Review of Universal Soldier

In a war zone Luc Deveraux stops his officer Andrew Scott, killing innocent civilians. However both die in the struggle. Years later they are part of a reanimation programme all Universal Soldiers – perfect fighting machines controlled like robots. However Deveraux has memory flashbacks causing him to flee with a reporter, his commander also experiences memory residues and takes the remaining soldiers to go after Deveraux.

One of Van Damme's and Lundgren's best films – although that's not saying much. The plot is pretty basic although there is some reasonable moralising about the soldiers. The action isn't fancy but it's solid and, unlike it's sequel, it's not afraid to be violent. While it's not a classic it does allow some good scenes and is a bit better than the usual Van Damme fare.

The cast are mixed. Van Damme is a perfect cardboard robot but doesn't convince when he has become human. He is the brunt of some good jokes too (`what accent?') and gets to bare his ass in customary style. Lundgren is actually quite good and his character develops from robot into war-weary soldier quite well. Ally Walker is so-so but she doesn't convince.

Overall this is enjoyable but it isn't perfect. For action fans it's solid enough to satisfy.