Vietnam soldiers Luc and Scott shoot one another then
get resurrected by the government 23-years-later and are turned into a killer
anti-terrorist team, thanks to the work of genetic engineering. However, when
their memories return, Luc deserts from the unit and villain Scott remembers a
grudge from when they were in Vietnam and goes after his partner.
Kim Newman said in her review, “Take a pair of
second-string hulks and give them the kind of budgetary back-up Arnie or Sly
would expect, then set them loose on a script which mixes sci-fi, martial arts,
exploding gas stations, sadistic wisecracks and post-Nam angst, and what you’ve
got is Universal Soldier.”
It starts in Vietnam in 1969 with private Luc
(Jean-Claude Van Damme) murdering the evil sergeant Scott (Dolph Lundgren) who
has been collecting ears from innocent bystanders, then cuts to the present day
when the cryogenically frozen dead have been resurrected for use in an
experimental military program where well-trained cyborgs are set free with
giant weapons and positioned every time a terrorist incident threatens the
integrity of the USA.
As predicted, something happens and both the good and
bad leads start remembering their past, Jean-Claude running off across country
with a lady journalist (Ally Walker) in haul in search of the truth about his
resurrection, while Dolph murders all and different in an extended Vietnam
flashback while giving out terrible one-liners (“I’m all ears”) whenever he
does anything really violent.
Newman noted,
Of course, while
Jean-Claude — whose accent sounds more like something you’d expect from a
soldier killed in Indochina in 1954 rather than Vietnam in 1969 gets terribly
sensitive en route to a reunion with his parents, Dolph, a foot and a hairstyle
taller than the hero, gnashes his teeth at the prospect of a last-reel punch-up
involving do-it-yourself steroids and handy multi-pronged farm implement.
The action is interrupted
only by pre-digested plot chunks and Linda Hamilton lookalike Ally Walkers
fairly irritating hyperactivity, and both the he-men are given a chance to get
away from their direct-to-video roots.
Van Damme, who is so
proud of his bottom that he makes sure it appears in each of his films, does a
sub-RoboCop bewildered act but cuts loose whenever he gets to show off his high
kicks, while Lundgren, not really happy as the nice guy of his last few films,
demonstrates that nature and his hairdresser have really cut himout to be a
major Nazi genengineered baddie.
Few Academy Awards but lots of ticket sales.
Newman ended her review by saying, “Given that
director Emmerich is responsible for two of the worst movies ever released - Ghost
Chase, Moon 44 - this thick-headed item is miraculously well put together.”
I’ll be honest, this is a typical 90s action film. If
you want to check this out, it is currently available to stream on Paramount+.
Don’t expect anything special from a film that stars Van Damme and Lundgren,
who did a team up before Schwarzenegger and Stallone did. Imagine if they were
casted in this film instead. Would it be any better? We’ll never know. Still,
for what we got, it’s nothing good or even great, but might fall in the middle.
Check it out and see for yourself, if you want.
Next week, we’ll start looking at the DTV sequels in “Universal Soldier Month.” As you might be guessing, they will not be positive reviews.
