Universal Soldier

Plot synopsis:
Near the end of the United States' involvement in the Vietnam War, an American military squad receives orders to secure a village against North Vietnamese forces. Pvt. Luc Deveraux (Jean-Claude Van Damme) comes to find the members of his squad and various villagers dead with their ears missing. His comrade in arms, Sgt. Andrew Scott (Dolph Lundgren) is the cause of this, having gone murderously insane. Deveraux finds that Scott, while holding up a string of severed ears, is also holding a young boy and girl hostage. Deveraux tries to reason with Scott, saying that the war is over. Scott becomes infuriated and shoots the boy in front of him, then orders Deveraux to shoot the girl in order to prove his loyalty.Deveraux refuses and stops Scott from shooting the girl. The girl attempts to escape, but Scott throws a grenade at her, killing her. Luc and Scott shoot each other and both are killed. The next morning, a U.S. Special Forces squad finds their bodies. The commanding officer orders the bodies to be bagged and iced and to never discuss with anyone the truth of what really happened.Jump to modern day in 1992, and terrorists have taken over the Hoover Dam. Bodies of several civilians were strewn over the dam's roadway, and dead police officers could be seen slumped near their police cars, apparent victims of a shoot out with the terrorists. Several surviving civilians were taken hostage, with one man shot dead as the terrorists press for their demands to be made.Police agencies are ordered not to intervene or make any attempt to rescue the hostages. Instead, the Universal Soldiers (or "UniSols"), an elite counter terrorism unit, are called with Deveraux (now designated "GR44") and Scott (now designated "GR13") among this team. They apparently have been revived with no memory of their previous lives. Deveraux has flashbacks of his previous life, including a deleted scene in which he meets a Vietnamese bar girl at a Vietnamese bar called "LUCKY'S".Deveraux and Scott are sent in to dispatch several of the terrorists, with Deveraux using efficient means, but Scott used excessive force. Their camera feeds sent back to the command post garners concern with the project technicians, suggesting that despite being emotional blank slates, Scott is actually enjoying it. As the UniSols infiltrate the area, they demonstrate their superior training and physical abilities, as one of them (Ralf Moeller as GR74) is shown surviving close-range automatic gunfire.After the area is secure, Deveraux begins to regain memory from his former life after seeing two of the hostages who resemble the villagers he tried to save back in Vietnam. Turning around, he looks upon the face of Scott (who is also experiencing the same memory) but as a Unisol, he doesn't say anything. This causes him to ignore radio commands from the control team.Back in the mobile command center, the Unisol technician team are trying to figure out what happened at the Hoover Dam incident. They reveal that the UniSols have enhanced healing abilities and superior strength but also have a tendency to overheat and shut down. It is also revealed that they are given a neural serum to keep their minds under control and their previous memories suppressed. All of the UniSols are then ordered to go back into their cooling units and inject themselves with the serum. Because of the glitch, Woodward (Leon Rippy), one of the technicians on the project, feels it may be better to remove Scott and Deveraux from the team until they can be further analysed. But Colonel Perry (Ed O'Ross), the commander in charge, tells them that the mission will proceed as planned.TV news journalist Veronica Roberts (Ally Walker) is attempting to get a story on the UniSol project in an attempt to be reinstated at her job, having previously been fired while covering the Hoover Dam incident. After speaking with representatives from the project, she receives evasive answers. She later sneaks onto the base with a camera to investigate the project further only to discover the body of a damaged UniSol who appears to be fatally wounded but is still alive.While attempting to escape, Deveraux and Scott are ordered to bring her back. She escapes to the car of her cameraman, but when the Unisols pursue, they cause the car to crash and overturn. Scott mercilessly executes the cameraman and Deveraux again intervenes, preventing him from shooting Roberts. They both escape in a UniSol vehicle.After escaping, Scott mumbles to himself softly about Deveraux being a traitor, but none of the Unisol team realize it. Colonel Perry resolves to chase the reporter and Deveraux across country to prevent knowledge of the UniSols from getting out, not only to the public, but to the American government, as the nature of project is unknown by the Pentagon.As Deveraux and Roberts hide out and attempt to get evidence of the UniSol program to the media, Roberts turns on the television to learn that she is now being framed for the murder of her cameraman. As the UniSol team is dispatched, Scott's previous personality begins to emerge, causing him to kill innocents. As