Uncle Sam
What is more patriotic than watching Uncle Sam on the 4th of July? Watching him get revenge on unpatriotic people. I’m continuing to watch holiday horror movies on the holidays. I love these themed horror movies. Granted, Uncle Sam isn’t the greatest of movies but it’s still okay.
Photo Credit: A-Pix Entertainment
Released: Jul 4, 1997
Runtime: 89 mins
Director: William Lustig
Writer: Larry Cohen
Actors: William Smith, David 'Shark' Fralick, Christopher Ogden
PLOT
Don't be afraid, it's only friendly fire.--Sam
A patriotic soldier killed overseas, comes back to life and gets his revenge against unpatriotic people from his hometown.
MY THOUGHTS
I will make them feel your pain.--Sam
There’s about 14 kills in Uncle Sam. All the deaths caused by Sam except Sam’s death (both times). I will say they are creative kills, but Lustig would show the build up to the kills and the aftermath but for the most part, you don’t actually see the kill. I feel he held back too much on the kills. I would say my favorite is the poor cop who is flung back from the fireworks who is then skewered onto the flagpole. The corrupt politician was kind of interesting as well. He is tied up to the firework display and is killed by the fireworks.
The acting is decent. There are a lot of character actors in Uncle Sam. Most known are Bo Hopkins, Isaac Hayes, Robert Forster, Timothy Bottoms, and the great P.J. Soles. I think the least impressive would have to be Christopher Ogden who plays Jordy. Granted, he’s a kid so I shouldn’t expect much. He just seems off to me.
Bo Hopkins (known for From Dusk Till Dawn 2, and several other movies/TV shows that are not horror related) plays Sgt. Twining, the man who is a sleazy military person who informs the family that they found Sam’s body. Isaac Hayes (known for the voice of Chef on South Park, Escape From New York, Oblivion 1 & 2, and Escape From L.A.) plays Jed, a veteran who suspects something weird is going on.
Robert Forster (known for Alligator, Delta Force, Tales From the Darkside, Maniac Cop 3, as well as several non genre movies such as Jackie Brown) as a sleazy politician who shows up to the celebration to give a speech. Timothy Bottoms (known for Freddy’s Nightmares and several non genre movies/TV) plays Donald, a draft dodging teacher. P.J. Soles (known for Halloween, Carrie, and Devil’s Rejects) plays Madge, the mother of the kid who was burned the previous year.
In the beginning we find out Sam was a soldier in the military who goes missing during Desert Storm. His body was found 3 years later. We also find out his helicopter went down because of “friendly fire”. Sam reanimates and kills the two military members who find his body.
Sam’s body is sent back home to his estranged wife, but his sister ends up having it at her home. In that home is the sister and her son Jordy, who idolizes Sam. But his mom and Sam’s wife don’t feel the same way about Sam as Jordy feels.
It’s the 4th of July holiday and the town is ready for a celebration. The night prior a group of three teens decide to burn the American flag, this pissing off Sam, reanimating him again. He finds someone wearing an Uncle Sam outfit, spying on a girl undressing. He kills him and takes the costume. He then goes to exact revenge on the teens.
He finds one and buries him alive and another one who’s neck gets broken while he’s being hoisted up the flagpole. The third teen left earlier and doesn’t realize what is going on.
The next day while the parade is getting set up, a teacher goes back to his class for a prop and Sam kills him with a hatchet to his head. (He was a draft dodger during the Vietnam War.)
The final teen from the night before is supposed to sing the anthem, but makes a mockery off of it. During the sack race, he is being a dick and knocking people down. He rolls down a hill and while trying to find a way back to the race, Sam finds him. Sam cuts his head off, and puts it in the grill.
Jordy thinks if his uncle was there, none of the kills would be happening. His mother and aunt finally tell him the truth about how abusive his uncle was. He eventually believes them.
Sam walks up to a kid in a wheelchair whose face was badly burned. He tells him he will make them feel his pain. He tells Jordy and Jed that Sam is back and doing all of the killings. The three of them go to Jordy’s to check the coffin and the body in the coffin is not Sams.
They then run to his aunt’s to warn her and they have their final showdown with Sam, finally blowing him up for good.
============================================================
I wanted to take a quick break to let you know I found these great deals on Amazon for Uncle Sam merchandise. I’ve applied to Amazon’s affiliate program and if I can get three purchases I will be accepted into the program. This will be of tremendous help with starting my small business.
============================================================
Overall it’s a somewhat entertaining holiday slasher movie. Not the worst, but not the best. I feel Lustig held back too much on the kills. Show the kills, don’t leave it out. Uncle Sam passes the time if you want to watch something you haven’t seen before.
And now for your Forever Final Girl Exclusive…Did you know?:
Dedicated to Lucio Fulci who died while filming Uncle Sam. William Lustig was a friend of Fulci.
Madison Liora (the blonde woman in the towel) only agreed to do her brief nude scene if she was able to keep one of the Uncle Sam masks after the film's production was finished.
PJ Soles's character wears a red hat, similar to her character in Carrie, who wore a red baseball cap.
Prior to filming the end of the movie where Uncle Sam is shot by a cannon, the filmmakers didn't notify local homeowners of the large explosion they were going to be setting off at 2:00 AM. When the explosion was set off many concerned neighbors called local police and the explosion could be heard throughout the city. It also blew out the windows of several surrounding houses. As a result, the City of La Verne decided to reject all future requests for movies to be filmed in La Verne.
To the disappointment of William Lustig, the movie went straight to video instead of being released in theaters.
Check out my other reviews here: Forever Final Girl
Let’s get into the rankings:
Kills/Blood/Gore: 3/5
Sex/Nudity: 1/5
Scare factor: 2/5
Enjoyment factor: 4/5
My Rank: 2.5/5
IMDB: 4.4/10
Rotten Tomatoes: critics: 6/10 audience: 2.6/10
Letterboxd: 2.5/5