Universal Soldier: The Return (1999)

User Rating:

3.3/10   

Director:

Mic Rodgers

Writers (WGA):

Richard Rothstein (characters) &
Christopher Leitch (characters) ...

Release Date:

20 August 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Prepare to become obsolete

Plot:

The "universal soldiers" must fight the whole army. When the military's supercomputer S.E.T.H gets out of control

Plot Keywords:

Computer | General | Reporter | Military | Stripper

Cast

Jean-Claude Van Damme	...	Luc Deveraux
Michael Jai White	...	S.E.T.H.
Heidi Schanz	...	Erin Young, KTXD
Xander Berkeley	...	Dr. Dylan Cotner
Justin Lazard	...	Captain Blackburn
Kiana Tom	...	Maggie
Daniel von Bargen	...	General Radford
James Black	...	Sergeant Morrow
Karis Paige Bryant	...	Hillary Deveraux
Bill Goldberg	...	Romeo / UniSol 2500
Brent Anderson	...	Technician #2
Brent Hinkley	...	Squid
Woody Watson	...	RL Gate Guard
Jacqueline Klein	...	Betty Wilson
Maria Arita	...	Kitty Anderson, KTXO

Also Known As:

Universal Soldier IV (USA) (informal alternative title)

MPAA:

Rated R for nonstop strong violence, and for language and nudity.

Runtime:

82 min | Argentina:89 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Brazil:16 | Iceland:16 | South Korea:18 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | France:-12 | Germany:18 | New Zealand:M | Norway:15 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:NC-16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | Philippines:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Caddo Lake, Texas, USA

Company:

Baumgarten-Prophet Entertainment

Trivia:

In the scene where Bill Goldberg's character Romeo tears his shirt off and starts to fight with the security guards, he uses one of his signature wrestling moves, the spear.

Goofs:

Continuity: After Romeo climbs off the car when Luc kicks him out of the hospital window, a specific pattern of damage is visible on his back (melting of his uniform). He then enters the hospital and rips off his armor and shirt. Later, in Luc and Romeo's final confrontation, Romeo is wearing the same uniform (indicated by the damage on the back) still neatly buttoned/buckled up.

Quotes:

Maggie: [to Luc] What is it with you boys and your toys?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Tracey Fragments (2007)

Soundtrack:

Magic #3

Lots of kickboxing

Jean-Claude Van Damme has been in about a film a year for 15 years now, and has been the star performer in those films since 1985's No Retreat, No Surrender.

That's no mean achievement and shows that this action movie star has a market for his skills, as limited as they might be. The formula isn't Van Damme's alone but he's certainly the most prolific of the action movie stars.

Silvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzennegger, Steven Segal, Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan are the best known of the action stars but with the exception of Chan, Van Damme is the one who seems to be still most actively in the business. And these sorts of films are much less popular than they used to be.

Jean-Claude is a terrible actor and his film world is simplistic. One can only assume that his fans wish that the real world was like his.

The scenario almost invariably includes lots of hand to hand fighting, silly women and often children who need defending. The plots are stupid and concocted only to allow Jean-Claude to fight a lot and to show his sensitive side as he protects the women and/or children.

The mushy bits, accompanied by appropriate music, aren't ever romantic, Jean Claude could never manage that, but they serve to depict this action man as being a reluctant hero. He only beats people up, firstly because he can, but secondly because he has to.

His best film so far, of the ones I've seen, was the John Woo directed Hard Target (1993) which had many stylish touches, often in slow motion, which accentuated the admirable Van Damme gracefulness.

I think the worst was Double Impact which unfortunately doubled the torture - there were two characters in the film played by the Muscles From Brussels.

And the famous, universal, Van Damme bum shot, the scene where we get to see Jean-Claude's tastefully lit posterior, happens early on in Universal Soldier 2. So if you like you can leave early.

Universal Soldier follows the formula. Actually I think that his fans will like this one. There's plenty of kick boxing.