the technicians realize what is happening, they attempt to stop him, only to be killed themselves. Scott then takes over the rest of the UniSol team.Deveraux and Roberts travel around as Roberts tries to dig up more information about the UniSol program. They meet Dr. Gregor (Jerry Orbach) , the originator of the program, who reveals the history of the project. Deveraux learns more of his past and wants to go home to meet his family in Louisiana.After Deveraux reunites with his family, Scott tracks them down and takes his family and Roberts hostage. A brutal fight ensues with Scott beating Deveraux mercilessly due to the muscle enhancers he has. Roberts manages to escape from her bonds only to be seemingly killed by a grenade thrown by Scott. Scott continues to dominate Deveraux until he gets a hold of the muscle enhancers Scott uses and injects himself with one. Deveraux starts fighting back due to his new strength and manages to impale Scott on the spikes of a meat grinder. Deveraux then finishes Scott by starting the machine up which grinds him up. Finally, Deveraux checks on Roberts who survived the explosion though wounded and the two embrace.Alternate EndingThe Special Edition DVD release features an alternate ending which takes place shortly after Scott takes Deveraux's family and Roberts hostage. As Deveraux grabs a shotgun in the kitchen, the front door opens and he sees his mother before Scott shoots her to death. In the final fight between Deveraux and Scott, Deveraux does not use Scott's muscle enhancers. Shortly after grinding Scott to death, Deveraux is shot by his father before Dr. Gregor and his men appear. Dr. Gregor explains that he had Deveraux set up to get to him and Scott, and that Deveraux was living with people posing as his parents. He then has his men shoot down Deveraux. But before Deveraux dies, police and Roberts' news crew arrive. The news crew douse Deveraux with a fire extinguisher to stabilize him while Dr. Gregor and his men are arrested. Roberts is given the microphone to cover the arrest, but she loses all composure while on the air, dropping the microphone to comfort Deveraux.Several days later, Deveraux is reunited with his real parents. The film ends with a eulogy narrated by Roberts, who explains that Deveraux rejected all life-prolonging medications before dying a natural death.

Tags: murder, cult, violence, flashback, good versus evil, insanity, action

Review:
Universal Soldier (1992) Is one of the best Van Damme action sci-fi classic movies from the 90's also my favorite childhood movie that I am still watching it today.
Universal Soldier might be dumb and derivative but I couldn't care less, it is also one of the most entertaining action films to be released in the 1990s and provided signature roles for two of my favourite trash icons, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren.
Lundgren, until it was on TV again recently, and I got to revel in the glory of 'Universal Soldier'.Van Damme plays Luc Deveraux, a soldier serving in Vietnam, under the command of Sergeant Andrew Scott (Dolph Lundgren).
Listed as Missing-in-Action, the bodies of the two soldiers are used in the Universal Soldier program, and the two are re-activated some time later as GR-44 (Van Damme) and GR-13 (Lundgren), supposedly with no memories of their past.When reporter Veronica Roberts (Ally Walker) stumbles onto some things she shouldn't have seen (seriously, if you want to keep your project secret, you don't drive around in an armoured bus, leaving unlocked crates lying around outside), her cameraman is murdered by one of the UniSols.
The key to this being the decent budget, the tongue in cheek style and the accomplished direction from Roland Emmerich (Independence Day).This is one of the few action films from Van Damme and Lundgren to really compete with Arnold and Sly in terms of production values, large scale set pieces and a sense of real fun, with the mindless and excessive violence.
There is also the obligatory showcase karate from Van Damme.Basically is you like a good action film you won't go wrong with this.
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.
A truck that resembles a small military base is ridiculous but realism is not Universal Soldier's forte.Jean-Claude Van Damme is not a good actor and only this film and Hard Target are the only Van Damme films I've seen that are worth watching.
It is great to see Van Damme against Lundgren as they are very different in stature and persona, and also have different fighting styles, which creates great contrast.Universal Soldier is not a film that will push any boundaries or be spoken about for years to come, but it is one of the most entertaining and well made films of this genre you'll ever witness.
If only the Ally Walker character could have been made a bit more tolerable (and less a cliché) we'd nearly have a total winner.All in all, the action scenes are great, Lundgren is terrific, obviously having a field day playing his role and Van Damme is alright, but then again, he's never been great.Universal Soldier is Van Damme's best film and quite easily recommended for action fans..
