Boring

Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

I've been a Van Damme fan since I can't remember and while I do understand why critics may be harsh on him as an actor or his movies, it is not hard to get why he has such a ''cult following'', his movies are fun, simple and entertaining. Universal Soldier may be the best of his golden era. A movie that has everything you need in an action flick: a little drama, humor, cool car chases and of course the action itself. Even thou the main event is the clash between Luc and Sargent Scott, a character like Veronica Roberts still manages to stay in the spotlight, making her to this day one of my favorite female characters in an action movie. This is always a safe choice for me when I'm feeling nostalgic.

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. Van Damme tries his best, but he doesn't really have it in him. To be fair though, Luc Deveraux isn't a compellingly written character in the first place. Lundgren is OK when he's just an emotionless soldier, but pretty hammy once his character's true personality reemerges. Even though neither of them are very convincing actors, the opening of the film is actually quite dark and compelling. As previously stated, the action is quite good, with the best sequences being in the third act. The cinematography and production values are of high quality as well.

This was really the first time that JCVD graduated beyond low budget karate movies and into the realm of popcorn entertainment. Unlike fellow early 90s karate man Steve Segal, who would more or less make the same film over and over for his entire career, Van Damme flirted for a while with becoming the next Arnold, and perhaps no film in JCVD's filmography is more Schawzeneggerian than 'Universal Soldier'.Directed by the man who would go on to become the king of the disaster movie, Roland Emmerich, it's heavy on gory violence, but paradoxically light on action. The result is a surprisingly dull film carried mostly by a strong turn from villain Dolph Lundgren, who steals the movie right out from under JCVD.

*SPOILERS*SPOILERS*SPOILERS*SPOILERSThis is REALLY poor man's "Robocop" or "Terminator" , with no sense of style , substance , intelligence or fun that appear in those classic science fiction movies. Directed and written by Roland Emmerich - one of the worst movie makers in history - what could you expect ? The fact that for some people this is a great classic action movie really tells you about their bad taste and questionable intelligence.The story has no depth or humanity . Unlike Murphy's story in "Robocop" it doesn't go anywhere . The Lundgren character could have been a tragic one instead he is wasted as one dimensional villain. Don't also expect any substance here. The story is just a excuse for the action scenes. If this was a B class movie , the whole cheesy story could be made with irony and for fun. It could have been a cult movie. Unfortunately this trash takes itself TOO SERIOUSLY from the beginning to the end. It is an incredibly grim film with no sense of humor - in it or about itself. And it is dumb - even for an action movie. A great action movies also have sometimes dumb moments , but there is a thin line between acceptable mistakes and pure idiocy. Few examples of complete disregard for audience intelligence : - Universal soldiers are SECRET weapons of US army , so they are traveling in special plane and truck that even blind would see -Universal soldiers can hit a guy people in the head from 500 meters with a silenced pistol, but miss the hero when they shoot him with machine guns at five meters range. - Universal soldiers move slower than zombies , yet underwater they can swim faster than a man can run and NOT get their clothes wet ! - Universal soldiers are sensitive to heat , so they are wearing padded jackets - A journalist simply walks in the secret military complex - Van Damme would rather steal an used car than army truck - Army leaves a truck with no protection at all - Lundgren knows in which car EXACTLY he should hide -Van Damme can't remember how to eat , but he knows how to buy a bus ticketThe acting is rather bad. Ally Walker is just awful as the cliché independent journalist . Van Damme is tolerable as man child with Pinocchio complex . Lundgren is not bad as the villain/killing machine). He brings some joy to this train wreck.Emmerich's direction is terrible , completely flat , failing to create even a speck of tension or excitement. The final fight is terribly cliché. The humor is clumsy and cringe worthy , worthy of a village moron. Avoid it . It's a total trash only for action movie junkies. I give it 2/10.