Uncle Sam (1996) (Blu-ray Review)
Director: William Lustig
Where to get it: TLA Cult
It’s Fourth Of July Weekend, and the recently discovered corpse of Sgt. Sam Harper – killed by ‘friendly fire’ during the first Gulf War – is returned to his all-American hometown. But when Sam rises from the dead to punish the unpatriotic, only his young nephew and a bitter Korean War veteran (Soul icon Isaac Hayes of SHAFT and SOUTH PARK fame) can stop his red-blooded rampage. Draft dodgers, tax cheats, crooked politicians and flag-burners beware: Uncle Sam wants you… DEAD!
Uncle Sam was a straight to video that I recall seeing in the local video stores around 1996/1997, but I never got the chance to take a look at it until now. And I won’t lie, while not really spectacular the movie is pretty entertaining overall for numerous reasons. Some of those reasons are good and some are bad. Call it bad in a good way if you will, but watching a kid that is a bit of an asshole try very hard to live up to his horrible uncle and a one -legged Isaac Hayes rush in with a giant cannon in order to try to save the day will both entertain you and crack you up at the same time. The 1990s was an odd time for horror and this film bridges that gap in some ways between the corny stuff like Dr. Giggles and the better accepted stuff like Scream.
The plot is rather ridiculous and the results are a nice cheesy flick. Also in the case of the blu-ray release we can’t snub our noses at that either. While dated and a little soft in some areas, I think the overall results of this HD transfer were really good for what Blue Underground had to work with. I think fans of the film will just see the transfer as icing on the cake. If you like slasher movies that are based around holidays I think you will get just as much of a kick out of Uncle Sam as I did.
The Movie: (6.5/10)
The Transfer: (7/10)
Features
– Audio Commentary #1 with Director William Lustig, Writer Larry Cohen and Producer George G. Braunstein
– Audio Commentary #2 with Director William Lustig and Star Isaac Hayes
– Fire Stunts with Audio Commentary by Stunt Coordinator Spiro Razatos
– Deleted Scene
– Gag Reel
– Theatrical Trailer
– Poster & Still Galleries
