Thanks for checking out our Rambo review. To see a video version of this review, just go to the bottom of the post.
When I first caught word that Sylvester Stallone was going to be making a new Rocky and Rambo movies, I hung my head it total despair. To me, it was a sad desperate attempt by an aging former star to become relevant again. To me they seemed like horrible ideas. But then I saw Rocky Balboa (aka Rocky 6) and I had to seriously eat some of my words. It was such a great film, and one that I still think about. So who knows? If he could surprise the hell out of us with Rocky 6, maybe he can do it again with Rambo 4?
THE GENERAL IDEA
Rambo has spent his last few years living an isolated life in the jungles of Thailand, living alone and scraping out a living by capturing deadly snake for the local freak show. He’s quieter than ever and rarely speaks other than to say “fuck you” once or twice under his breath. One day however, his solitude is interrupted when a group of American christian missionaries confront him, looking for passage on his boat into the troubled country of Burma so they can deliver supplies and provide medical care to the refugees who are being terrorized by the local military. John J Rambo, being the wise man of the mountain that he is, tells them “no” and to go home. But one of the missionaries (the lone woman in the group) decides to appeal the what little humanity still exists in John and ultimately convinces him to help them. However, sometime after John drops the missionaries off in Burma, word comes out that the village they were helping has been attacked, and John is called on again to mount a rescue mission to save the missionaries now being held by the brutal military commander. This part may surprise you… but… violence ensues.
THE BAD
I know I usually start these reviews with “the good”, but this one has to be done in reverse order. I’ve got to say this right up front… the first half (or maybe closter to 5 8ths) of the film were horrible. If the movie had continued on the same way the entire beginning and most of the middle was going, an argument could be made that RAMBO deserves a place on the “top 20 worst films of all time” list. It was really that horrible.
Where Rocky successfully took a look into a familiar character we all know, dealing not only with a desire to complete again but also looking at life, the things that matter, reflecting on past victories and past defeats, dealing with the losses in his life that age and time bring and being forced to re-examine himself and who he is, all pushed along with brilliant dialog and meaningful exposition… Rambo fails at all of that. Reflection is replaced with AWFUL flash back montages of previous Rambo films, dialog is replaced by… well… nothing (and yes, I understand Rambo is quiet, I’m not suggesting a LOT of dialog… just make sure it’s decent when you use it the little that you do), pace is replaced with pause (just about nothing happens really) and story is replaced with just a premise. It was a snore-fest. Almost unwatchable… nay… it was unwatchable. Honestly, if it weren’t for the fact that we were in a special press screening, and surrounded by security guards, I think Doug and I would have walked out. Yeah… the first half of the film was really was that bad.
Special mention should be given to the dialog. Most of the talking in the film is done by the Christian Missionaries, and dear sweet heavens, was it ever BAD! Especially anything that came out of the sole female character’s mouth. Every time she spoke you wanted to jam popcorn in your ears to drown out the spew that was pouring forth. I honestly felt like they got all their dialog from Hallmark cards… read by Jessica Alba. It’s so hard to believe that this drivel was written by the same guy who brilliantly wrote Rocky Balboa.
THE GOOD
Let’s face it, as important a dialog is to a movie… as important as story is to a movie… as important character development is to a movie… people going into see Rambo aren’t going for he dialog, story or characters. They want to see crazy violence, and make no mistake… once you get into the 3rd act of the film, Stallone become the conductor of one of the most massive violence symphony orchestras you’ve ever seen!
As bad as the fist 2 acts are, the final 30-40 minutes equals in awesomeness. Rambo easily contains the most violence, war gory scenes I’ve ever witnessed in a film (and yes, I’m including the beach scene in “Saving Private Ryan” on that list). At one point, the action FINALLY starts… and from then on out, Rambo puts his boot to your throat and never takes it off. The crap just looks so frigging real, and it was so intense… and it was so violent… and he did such unspeakable things to a lot of these Burmeese soldiers… wow it was fun! I can’t stress this enough: If you’re going to see Rambo because you want to see good ol’ John J. kicking serious bad guy ass… then the last act of this movie will make you leave the theater with a huge smile on your face.
