First Blood and Rambo are two of the best action films ever made and even Rambo III is good. Stallone's interpretation of Rambo is that of a reluctant hero. He really never wanted to be in the situation he was thrust into, but once there, he cannot deny who that man is, and that is none other than a killing machine. In the commentary for First Blood, by Stallone himself, he admits that Rambo is a man that can't help who he is. He doesn't start wars or confrontations, but he sure as hell excels in the situation. This RAMBO is no different. Just as Rocky told Adrian in Rocky IV you can't change who you are. Rambo is no different. He wants to live peacefully, and for 20 years he might have been, but that time has passed. Burma/Myanmar is about to learn that.

The first five minutes establishes the tone of the film, and within those first five minutes, you will know if this is the film for you or not. I hate to sound like everyone else, but this is the opening 20 minutes of Saving Private Ryan, but for the entire 90 minutes. There is enough carnage in here to make even the toughest individual cover their eyes once or twice. I remember as a kid, I thought it was tough to watch Rambo get the knife across his chest in the flashback scene in First Blood. If that was a scene in here, it would be the tame by the standards the movie sets. We instantly witness limbs and heads flying everywhere. There are humans being fed to pigs, still alive. Women are raped, kids and forced to play "mine games" and when someone gets an arm or a leg chopped off, it is as graphic as can be. I don't think Stallone was aiming for gratuitous violence here, but realism.

When you see films like Blood Diamond, Hotel Rwanda and others of the same ilk, it reminds you that there are conflicts taking place in many places in the world, and if it doesn't benefit the Unite States to get involved, if there is no oil to steal or money to be made, then no one hears about it. We all know about Afghanistan and Iraq because the U.S. has interest there, but no one cares about a bunch of Burmese people being slaughtered by a government army. Stallone makes you care. The Christain missionaries that arrive at the scene provide the canvas to paint the picture with, but with or without them, it doesn't change the fact that the realistic violence perpetrated by the thugs in this movie happens. Read page 22 of any North American paper and you'll get a tiny blurb about mass graves indicating some kind of ethnic Holocaust. Rambo makes this front and center.

I don't want to give you the impression that this another JFK or Platoon, because it is not. This is simply one of the best action films I have ever seen and Stallone shows once again that he is an action aficionado behind the camera. I'm not sure many others could make a film like this. The action is tense, frenetic and unapologetic. Although we haven't seen a Rambo film in 20 years, Stallone doesn't skip a beat. Besides the action, Stallone is also excellent in here as the quiet hero. While he wrestles with who he is, once he accepts that, all hell breaks loose. I have always thought Stallone was such an under rated actor, and in spite of all the myopic critics diatribes about him, he can act. Rambo might not on par with Stallone' performance in Rocky or Copland, but he hits every note he needs to here. He is a man of few words, but his actions speak louder than any David Mamet ( no disrespect to Mamet, I love his work) script could.

There are some very nice touches here as some of the music is straight from Jerry Goldsmith's vault and there is a nice homage to First Blood, where it all began, when he wears the same jacket as he did when we first see him in the original.

Rambo is a great action film, in fact one of the best in recent memory. This is one that all action fans should give a chance. I was entertained for every second and there is even a sad message in the film. Rambo is worth your time. Sly has done it once again.

9/10

Rambo



I think this sums it up pretty well. I watched this again yesterday and it just feels like it's from a different universe than the other three Rambo films. It's a good, violent, war film, but it's ultimately a remake of the first three. The rescue from the camp and pursuit through the jungle afterwards (same as Rambo: First Blood Part II) and the part where Rambo stalls the opposing Burmese forces by blowing up an unexploded WWII bomb (the same as when he takes a detour from the group to kill guys in a cave in Rambo III); they ask him for help and he says no (Rambo III), and many other scenes. Nothing seems too original or terribly exciting. What this Rambo film is missing is a nice 10-minute scene where sets traps and out-thinks the enemy, rather than just sitting atop a huge gun and blowing them to pieces.

It's nice to see Sly in this movie, and there are some awesome scenes (for example, where Rambo kills the big bad guy at the end) and shots (nice scenery of Northern Thailand), but ultimately it feels like a missed opportunity. It's a few rewrites away from an action classic. The dialogue often seems too cheesy ("Live for nothing or die for something" should be a movie tagline, not a line of dialogue), and the acting, especially from Julie Benz and Paul Schulze, was fucking awful. Some of the worst I have ever seen. The team of mercenaries are also not a good addition, and the violence is rather choppily edited with the CGI splatters of blood looking more like paint on the screen than actual blood. The ending is a nice 'full circle' resolution for John Rambo, and let's hope it ends here.

B

My favorite Rambo movie. Just really awesome.

When I think of bad acting/dialogue, I think of William H. Macy and Tea Leoni in Jurassic Park III. Compared to them, the two in Rambo don't look as bad.

Perhaps your expectations for a Rambo film are already lower.

This holds up really well. Just a great action film, and while it's got that been there done that plot that the third was truly guilty of, it amps the brutality to such an octane level, it is still pretty ridiculous to watch. I think Stallone's direction has never been better either. The battle sequences are up there with the best of them.

First Blood- A+
Rambo- A
Rambo: First Blood Part II- A
Rambo III- C

A very enjoyable, well-shot action movie. Nasty and intense. My second favorite of the series after First Blood.

I just watched all 4 movies in the last two days. I totally agree with this comment.

First Blood A-
Rambo B+
Rambo: First Blood Part II B
Rambo III B (takes last place because Rambo really belongs in the jungle, not the desert)

I love the fact that you had a Rambo marathon. I'd like to read your reviews on each film, SolC9.

I just watched Rambo for the second time this year. My wife wanted to see the other (and more realistic) representation of Burma and the oppression that wasn't shown in The Lady. She literally could not believe her eyes at the level of violence. This sort of film wasn't shown in China and they're not really even aware of it, so I was glad to show it to her.

The film is good, and I seem to enjoy it more and more with each viewing, but it's still detached from the original trilogy, both in quality and production. I suppose for those fans that are not connected to Rambo and the franchise, it's fun to just watch 90 minutes of blood and violence, but for those of us that are in-sync with the Rambo mythology, it takes a detour into non-Rambo territory, and it doesn't sit as comfortably as the 80s instalments.

B+

I've never seen a Rambo movie before.

Saw this on Saturday.

Very violent. Not much of a story. Some pretty good individual set pieces. Some very weird editing/scenes.

B-?

The scene after blowing everyone away, where he just stares down at the chick, and she stares up. And he stares down, and she stares up. And he stares down, and she stares up. Like... that did not need to go on that long.

The violence makes the film stand out in a good way and it's nice to see Rambo back on the big screen. Stallone does well with the part once again, though some of the previous physicality is missing. Hearing the Rambo music again was certainly lovely and it's good to see it addresses an actual conflict too. But the supporting cast is pretty terrible unfortunately and the motions of the story are a bit too similar like the previous films, which often leads it to border on average. The addition of the mercenary squad wasn't very interesting either and it's just through Rambo's character that the film is ultimately an enjoyable time.

B-

Yep this is still my second favorite Rambo film. Stallone is such a beast in this, and I love the fact that it still takes place in the jungle. I don't believe the bad guys have never been more unlikable in these movies either which makes that third act of all out, balls to the walls carnage even more satisfying IMO. It honestly might be one of my favorite third acts ever.

B+