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In the second sequel to the smash-hit Jean-Claude Van
Damme/Dolph Lundgren flick , the producers have managed
to coax Van Damme and Lundgren back to the fold. And, age aside, they both bring it like it was, er, 1992. To
say they save the film is a huge understatement. They’re
great!
Van Damme is only in half the film, and Lundgren might
only be on screen for 15 minutes, but that’s enough to
plant the film with a ‘worth a look’ sticker.
The boys bring it – and then some, especially in the rough and
tumble skirmish they participate in near the film’s end.
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Watching the two masters of action mayhem at work
reminds us just
how much more deserving both Van Damme and Lundgren are
of being cast in bigger, better vehicles. Van Damme's quite good here, bringing much more to the
character than was on the page. And in
addition, Lundgren is a master at bringing home a cheeky
quip! He has some doozies here – but they know how to
entertain. Really entertain. They’re the real deal, too
– they likely didn’t have too many stuntmen doubling for
them on this, because in most sequences you can see its
Van Damme and Lundgren getting belt, or giving out the
beltings, and if I didn’t any better, I’d swear knuckles
were actually touching in a couple of those fight
sequences. More so, they’re a charismatic couple of cats.
Say what you will about either of them but it's great to see them
paired up again.
"Regeneration” had gone the way
it was originally going to go – have it feature
different actors, since Van Damme and Lundgren seemed
reluctant to return (Lundgren, for instance, only signed
on to the picture a few days before it went into
production, after they re-wrote his lines for him) – it
would’ve likely sucked worse than a cheap hooker. I say
that because whenever the film is focusing on the ‘third
lead’ of this thing, Andrei ‘The Pit Bull’ Arlovski, who plays
the big bad, or becomes bogged down in exposition or
stationary sequences that don’t involve anyone handling
a big-ass weapon or someone getting whacked, it’s pretty
clear there’s nothing but a thin shell here.
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In a nutshell, the story involves a group of terrorists
taking over a power plant, and the military’s attempts
to take them down.
One of the doctors on the old Universal Soldier program
has crossed over to ‘the dark side’, and with him,
brings a few of his old robotic pals – predominantly,
NGU (Arlovski). NGU’s an unstoppable son-of-a-bitch that
wipes his way through the military, and anyone else that
gets in his way, quicker than a semi on a dusty highway.
He hasn’t got much to say, but he’s got a lot to spray.
With him, the doc wakes up a clone of (original
“Universal Soldier” villain) Andrew Scott (Lundgren),
who, though at times questioning his alliance to the
rogues that have given birth to him, is still is nasty
and as a threatening as Scott.
With little options left, the military calls on Luc
Deveraux (van Damme), the UniSol who’s been
decommissioned for years. Reactivated and retrained,
Deveraux must make a full-out assault on the heavily
armed fortress – encountering both enemies new (Arkovski)
and old (Lundgren).
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The movie
doesn’t feel like an extension of the previous films –
and in fact, unless it was pointed out to us that the
guys with the guns were ‘Universal Soldiers’, and JC and
DL were back as Luc Devereaux and Andrew Scott, it could
pass for a stand-alone film.
Van Damme is great in this movie. Lundgren is
badass. Director
John Hyams, accompanied by his father Peter (who
directed Van Damme’s “TimeCop” and “Sudden Death”) on
the Nikon, Hyams has crafted a fairly slick, rather
showy action movie – considering the lowly sum he’s got
to work with. Knowing every penny counts, and likely
eager to show the big boys how imaginative he is, the
commercials director has crafted a film that’s not so
much an action-thriller - as the first was- as it is a
war movie. He shows real flair here.
The final of the movie is great. Here's the most
screentime of Van Damme and Lundgren. There's a
great fight between both men, and a great knifescene.
Van Damme presents total Van Damage here!
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Van Damme fights against Lundgren |
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Van Damme's best knife scnene ever |
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Not enough screentime for Van Damme |
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Not enough screentime for
Lundgren |
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Vandamage:
36 kills |
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Rating:
7.9 |
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