OVERALL
Some of the most intense action/violence I’ve ever seen in a movie, is almost ruined by every other conceivable thing being done wrong. The first half (and more) is some of the worst film making I’ve seen in years… and then suddenly out of nowhere it is redeemed by delivering exactly what the Rambo audience paid their money to see…. Rambo doing insane Rambo things… and doing them well. It was enough to save the movie for me. If you’re going to go see it, I’d say plan on being 20 minutes late, I promise you’re not missing anything and you’ll get to the good stuff faster! Overall I give Rambo a 5 out of 10 (first half a 1/10, the last a 9.5/10).
WATCH THE VIDEO VERSION OF THE REVIEW HERE:
For the most part I agree with this review, but I’ll add that the cinematography throughout the entire movie was very well done…even during the boring parts, you could distract yourself with the beautiful scenery and interesting set pieces.
Send it to Manila, it will earn a lot. He should have kissed the canvass a long time ago, or in this case hit the floor, harder! Totally avoided this one… like the plague.
Last note: Best tag line of the series:
“When you’re pushed, killin’ is as easy as breathing.”
One last music nerd observation. If you listen to the updated score on the current movie, it is not unlike the previous soundtracks except for one thing. You’ll hear a horse’s neigh at the end of the loud trumpet crescendos. Could this be a little well earned conceit on the part of the one and only Italian Stallion saying fairwell to his Rambo character?
Sorry. I have to disagree. I think the final Rambo installment was the best of the franchise. If you are like me, you went to be entertained. I spent the first half of the movie comparing the old Rambo with the new and looking for tie ins. I have to hand it to Stallone. He passed up a lot of opportunities to pay homage to the Rambo legend. I kept waiting for the quiet “Boat Man” to reveal himself for who he was and the motley assortment of Special Ops rejects turned mercenaries to let out a collective gasp and say, “You are that John Rambo?” But it never happened. He did pay homage in a few place; the slow rise and camera refocus on Rambo’s homicidal face over the shoulder of a soon dead adversary, reminicent of the scene where a mud covered Rambo materialized behind a hapless Spetznaz soldier in Rambo 2.
I saw the first half for what it was, the build up to the big show, the symphonic cresendo of violence that was to come. It was put together kind of like the 1812 Overature.
My biggest disappointment was the end. I just knew that as Rambo walked along the road that some overweight Sheriff was going to pull up and ask him where he was headed. It never happend, but what a full circle that would have been.
All in all, a great movie despite what anyone, especially the critics think. Where else can I see brutal Asian soldiers dismembered in bloody heaps by a 12.5 mm (50 cal) machine gun.
I have a strong feeling that most people don’t “get” the Rambo series. They are blinded by the violence and do not see the strong underlying messages. I blame in some part the “Commando” movie which really was a no brainner muscle bound hero movie. Nothing against Commando. It was a fun movie, but it helped solidify the shallow perception around muscle bound shoot’em up movies which unfortunately Rambo has been often mistakenly stereo typed as.
Yes Rambo is muscle bound. Yes there is lots of shooting and yes Rambo is portrayed as a hero. And maybe that is all some people can see. They are either too shocked, or have bought into the preconception of the stereo type. What ever the reason, it is unfortunate that they cannot see these movies for what they are.
Rambo First Blood was about a trained soldier with obvious natural physical attributes, combined with elite training as well as having become the best of the best at what he was trained to do. And that was to fight for his country. It turns out that he was drafted into Vietnam which in time became an unpopular war. He managed to survive. His buddies did not. Comes back home and is persecuted for his involvment in the war he did not choose to fight in. He is picked on by the local sherif and that combined with his night-daymares he brought back with him from Vietnam caused him to panic and flee. The movie ends with him crying and being lead away to prison where he belongs. I left the movie feeling sorry for poor Rambo.
Rambo 2 – Gets roped into looking for POWs in Vietnam. Maybe he feels he can help out other people (soldiers) who he can associate with. Obviously he wouldn’t want to see fellow soldiers being torchered like he was. Anyway he got screwed by politics and left for dead. Managed to save himself and some others and ended by walking away (giving up on his country). I left the movie feeling sorry for Rambo but hopeful for his future.
