Reviews of an excerpt from the film Universal Soldier: Day Of Reckoning

18.04.2012EvilDollaR

At the festival ActionFest an exclusive premiere of the opening scenes from the film took place “Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning” (Universal Soldier: Day Of Reckoning), which is due out in 3D this fall. He was mistakenly named “Universal Soldier 4”, but real fans know that this is the 6th part. Also, it was about 10 minutes, I didn’t time it, but it seemed that it lasted up to 10 minutes. Maybe 7 or something like that.

I have to say that I think it was a mistake to show the opening sequence separately. It is so gloomy that it causes more anxiety than delight. It was worth showing the entire film. Then we would understand all the twists and turns of the plot, and we could talk about great battles (without spoilers). There were no fights in this segment and it was not shown in the format 3D.

In the opening scene “Day of Reckoning” we are introduced to a new character Scott Adkins. We see everything through his eyes, it’s a kind of cliché, filmed with a first-person camera. It's shot well, with lots of reflections in the mirrors, but it's an old trick. I guess something like this wouldn't look so cool in 3D.

This seems to explain how the character Adkins becomes unisol if you know how universal soldiers were created. Maybe not, maybe he will remain human, and he will have to fight the Unisols. Either way, it's good. I like Adkins, and I will watch him in this image.

However, the video is extremely dark and disturbing, in a way that modern films revel in how dark violence is. This worked in “Universal Soldier 3: Rebirth”, since the key theme there was how bad it is to be in the skin of a unisol all these years. The fact of the matter is that just watching this initial violent scene doesn't tell us whether there will be a deeper subtext to all of this later on. It's just not a very enjoyable episode.

Then viewers are treated to a shocking discovery regarding one of the recurring characters in the film series. "Universal Soldier". I'm not sure I liked it, but I'll have to see what direction things take then. This only increased the number of unpleasant questions. And this is not a fancy expression like: “Whoa, what the fuck is going on here?” This is bigger: “Ugh, is the whole movie going to be like this?”

When “Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning” when it comes out, we'll watch it in its entirety and then evaluate it. On ActionFest, perhaps they will be delighted with the exclusive show and discuss it for almost a whole year. But the excerpt was not so tempting that it was worth showing.

Author: Fred Topel
Source: craveonline.com
Translation: EvilDollaR

More reviews:

Lionheart351976: Okay. I watched the first 10 minutes and I have to say that this particular segment reminds me of horror films shot in first person. You yourself, like the rest of the audience, look at what is happening through the eyes of Adkins’ character and experience everything for yourself. With that said, not much was shown except what happens to Adkins' character's wife and daughter at the hands of a group of masked raiders when the daughter frightenedly wakes up her dad to say she heard "monsters" downstairs. When he goes to find out what happened, he witnesses a brutal scene, and the leader of the masked people, kneeling, looks straight at you, at the audience, takes off his mask, and it turns out to be Luke [Devereaux].

Cool... looks like a detective and horror movie. Very interesting. Did Jean-Claude look good? How is the musical score and cinematography? Was there fighting/action in the first 10 minutes?

Lionheart351976: There were no fights, since you, with a first-person view, are shoveling everything away from masked people, while Scott’s character, barely alive, lies on the floor. He comes to his memory in the hospital, and that's the end of it. The atmosphere is creepy as hell. Great voice acting and background music sets the tone for a home invasion.

Was the sound/visual/feel reminiscent of DTV and low-budget films, or did it look more cinematic?

Lionheart351976: Cinematic. But, in all honesty, the crowd was left with mixed feelings. They needed a trailer or a killer cut that would highlight more aspects of the film. It could have been any home invasion movie. But, as already said, it was filmed very well.

eddie_lummox: He shot a little girl in the head in front of her father. I sincerely hope that you cannot find a good excuse to justify this act.

Just returned from Asheville. Was at the same show as Lionheart351976. While his description is accurate, I don't think he adequately conveyed how "touchy" this episode was.

I think this is the most tense and disturbing opening scene that I have seen since Irreversible, and I seem to be one of those who are looking for such films.

The whole “protagonist witnesses his wife and child being murdered” thing is typical for action movies, but the first-person perspective makes the horror of the event more convincing. It's a long sequence where you're basically getting hit in the face with a crowbar for several minutes. The effect of all this is incredible.

As for me, the result turned out to be hundreds of times better than what I expected, and my expectations were already high. I already knew the action would be good, but I had no idea that the film would be so intense. Now this is my most anticipated film of the year.

For the most part, I attribute all complaints to a personal assumption that all those complaining are huge “pissers”.

Source: vandammefan.net
Thanks for the link Celpaso

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Tags: Actionfest, Universal Soldier: Day Of Reckoning, Scott Adkins

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