If the action sequences are nothing new (cribbed from Arnie and Mad Max flicks), it pushes them home with a relentless logic, and the production values are fine.There is an element of self-parody, thanks largely to Lundgren's engagingly OTT psychotic turn (he's the best of the bunch) and the film-makers have enough nouse to make JVCD rely on his ability to kick the life out of everyone.Plot means nothing, the film is nasty, the semi-moral/sentimental tone that descends towards the end is pretty offensive and it's derivative.But admit it - you enjoyed it.
Luc Devreaux (Jean-Claude Van Damme) and Sgt. Andrew Scott (Dolph Lundgren) are two soldiers have killed each other in Vietnam.
Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren together in one film doesn't exactly bring up expectations of quality.
It's not a science fiction classic, but it's a fun action popcorn movie, like many of Van Damme's films.
If nothing else, the movie teaches us a valuable lesson - don't throw a beer can at a man wearing a necklace made out of human ears.Note: At the Cannes Film Festival when Universal Soldier was released, Van Damme and Lundgren got into an argument and then a shoving match right there on the red carpet in front of the world's cameras (you can check it out on YouTube).
Universal Soldier is Van Damme and Lundgren's best movie ever made.It has some strong action scenes and decent acting from the cast.
Acceptable action movie with two wooden but exceptional action men : Van Damme as Luc Deveraux and Lundgren as Andrew Scott as two soldiers who were killed in Vietnam, but the army has a secret project for reanimating dead people as near-perfect soldiers.
But there a killer soldier , Andrew Scott (Dolph Lundgren) , is executing a criminal spree , the only one who can stop him -as he is threatening to unleash a massacre- is Luc Deveraux (Jean-Claude Van Damme), a good and amiable soldier UniSol .
And the UniSol's basic sidearm seen in throughout the film is a Magnum Research Inc 357 Magnum Desert Eagle .Though they're all supposed to be American the Universal Soldiers are played by a Belgian (Van Damme) a Swede (Lundgren) and a German (Ralf Moeller).
Roland ulteriorly directed 1994 Stargate , 1996 Independence Day , 1998 Godzilla , 2000 The Patriot , 2004 The day after tomorrow , 2008 : 10.000 , 2011 Anonymous and his last movie 2013 White House Down .-Series : The best film of the series was the original ¨Universal soldier¨ by Roland Emmerich with Jean-Claude Van Damme , Dolph Lundgren , Ally Walker , Ed O'Ross ; it was followed by ¨Universal soldier : the return¨ with Jean-Claude Van Damme , Michael Jai White , Heidi Schanz , Xander Berkeley and Justin Lazard as subsequent Universal Soldier films ignore the events of The Return and outright contradict it in a number of ways ; while still an official entry, it is no longer considered part of the series canon .
New sequel titled ¨Universal soldier : day of reckoning¨(2012) by John Hyams with Scott Adkins , Andrei 'The Pit Bull' Arlovski , Dolph Lundgren and Jean-Claude Van Damme , but here they have not scenes together .
On a scale of "1" to "10" on the meter for one of the most awesomely bad-a** action movies from the early 1990s, 1992's "Universal Soldier" rates about an "8." I mean that, really.For one, it has BOTH Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren going head-to-head, their murderous hatred of one another spanning the course of three decades.
Of course, the sci-fi/action plot shamelessly re-hashes elements of "The Terminator" (1984), "RoboCop" (1987) and maybe even a little bit of "Apocalypse Now" (1979), but it's impossible to not like the finished product - just a little bit, even if it's just to see Van Damme and Lundgren sharing the same scenery together and exchanging death-blows.Another little tid-bit is that "Universal Soldier" marked the early beginnings of the future "master of disaster" himself, German-born Roland Emmerich, who would go on to make such science fiction fanfare as his next film after this one, 1994's "Stargate," and followed it up with blockbuster disaster epics "Independence Day" (1996) (my personal favorite of his so far), "Godzilla" (1998), "The Day After Tomorrow" (2004), and "2012" (2009).
But he had to start somewhere, and "Universal Soldier" was his introduction to the United States, and it's not a bad effort, nor is it really anything like he subsequently directed in the U.S.Beginning in Vietnam in 1969, good-natured, morally principled Private Luc Devereax (Van Damme), who is at the end of his tour of duty, stumbles upon a massacre where innocent Vietnamese civilians and fellow American soldiers have been slaughtered alike - all their ears severed.