Rambo 3 – Gets asked to go to war. Turns it down. Bit of a trend here. This guy wants nothing to do with war and certainly won’t fight for America. Ends up going to free his only friend.
This movie didn’t really strike up much emotion for me. Was a bit over the top really. Probably was trying to milk the success of the previous two movies and didn’t really have a message. Was fun to watch though.
Rambo 4 – Still living alone, away from America, it looks like he has progressed to giving up on humanity. Became a hermit and just wants to live (or not live depending on how loosly you define the word) out his days alone. His social skills have really regressed as he must have been living alone for a very long time. He has a very realistic view of war. It is not glamorous, no-one wins and it is naive to think you can make a difference to the big picture. Somehow this Christian lady connected with some part of him. It seems he decided he was wasting his life and she helped him find a reason to care. He realised he may be able to make a difference by saving her. And this gave him a reason to live. Ends with him coming out of seclution and looking to give life another chance. Again I left this movie feeling sorry for Rambo as he had wasted so many years of his life (most of it actually) not living, as he had lost faith in mankind. If only America had helped him integrate back once he first came home from the Vietnem war! Also thought it was interesting that Rambo 1 was about an elite soldier using his skills and know how back on American soil and it not turning out to be a successful way to survive in America. Whereas in Rambo 4 we had the leader of the Christion group taking his skills and way of behaving into Burma and it not turning out to be a successful way to survive, finally realising that War is horrendous and there are times when you need to do horrendous things too. Also the irony that Rambo was saving the type of people who were the ones to persecute Rambo when he came back from Vietnam. This series was good for pure entertainment and emotion and also had some great messages (anti war) but also allowed me to better understand and feel for the soldiers that fought the wars. And realise the impact on coming back home once the public oppinion turned the country against their own heroes. I liked the gore of this movie and Saving Private Ryan as it shows that war is not glamourus. Certainly I do not want to be in a war trying to prove that I am Rambo.
Forget what the reviewer said about skipping the first 20 minutes, you’ll miss the parts that set-up the plot and the justification for WHY Rambo becomes poetry in motion during the second half. The reviewer obviously only wanted to see Rambo for the sake of watching people getting blown away. His loss. Stallone made a great book-end film to ‘First Blood’, and has produced a film that is essentially anti-war while also delivering great action. Stallone shows violence in war for what it is, and never glorifies the killings that occur en masse during the second half. It’s essentially about a man who has almost lost his humanity, but who sees his way to the end of the film towards redemption. For the blood-nuts out there, including the article reviewer, go and see ‘Saw IV’ to release your urges. For anyone else who wants a great action film with a conscience, Rambo is worth your dollar.
Ok, I’m going to state what I thought was the obvious, because nobody else has done so yet: I think that, in a very basic sense, WE ALL WANT TO BE JOHN RAMBO. Before you laugh, read on: This movie (and the ones that preceded it) are appealing to most of us for the same reason that the vigilante movies (Charles Bronson, et. al.) were so popular. We all, at one time or another, wish we could single-handedly take on the slime and scum of the world and just wipe it all out. When we watch Rambo rip a bad guy’s throat out, the rush that we feel is a release of our own pent-up frustration with all the crap that’s going on in the world, and even in our own personal lives. Maybe for some of us, that “bad guy” is an abusive boss, or a scumbucket neighbor, or the bonehead that cut you off on the interstate this morning. We all “rip their throats out” in our minds, but hey: Rambo does it right there on the screen for us, and in flying colors! As primitive and banal as it may seem, I think we all need to watch a Rambo style movie once in a while, so we have some stress-release, and a fictional hero to root for in a world with too few real heros. Here’s wishing for a “Rambo 5”!!!
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I don’t know what you’re talking about! Rambo IV was AWESOME! Who the heck cares about dialogue among the missionary puppets. We are there to see Rambo kick ass. If anything, the film reflects on Rambo’s life and shows how he’s regressed in life and continues to hide from life.
