MovieChat Forums > The Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E.: The Fifteen Years Later Affair (1983) Discussion > U.N.C.L.E. Special MkII

U.N.C.L.E. Special MkII

posted 16 years ago by grendelkhan
2 replies | jump to latest

One of the things that disappointed me about the movie was the rather mundane look of the weapons and gadgets. I had seen photos of the P-38 Specials of the original series and expected something as cool. Our local tv listing had an article which featured the new gun, and led me to believe that it would feature prominantly in the movie. Imagine my surprise when it is barely seen during the attack on the dam, then Solo loses it and resorts to the 4 barrelled pistol. I recognized it from gun magazines. It was a cheap weapon that fired either .22 or .25 caliber bullets or tear gas cartridges. The U.N.C.L.E. assault team had Mini-14's and Tech-9's. I could see this on any mediocre cop show!

OK, so I was a bit of a gun nut then, but the weapon in the article looked cool. They took an HK P-7 handgun as the starting point. The weapon was farely unique, with a squeez-cocking lever on the handle. As you gripped the pistol, your fingures squeeze in the lever to cock the pistol, acting as a safety. If dropped, the weapon could not fire, as the lever was not engaged. They added a barrel extension with some kind of grip on it, and a small silencer (the usual Hollywood D-cell battery sized silencer, not a true flashlight sized realistic silencer). They mounted a modern scope/electronic sight on the upper receiver, added an extended magazine, then finished it off with a stock and arm-rest. Yes, strangely, there was a curved piece of metal at the end of the stock, which fit over the forearm to steady the weapon, rather than a shoulder rest, as with the originals.

You get a brief profile of the gun as Solo infiltrates the Dam, but then it is knocked from his hands. He never retrieves it and it disappears from the story.

If they want to do a movie remake, here's a suggestion; use a Beretta 93R as the starting point (it was also the main portion of the weapon in Robocop). The weapon has similar lines as a P-38, with the added features of a fold-down grip and an extended magazine. There is also a ready-made shoulder stock attachment. All you would need is the barrel extension, silencer, and aiming system for the carbine version of the Special. For the U.N.C.L.E. tactical troops, I would suggest FN P-60 submachine guns. For THRUSH, I would use HK G-36 assault rifles, with MP-5 submachine guns and Glock pistols spread amongst the THRUSH soldiers. This would give it a more fantastic feel and move it beyond being just another action film.

[–] hightp 15 years ago

The pistol Solo reverts to when he looses his UNCLE Special is a COP (Compact Off-duty Policeman). Rather than a cheap .22 or .25 as the OP suggests the COP was a fairly expensive 4 barrel stainless steel .357. I beleive the price was about $350, which was kind of steep back then.

The new UNCLE Special really been a update of the old P38. It was fitted with an aluminum grip like the originals and was even converted to fire in full automatic mode. Only one was made but they had expected to make a few others if the show had been picked up as a regular series.

The Beretta 93R would have been to big and clunky to be an actual 'spy' gun. They went about it the right way.

He who fights and runs away, lives to run away again!

[–] grendelkhan 14 years ago

It was an update of the "style" of the P-38, but was an HK P-7 pistol. A Beretta 93-R is only an inch longer than a P-38 and not much bulkier. From a prop-maker standpoint, the basic lines of the gun replicate the classic Special and have several built-in features that make for easy adaptation, without a lot of machining. The P-7 looked fine, you just couldn't see much of it, despite the prominace of the original Special in the TV series. As for the COP, you used to see all kinds of variations of that in gun magazines for below $350 in the 1980's and the versions I remember seeing were predominantly .22 and .25 caliber, with optional tear gas cartridges available. Now, I'm not saying the cheap models were used in the film, but that is how it appeared on first viewing.

The P-38 was a bit large for a "spy" gun, particularly when compared to weapons carried by agents and plainclothed/secret police, like PPK's, Colt Detective revolvers, etc. The original 1910 Mauser was more compact and a more in keeping with a spy weapon; it just didn't work properly, so they switched to the P-38 for greater reliability when firing blanks. P-38's were miltary pistols and carried by uniformed police, while PPK's and Mauser HSc's were used by the Gestapo and later plainclothed polce officers.