As Deveraux gradually recovers his memory and learns his past, with the help of nosy reporter Veronica Roberts (Ally Walker), he embarks on a cross-country quest for his original identity - with the increasingly insane Scott hot on their trail."Universal Soldier" contains many of the same car chases, gun-fights, explosions, and kick-boxing mayhem audiences will come to expect from this type of film - with a heavy dose of graphic blood and violence added in for good measure.
Universal SoldierThe only way to defeat an army of robots is to download a PTSD virus onto their system.Thankfully, the armed forces in this sci-fi film are only reanimated corpses.After shooting each other in Vietnam, Private Deveraux (Jean-Claude Van Damme) and Sergeant Scott (Dolph Lundgren) are resuscitated in the 1990s under a secret military operation.Tasked with wiping out terrorists, the pair does its job flawlessly.But when Scott's bloodlust returns, it jogs Deveraux's memories of what happened in 'Nam and of the family he left behind.With Scott unhinged, Deveraux is compelled to help a reporter (Ally Walker) expose the army's inhuman experimentation, even if it means taking down his teammates.Perfectly cast as emotionless robots, the mumble-mouth leads make the most of the formulaic material by relying more on stern looks and leg splits to convey their feelings.
It was rare at that time to see two big names on the same screen - which probably pumped up a lot of people.Here, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren play Luc Deveraux and Andrew Scott, two Vietnam veteran soldiers killed in the line of duty, who end up being regenerated to serve as a UniSol (short for Universal Soldier).
Fun but not deep.The action on screen between Dolph Lundgren and Jean-Claude Van Damme is fun even though it is sporadic.
That seems to be what happened here: Van Damme found a role that worked well within his limitations, a role in which he unexpectedly shone.The movie is typical sci-fi/action fodder: Dead men are revived as virtually unstoppable soldiers.
There was nothing terribly original about the fight scenes either which I was surprised at because Jean-Claude Van Damme generally does have pretty good fight scenes but they just didn't seem to be there in this film.The only reason I can give anyone to watch this movie is if you're an absolutely die hard Jean-Claude fan.
If you don't like Sci/Fi or action thrillers, then watch it to see the great performance that Jean-Claude Van Damme gives..
Universal Soldier pits two 1990s B-movie action titans (Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren) against each other in a sci-fi action epic, that while extremely dumb at times, manages to be an entertaining romp just the same.The start of Universal Soldier takes us back to 1969, to the Vietnam war: GI Luc Devereaux (Van Damme) tries to stop his crazed sergeant, Andrew Scott (Lundgren) from killing some Vietnamese villagers; in the ensuing mayhem, Devereaux and Scott end up killing each other.Flash-forward to the present: Devereaux and Scott have been brought back to life - sort of - as part of the Universal Soldier program, an elite, top-secret outfit that goes around thwarting terrorists and whatnot.
In the acting department, save for Lundgren and Walker, no one really registers; sure, nobody watches Van Damme and Lundgren movies for the great emoting, but most of the secondary characters in Universal Soldier are one-note archetypes (nerdy scientists, hot-headed commander, redneck sheriff, etc.) who don't get much development or meaningful dialog.Still, Universal Soldier is a mostly-effective action flick that should satisfy fans of movies like this..
Mr Lundgren and Mr Van Damme may not be the greatest actors in the world but in 'Universal Soldier' give performances more interesting than usual.
Universal Soldier is a superb action film that stars Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren plus Ally Walker,Ed O'Ross,Ralph Moeller,Tiny Lister jr.(Zeus),Jerry Orbach,and none other than Thomas Rosales jr.
and yes you guest it,He gets killed in this film too!Universal Soldier is quite an epic film and is arguably Van Damme's best!I laugh every time when ever Lundgren speaks because his lines are dang funny and he says them well!I like Ally Walker as she is a very good actress and a beautiful woman!This is the best of the Universal Soldier films and is a great experience to watch for action fans!.