You just can’t review a Rambo movie against anything else other than another Rambo movie. It’s sort of it’s own genre at this point. That being said, the Christian Missionaries were a little contrived, although not so cliche or stereotyped as I might have expected. I agree the dialogue was awful, let’s just be glad it was so sparse. Otherwise, yeah, stupendous violence and bloodshed, possibly the most intense and condensed 30 or 40 minutes of killin’ that I ever saw onscreen. It was pretty stylishly directed, though, and the entire Burma environment did seem very convincing, which added to the believability of the action. So not great, but it was pretty good, because we get to see Rambo kick ass again. That’s really all we care about seeing in a Rambo movie, and I think Stallone knows that.
ok the story, characters and dialog didnt had much work on it but come on…its rambo, also i dont agree the action only starts in the third act, the movie actually starts out with a lot of violence, with actual real footages of the attrocities comited by burmese army, i think this movie is great not only because it contains amazing levels of violence, flying stomachs and exploding guts but i think its very positive the mass exposure to something we would prefer not to see, those outrageous butcheries are actually happening and the western world doesnt give a shit, and yes its as horrible as stallone masterfully portrayed it in this film.
That stuff that Bobby guy said about allegory hit it the nail on the head. I think you should be writing reviews or something. As for the movie it was perfect I especially liked that last scene outside his house.
PS> Of course all the machine mincing was cool too!
Alternate Title:
Rambo-Forearms
Ram-Bore
This film had such a weak story line it could only be strung out for an hour and a quarter. It basically concerns a group of christian missionaries being held hostage in Burma, and Rambo, along with a group of mercenaries, being contracted by a Pastor to free them.
Rambo 4 is in stark contrast to the other Rambos where he muscle posed his way to self glory. In this film, however, he must have been too self conscious of his love handles and sausage veins that the central focus of Rambo, and his character as a whole for that matter, was his forearms.
The Burmese soldiers were portrayed as verminous killing scum who feed live people to pigs, and Sly even makes further propaganda swipes at Burmese generals by portraying the one in this movie as a raper of young boys.
The killing is so gratuitous and lustful, you wonder what kind of sick, sado-masterbatory audience could enjoy this snuff movie. Rambo manages to effortlessly kill everybody in every imaginable way, and would have encountered more resistance had the Burmese army been replaced by a bunch of grannies armed with knitting needles and balls of wool. And where the hell he manages to find , in the middle of the jungle, some kind of huge, thermo-nuclear device to detonate at short notice is any one’s guess.
This abomination of a movie further insult by trying to add believability to this sado-wet dream, by allowing Rambo to get a slight nick from a bullet to his shoulder in the last minutes of the film, as he’s mopping up the final remaining Burmese ‘skittle’ soldiers.
It was a pity Rambo’s Kernel is no longer alive as he was the real star of the Rambo franchise and provided the only hint of class and proper acting.
Anyone claiming this was just a bit of fun should watch again the actual footage of the suffering of the Burmese people shown at the beginning of this film, appreciate how Sly has tried to glorify himself at their expense, and then should proceed straight to the doctors and have their brains checked out for advanced syphilis.
This Rambo movie was a little different from the previous Rambo movies. Previous movies were based the story of the characters. This however movie really felt like it wanted to show the blunt truths, cruel realities and unjust in Burma. The violence was extreme (e.g. small kid getting stabbed into the chest with a bayone in full detail), the themes were cruel but all was very appropriate because it replicated what really happens in Burma. It’s a direct slam against the Burmese regime rightfully villainising the Burmese regime in the correct light it deserves.
LLoyd,
In my opinion, if you are a Rambo fan, you will find this movie is even more graphical than Rambo II and III.
So you will most likely love the new Rambo.
Probably even more than the Rambo II and III.
And like you said, it is all in the mindset you put yourself into when you go see a movie.
You said:
”overall i would take the fan’s opinions over the critics opinions,they expect so mutch out of everything,it seems to me that half of them don’t know how to enjoy a movie,they critisise every little thing,when most rambo fans just want to see rambo kick ass.”
It summarizes it quite well!
Like I said above, Rambo wants to tell a BIG MESSAGE which slowly but steadily prepares the audience phychologically for ACTION! Then Rambo kicks ass! Enjoy!
