Review of Uncle Sam (1996) by James O — 25 Jun 2011

From the creators of Maniac Cop comes an entertaining look at patriotism and the war in Iraq. It's basically an ode to the slasher overload of the 1980s, with a zombie killer dressed like Uncle Sam offing people he feels are "unpatriotic".

Draft dodgers, crooked politicians, flag burners, grave vandals, and more had better watch out, because this is one psycho that's giving "red-blooded" a whole new meaning! If you thought that was corny, just wait till you watch this movie! There were a few tense scenes, but other than that, it's a slice of really fun hacking and slashing.

Unlike Matt Cordell from Maniac Cop, Sam Harper is a really despicable, abusive guy who enjoys killing for the sake of killing. Isaac Hayes and P.J. Soles make appearances (although Soles doesn't have a lot of screen time), and the rest of the performances are strong.

It does bear lots of similarities to Maniac Cop, with a supposedly dead hero returning from the grave to kill people. Both the killers are deformed, both go after their wives, and both wear some kind of outfit that wouldn't draw much attention.

There's enough gore to please me, with a decapitation and a hatchet to the face being the best (gore wise). The ending was pretty confusing, and (MILD SPOILERS) I guess we're supposed to assume that Jody's going to become the next Uncle Sam, even though he's burning all his toy military stuff.

(SPOILERS OVER) Blue Underground released this on Blu-Ray and on DVD, and I must say Uncle Sam looks better than it ever has on the DVD (I don't own the Blu-Ray) with the standard aspect ratio of 2.

35:1. Plus, it has two audio commentaries, a photo and still gallery, trailer, and more. It's highly worth worth buying, but I'd suggest renting it first; it might not be your type of film.