-By David Guzman
For movie details, please click here.
It takes under two hours for Scott Adkins’ character in
Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning to kill about as many
people as Freddy has in his Nightmare on Elm Street movies, and
like Freddy’s film career, this sequel has peaks and valleys. As a
matter of fact, the opening scenes of
Day of Reckoning show
the same ambition that made the first
Nightmare intriguing,
but part of what made that an excellent horror film was that it
broke new ground in the genre.
Day of Reckoning lacks the
skill to do the same, and its dependence on the genre’s typical
tricks doesn’t help. After five previous movies in the franchise,
it may be time to lay down the weapons.
The drama kicks off with a break-in that results in the deaths of
John’s (Adkins) daughter and wife and puts him in a coma. Though he
doesn’t remember much when he awakens, he helps FBI agent Gorman
(Rus Blackwell) identify the man responsible for the whole bloody
affair as Luc Deveraux (Jean-Claude Van Damme), a military madman
the government’s been chasing since he split and developed a cult
with fellow Universal Soldiers hell-bent on seizing control of the
country. It’s uncanny that he can recognize the guy by looking at a
photograph of him in a ski mask, but whatever.
John’s coma’s compromised his memory to the point where he can’t
recall ever coming across stripper Sarah (Mariah Bonner), let alone
that brawl she says he started when he caught another man ogling
her. Considering everything she’s helped him remember, she’s better
company than Andrew Scott (Dolph Lundgren), one of Deveraux’s
aggressive cohorts.
John spends most of his time and energy on Magnus (Andrei
Arlovski), a sleeper-cell agent who does Deveraux’s dirty work.
You’d think it’d be easy to duke it out with somebody foolish
enough to choose an ax over the many firearms available, but since
John’s the sort of guy who’d punch a bowling ball to smithereens
rather than tilt back when he flings it, each of their scenes
together feels like a duel between Dumb and Dumber.
At least they’re a blast to watch, probably because director John
Hyams has a knack for cerebral imagery. He manages to get agreeable
performances out of the cast, even if Van Damme’s underwhelming
acting is at a right angle with the material.
Film Review: Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning
Just because fans expect more of the same out of action sequels doesn’t mean Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning has to feel as familiar as this.
Nov 29, 2012
-By David Guzman
For movie details, please click here.
It takes under two hours for Scott Adkins’ character in
Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning to kill about as many people as Freddy has in his Nightmare on Elm Street movies, and like Freddy’s film career, this sequel has peaks and valleys. As a matter of fact, the opening scenes of
Day of Reckoning show the same ambition that made the first
Nightmare intriguing, but part of what made that an excellent horror film was that it broke new ground in the genre.
Day of Reckoning lacks the skill to do the same, and its dependence on the genre’s typical tricks doesn’t help. After five previous movies in the franchise, it may be time to lay down the weapons.
The drama kicks off with a break-in that results in the deaths of John’s (Adkins) daughter and wife and puts him in a coma. Though he doesn’t remember much when he awakens, he helps FBI agent Gorman (Rus Blackwell) identify the man responsible for the whole bloody affair as Luc Deveraux (Jean-Claude Van Damme), a military madman the government’s been chasing since he split and developed a cult with fellow Universal Soldiers hell-bent on seizing control of the country. It’s uncanny that he can recognize the guy by looking at a photograph of him in a ski mask, but whatever.
John’s coma’s compromised his memory to the point where he can’t recall ever coming across stripper Sarah (Mariah Bonner), let alone that brawl she says he started when he caught another man ogling her. Considering everything she’s helped him remember, she’s better company than Andrew Scott (Dolph Lundgren), one of Deveraux’s aggressive cohorts.
John spends most of his time and energy on Magnus (Andrei Arlovski), a sleeper-cell agent who does Deveraux’s dirty work. You’d think it’d be easy to duke it out with somebody foolish enough to choose an ax over the many firearms available, but since John’s the sort of guy who’d punch a bowling ball to smithereens rather than tilt back when he flings it, each of their scenes together feels like a duel between Dumb and Dumber.
At least they’re a blast to watch, probably because director John Hyams has a knack for cerebral imagery. He manages to get agreeable performances out of the cast, even if Van Damme’s underwhelming acting is at a right angle with the material.