I haven’t seen the movie yet because i am from Australia and it came out on the 21st of february over here and it is now the 23rd i will see it as soon as i can,but from what i have read,all the critics hate this movie, but the majority of the fans that gave reviews on IMDB(Internet movie database)gave it 9’s and 10’s. Anyway from what i have read,critics hated Rambo 2 and 3,which i thought were really good,but overall i would take the fan’s opinions over the critics opinions,they expect so mutch out of everything,it seems to me that half of them don’t know how to enjoy a movie,they critisise every little thing,when most rambo fans just want to see rambo kick ass. And why do people bitch about the violence,it is not real anyway(no matter how real it supposedly looks),and even though i don’t know much about burma and all that goes on down there,but the amount of violence in the movie is probarbly a realistic portrayel to what is really happening down there.I also think they just give the movie a hard time just because Stallone is old (He looks amazing for 60),but it doesn’t matter how old he is,it matters if he can still do a good job playing rambo which i think he can, and no one else could ever play rambo as well as stallone has over the years. Anyway critics have never liked stallones movies very much but i think the majority of his movies are great, he’s worked with the best, more than most action stars(actually,ithink he has worked with the most)such as Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel,Ray Liotta,Wesley snipes,Sandra Bullock,Antonio Banderes,Michael cain,rob schnieder,Carl Weathers,Kurt Russel,Sharon Stone,Donald Sutherland,MR T,James Woods, Jullian moore and probarbly more.So i’m gonna see it,not even considering what the critics say.And would a fan of the rambo series answer this:If i am a fan of all the other rambo movies,do you think i would like this one.And anyway if you go to see rambo expecting an oscar performance you’re an idiot,i would go because i enjoy the rambo series and as i said before to see rambo kick ass
When I heard Stallone was going to make another Rambo you can imagine that I was skeptic. The Rocky franchise has not improved with age and neither had the Rambo. What is Stallone doing? Is he so hard up for the money?
Reluctantly, I watched the movie and I must say that I am happy I did! Ok, so It’s not your life changing, profoundly moving flick but.. Boy is it a ride! If anybody has any doubt on how brutal war is ,this movie shows you exactly that. The movie is a simple but well orchestrated Rollercoaster. The ride to the apex is slow but steady but when it starts on the action you better hold on because it rumbles hard! I have yet to see a movie that shows this degree of carefully mastered brutal violence. Evil can use a dose of good ol’ .50 cal action.
In summary I believe this movie deserves attention. Don’t expect Stallone to have hit his head and crafted a “Greats Gatsby” of the “First Blood” Genere but it is much better than Rambo II and III.
I finally get to see the movie last week (if it’s not because of work, I would’ve seen it earlier!). john is definately right. the first half was very dull, and very unrewarding. I kept thinking to myself – there goes my hard-eaned money, straight down the drain.
then come the second half. and God! this is gotta be the best carnage on the silver screen I’ve seen…EVER! considering the fact that malaysia’s censorship board did their work to tone down the violence (which sucked a bit), the leftovers are still WOW! the violence are just out of this world. walking out of the theatre, I could’ve sworn rambo can kill a guy with nothing more than a toothpick! and he’s 60 for crying out loud!
I agree with john’s review and the movie is worth (half) the money. looks like I gotta spend my next paycheck on the previous rambo DVDs before waiting for the DVD release (original DVDs here sell around $15). nevermind. its well worth the money!
“Might pick it up on DVD and rewind it to the end, like with Transformers.”
What? The best part of Transformers was the pace’s momentum! The ending, along with every good part of that movie, is ruined if you skip 3/4 of it. Way to “watch” a movie, IncliningPizza.
shit review!!
great movie!!!
I so enjoyed that movie, it’s not even funny!
Some complain the first 5/8 was boring etc…
I disagree vividly.
I believe it is all in the mindset a spectator is in. If you look at it from a setting-up the pace mindset, the first 5/8 is worth it.
My take on the first 5/8 was to set up the psychological state of Rambo after being completely destroyed by the human atrocities he has fought against in his past. He has put those humankind cruelties way deep in his memory the best he could and yet, still haves nightmares several decades later. Aweful flashback… When I have a nightmare flashback myself, it is never pretty. It is usually dark and I wake up with cold sweats! Should the author make it pretty with flowers, pillows, feathers…? NOT!
Any Rambo enthusiasts will remember those episodes, it is part of setting-up the psychological state in my opinion. Not only the psychological state of Rambo himself, but bringing the mind of the audience as close as possible to Rambo.
