted; why not all 8 movies, & why only in the UK?!)

With only four seasons of "MFU", it wouldn't take an inordinate amount of prep work to have the series ready for release by next Christmas. Both stars, as well as series creator Norman Felton, are still alive & very willing to talk about the heady days of "MFU", as well as a good number of the guest stars (William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Martin Landau, Barbara Feldon), writers (Harlan Ellison), & directors (Richard Donner), all of whom could easily be tapped to talk about their memories of the series. The wealth of bonus material in one season alone would be worth the price of purchase!

LOVE The Man From U.N.C.L.E., and am SO disappointed that Warner Bros. has chosen not to release these classic episodes on DVD---just like everyone else!

However, if you have a DVD player that supports multi-region DVDs, or region 2 DVDs (United Kingdom) then at least you can whet your whistle on this UK release for now:

DVD Description
Three-disc set containing five U.N.C.L.E. movies:
The Spy with My Face
One Spy Too Many
The Karate Killers
The Helicopter Spies
How to Steal the World

You can purchase through Amazon's UK web site at this URL:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000AGVOE/202-0819351-9509439

By the way, you can use your same Amazon USA email and password at the UK site---I did!

Well I was glad to see the first season of this series was to finally to be released July 25th, 2006. Now I don't see the pre-order of the DVD for sale as I did a month ago. What am I to think of this studio? That they are clueless I believe sums it up nicely. Napolean Solo and Illya Kullyakin were not only entertainment, they were a boost to the whole industry. In the later Sixties this and Star Trek were the best thing going on TV. If you enjoy watching the Avengers, Secret Agent Man, or The Wild, Wild, West, you will want this set. A must have for any collector of good Sixties TV. Fans of Austin Powers movies will undoubtably enjoy this series. Although it takes itself fairly serious, the series is a little tongue-in-cheek. This series probably did more for spy show screenwriters and book authors than any other TV show, movie, or book. It helped bring about other spy series including the spin-off The Girl from U.N.C.L.E. which was not nearly as successful. I had pre-oredered mine at deepdiscountdvd.com since I don't see it available here yet but now I don't see my order. I am guessing the studio delayed the release date. I truly can't believe they actually think some of the other trash they are putting out on DVD will do better than "The Man From U.N.C.L.E.". Let's hope some smart studio exec convinces them soon, so they can make mega bucks selling this to all us baby boomers, not to mention all the fans of the Austin Powers movies since they are "groovy baby".

5 stars for a cool show, 1 star for it not being out on DVD. I remember watching this show as a boomer kid and loving it, I would order it on DVD if it was out (heck I just ordered Rat Patrol and you know how stupid that show was, with the same German every episode!). Anyway, someone is selling the PAL 3 disc set of 5 movies here for a lot and I figured I'd check out Amazon UK and it's there for around 25.00. I'm not crazy about watching spliced together episodes (I guess thats what they are) and would prefer the original series presentations but what the heck, I'll satisfy that urge and be able to wait for the original format! Just thought I'd pass that plan to others. You'll need a multi region player which are pretty cheap now a days (I've seen them for 20.00 once at tigerdirect), and probably your computer's DVD-ROM will play it also. At 25.00 for 5 TV movies thats on my high price side (thats higher than my magic price to buy a whole season of a show as a used purchase) but I'm tired of waiting and want to get some UNCLE!

From what I read on the internet, there are two studios in a court battle over who owns the rights to the series. Once that is decided I would hope the series would be released by season without delay. What I don't understand is why these five movies (which have been available on region 2 for a few years now) have not been released on region 1 so that the fans in this country can enjoy them on their existing equipment. I would think this would be a great marketing tool to try and gauge the interest as to how well the series would actually do on DVD as well as allow us U.N.C.L.E. fanatics the opportunity to whet our appetites until the series finally comes out. Are you executives listening?.....Open Channel D!!!!!

We will have to contend with this collection of five Man from U.N.C.L.E movies well represented and remastered here on this DVD set, but fans of the series here in the USA will need a multi-region dvd player to view them. Nonetheless, this is a good as any entre into this entertaining TV spy series.

First making its debut on NBC back in 1964, this series capitalized (like so many others of its type) on the spy-thiller boom that proliferated in the cinema and on the television set. Easily making heroes and stars of Robert Vaughn and David McCallum as United Network Command for Law Enforcement (UNCLE) agents Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuraykin respectively, (Yes, a Russian and American working together at the height of the Cold War!)they fought a top secret, world wide criminal organization bent on global domination, THRUSH, not unlike the familiar SPECTRE from the Bond films.

With weaponry that was futuristic and plots that were imaginative and clever, the dialogue and mood of the series was fun and tongue-in-cheek. Clearly an imitator of Ian Fleming's James Bond adventures and extremely popular with with college audiences, it had a solid, profitable four year run that spawned a host of imitators on the movie and television screen. An unsuccessful and feminist-leaning spinoff, "The Girl from U.N.C.L.E." starring Stephanie Powers as April Dancer debuted in 1966, but only lasted one season and was completely forgotten never catching the magic or the ratings of the original.