Reel life: Do you have a favorite 'U.N.C.L.E.' opening?

Film critics notebook:

• Each of the four seasons of NBC's "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." opened with a different arrangement of Jerry Goldsmith's classic spy theme. So which version of Goldsmith's "U.N.C.L.E." do you prefer? Brassy Season 1? Latinized Season 2? Saxy Season 3? Or generic Season 4? You can hear them all back-to-back at http://bit.ly/1W6fY8V. Let me know your favorite (and why) at dgire@dailyherald.com.

Just for fun, here's an excellent cover version of "U.N.C.L.E." to go along with others from the Ventures, Frank Chacksfield and Hugo Montenegro. It's a touch big-bandy, but a dandy. http://bit.ly/1KVXS6a.

• Count Dracula of Transylvania will make personal appearances (but not in mirrors) this weekend to promote the Sept. 25 release of "Hotel Transylvania 2." The caped one will appear from noon to 6 p.m. Friday, Aug. 14, at Carpentersville's Cinema 12; Saturday, Aug. 15 at St. Charles' Charlestowne 18 Cinema, and Sunday, Aug. 16, at Downers Grove's Tivoli Theatre. Go to classiccinemas.com for details.

P.S. You can bring cameras to photograph the Count, but no guarantees he'll cast an image.

• Mark your calendars for the 9th Annual Teen Film Fest at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 21, at the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre, 111 W. Campbell St., Arlington Heights. I'll be one of the judges joining Selena Groh (former president of the Arlington Heights Memorial Library's Teen Advisory Board) and Joe Keefe (director of the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre). Go to ahml.info/teens/filmfest for info.

• "Shaun the Sheep Movie" employed 20 animators and 30 model makers to craft 157 human figures and 197 sheep puppets - 21 just for Shaun. Each sheep was covered with 31 inches of fleece sprayed with diluted glue to prevent "boiling" under studio lights. Fifty-eight cameras shot the movie. Each animator tried to get three seconds of footage done every day. Filmmakers produced 40 to 50 shots - about two and-a-half minutes - per week. Had a single animator made "Shaun the Sheep Movie," the project would have taken nine years to complete.

So, show your appreciation by watching one of Oscar's surefire nominees for best animated feature this weekend.

• Dann Gire's Reel Life column runs Fridays in Time out!