Such soldier like Rambo came to realize that humankind would not change. After any rescue, let’s face it, will this stop any of those genocides? I really don’t think so. History of humankind proved it so many times. Cruelties still happen and that’s exactly what the first 5/8 of the movie does. A BIG MESSAGE! We cannot expect such soldier to alter his mind set in the blink of an eye, it took insistance from Sarah (the sole women on the Christian mission) to convince him just to ride the boat.
This is in sharp contrast with the Naivety of the Christian mission. Naive they were to believe they would change something. Indeed, they were captured, tortured, etc… Naive they were. Naive are most missionaries in my opinion. Their actions, although highly noble in nature, let’s face it a are a drop of water in the ocean.
Then as in all Rambo movies, his soldier/warrior instinct kicked in and big time. No need to explain about the violence etc… Rambo movie style speaks by itself. The visual effects, although highly disturbing to sensitive hearts, were looking so real! SOOOOO RRREEEAAALLL! Long life to the modern visual effects!
Man I wish I will be as fit as Rambo when I will be his age!
He is still at the top of his game despite the decades.
Awesome!
Very well done.
Thumbs up to the author and to Silvester Stallone.
Not an Oscar, but I give it a 9/10!
Johns review hit the nail on the head !!!
I couldnt have said it better………..
Looked forward to this flick for a long time, and when the action finally did take off……………it was over………
Shame to end the series in this manner……
Movie budget….creativity…. just wasnt there……….
I don’t know what to say. I consider myself well educated, well read, and knowledgeable about both geo-political and military affairs. I don’t normally like Stallone’s films, but this movie …
This movie was to Stallone what “Unforgiven” was to Clint Eastwood – a magnum opus that fully defined and summed up what had heretofore been, for me, a cartoonish anti-hero. I don’t think Stallone could have made a movie like this 20 years ago – if this is where he is as an actor today, I hope he makes many more films. It was that good, not just for the last third, but all the way through from the start. It has continuity, heart, and a deep underlying logic that the other films in the series did not share. Even the fact that he is visibly older – indeed, specifically the fact that he’s older, and uses his aging well – helps define the character, giving it depth. Sylvester Stallone clearly has mastered the Rambo psyche.
As for what the movie has to say, it’s about time something from Hollywood came out whose message does not sicken me. Rambo represents a man who has seen what the world has become over the last half-decade, and has turned away from it in disgust – not out of cowardice, or amorality, but because he is an old veteran of countless wars and has seen the horrors the world can offer. He has become hardened and cruel, but his encounter with these missionaries – in particular Sarah, the female – rekindles in him a desire to once more stand up and ‘fight the good fight’, against his better instincts.
This is not a mindless gorefest, for all the violence it contains, but a well thought out and moving film. It won’t resonate for people who hate the military, or despise Christianity, or have an abiding revulsion for the US. But for someone who remembers what this country is about, remembers what separates this country from places like Burma, and remembers what so many of our young men really fought for in Vietnam, this is a movie that cannot fail to please.
I’m just back from seeing it a second time. An absolutely phenomenal flick – I give it my full endorsement.
Watched this movie last night and was blown away. I work in Hollywood and was very excited when I heard that Rambo was coming back. I kow there are idiots out there who think old people cannot do anything but stand still and die, Stallone proves different. I am 30 years old and hope I can be alive and strong when I am 50 or 60. Rambo’s story allows you to see when you are pushed into a corner, you either choose fight or flight. Real men fight and that is what this story is about. Regardless of age, wisdom in the mind will push the body to greatness. The movie itself is violent and real. Effects are very organic and does not pull you away from feeling like you are a kid again watching one of your childhood heroes. You have to see this movie if you want to be blown away. I was and bet you will be surprised. Go see it thinking it will be okay. Then wait to be blown away.
This review was crazy. This was hands down the best Rambo film ever. Has this guy even seen the other Rambo movies. This was a 5 star movie and a must see if you are a Rambo fan!
My parents and I went to see Rambo together opening weekend and through it all -eviceration and decapitation -we had a good time. I especially loved the 50-cal action and the wonderful irony of the missionary bludgening the Burmese soldier with a rock.