OH MY GOD OH MY GOD these are the words that are sugarcoating my opinion about Universal Soldier now I have seen my share of Roland Emmerich movies and after this I will NEVER watch another one so long Independence Day goodbye 2012 and adiós to Godzilla this is him at his worst now who would I recommend this to either Michael Bay fans, these gay guys and women who want to see Jean-Claudde Vanne Damme naked (don't get surprised it's directed by Emmerich) and people who like to see Lungren kicking the crap out of dead bodies saying "get up" if you however are not one of these people I say BEWARE BEWARE your brain and eyes will sting when you reach the halfway mark now I am going to my third stop I can barely hold this togetherEdit: 1 out of 3 People found this review useful...
Universal Soldier starrs Jean-Claude Van Damme (from Belgium) and Dolph Lundgren(from Sweden).
T2 had bigger stars, better effects and a deeper plot, but there's no denying that the two films share the same 'vibe.' Van-Damme plays a Vietnam soldier, killed in action during the war, and then resurrected by a black-ops military agency as a 'super soldier,' used for thwarting terrorists.
Universal Soldier (1992) ** (out of 4) Vietnam soldiers (Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren) kill each other but in the present day both are brought back to life by the government as a secret experiment meant to create the perfect killing machine.
I don't like Jean Claude Van Damme very much , but this film is his best to date , better than KickBoxer, or Hard Target or many many others.
"Universal Soldier" is undoubtedly one of the best action films ever made, and it is made so by the excellent performance of Dolph Lundgren as the evil Sergeant Andrew Scott.This film, which also stars Jean-Claude Van Damme in one of his better films has all the elements of your standard action film -- violence and coarse language, but no sex which is good, although some butt nudity is featured.The final showdown between Van Damme and Lundgren is the film's high point, and is one of movie history's longest fight scenes -- it runs for over 15 mins.This film was followed by two Made-For-TV films which had Matt Battaglia replacing Van Damme.On a scale of one to ten, I rate this 7.5.
This film starring Jean Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren and Ally Walker has some great action and some great fight scenes, but I prefer Universal Soldier: The Return to this film because the action and fight scenes are a lot better than the action and fight scenes in this film.
Hard Target, Cyborg and this one Universal Soldier for me are top 3 best favorite Van Damme films he ever did.
I think this movie is great, awesome the best of the Universal Soldier films ever.
Universal Soldier was big part of me growing up my childhood that is why I love this movie so damn much.I love Sylvester Stallone and Jean-Claude Van Damme to death, I grew up watching them.
Ally Walker was a fine lady, she did a great job as the second lead role, I love the actress in this movie so much.Universal Soldier is my third personal favorite Van Damme action film one of the best one and it is a fun sci-fi action film I grew up with it.
Universal Soldier is still the typical post-The Terminator story with dead soldier come back to life by chemical enhancement and things went south in heart but thank to Van Damme and Dolph Lungren this movie quickly turn into a classic action movie in it own right when in 2012 it still going strong with the latest sequel title Day of Reckoning(My first Uni Sol flick) that in my opinion got the best action scene in the franchise.This movie also mark the first time these iconic action hero working together and Deveraux VS Scott scene alone make this movie a much watch for fan of these guys and action movie enthusiast in general.
Packed with lots of hard-edged violence and some unwanted comic relief from a highly annoying female support (Ally Walker), UNIVERSAL SOLDIER is a movie that gets better as it goes along.At first, the sheer woodenness of Van Damme and Lundgren is inexcusable.
During the Vietnam war, Private Luc Deveraux (Jean-Claude Van Damme) tries to stop Sergeant Andrew Scott (Dolph Lundgren) who has gone mad.
In particular, the butt kicking old school action was enjoyable and Jean Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren were fantastic as the main leads.
Universal Soldier: The Return (1999) was one of the worst movies that I had the misfortune to see and I refuse to see the rest of the direct to DVD sequels that have since followed.Universal Soldier is pure action packed eye candy and you certainly can't go wrong with Jean Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren as the main attraction.
The plot is pretty unoriginal, but the existence of the plot in this particular film is really just an excuse for action, and the action in question is good enough to make this worth your time.If you looked at the poster and saw the names of Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren, you probably figured out that the acting would be pretty poor, and you were right.
Dolph and Van Damme are top action movie actors.
It also remains Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren's best movie to date..
this film contains two of the finest action heroes and Lundgren well suits his character as hardman sgt Scott and this has to be one of Van Dammes greatest movies.I love this movie and would watch it again and there is a good sequel..
Oh, Jean Claude van Damme and Dolph Lundgren in the same movie, you say?