My sisters wasted their time and went to see Meet the Spartans -how in the name of all that’s bright and shiny that beat Rambo at the box-office, I’ll never know. No, this movie really does not have much by way of meaningful dialogue or plotline but I certainly got my money’s worth of bad-dude-bloodshed!
I think John Rambo still stands out as one of America’s most iconic (anti)heroes.
I completley disagree with John C. The movie was action packed since the begining. Just the intro alone makes one have to look away sevral times. He is just trying to be hard. And what about the race across the wetlands with claymore mines in it in the very begining wasnt action? Of course Rambo has to take some of the movie time to explain where his life has taken him since 20 years ago. If it jumped straight to action in the start to finish it would be a movie that makes no sense. WATCH THE MOVIE HE DOES NOT KNOW WHAT HE IS TALKING ABOUT. I AM GOING TO WATCH IT FOR THE SECOND TIME TODAY TO TAKE SOME BUDDIES WITH ME!!!! PS: STOP FOCUSING ON THE SECURITY GUARDS AND FOCUS ON THE MOVIE. DID THE SECURITY GUARD GIVE YOU A WINK AND A NUMBER WITH IT?
Rambo was amazing, go see it.
I can’t believe that POS Meet the Spartans was #1 this weekend, over this masterpiece of an action movie.
Rambo is a great conclusion to First Blood.
If you want to go see a kick-ass action movie Rambo is not to be missed. However, if you are offended by over the top blood, you might want to pass (even though the more graphic scenes seem to have been CGI blurred).
Stallone seems to have rediscovered what made him a great action hero. Rambo is every bit as good as Rocky balboa was.
1st off sly will and could never out do 1st blood – that is by far his best rambo. this film is about overkill – a lil shock and awe if you will. we all know the premise – genocide….its not necessary to show soldiers throwing babies into fires – shooting babies in the head and gang-raping women……if you know what genocide is about it includes all those things – i was disappointed that he took it in this direction – allbeit his 1st 3 movies were violent – this went too far. but hey what would america be w/out violence?????
And unfortunately we eat this crap up…..the only thing that would have made and/or saved this movie would have been if John J would have been killed….then he would have gone full-circle. Live and die by the sword…….
burma is really happening like in this movie..so sad..pls help burma
Hey Sandyphilly. You got that quote backwards. It’s “Live for nothing, or die for something.” Much more badass.
I don’t honestly see how anyone could call the first half of the movie boring. The first thing they show is atrocity after atrocity of Burmese people getting treated like….there is isn’t even a word for how bad they were getting it! What else did you want John? 90 minutes of Rambo on machine killing people instead of 15 minutes?
This movie speaks the truth about Burma and how horrible the Burmese government treat there own people. I’m glad they made a movie about it. Please go and see it. It is full of action and also educating for those people that don’t know about Burma. Burma is a forgotten country so please support Burma. If you have time please visit freeburma.org. Thanks to those who support us.“Live for something – or – Die for nothing” Sylvester Stallone .
Oh Lord, I saw this last night with my dad. Maybe you have to be a Rambo fan to apprecate this film, but I found John’s review to be bang-on. The last twenty minutes or so are NUTS. The kills are crazy. The rest of the film is a waste of celluloid. It was just awful, and my dad, who happens to like Rambo flicks quite a bit, HATED this film. At leat it was short!
This was the best RAMBO movie, period! The story line was true to what actually happens in that country and many others for that matter. It shows RAMBO and crew (mostly rambo) destroy evil up close and personal. The movie was well produced and directed and deserves a very positive review. My only complaint is that it should have been longer, thats it. Sly can still bring action better than anyone and he’s 60 years old, so there! GO SLY!
Whatever you do, don’t listen to Campea’s advice about missing the first 20 minutes. This isn’t another snorefest like Transformers. Rambo was incredible, stem to stern.
If you like great sound and visuals you will appreciate this movie.
It might not be a great film with a great story. but hey this is a rambo movie not a rocky movie.
you might have not liked the film and felt you wanted to leave, but everyone to there own taste.
you might not like it, I might love it.
So dont judge the movie on this critic, judge it for your self!
Rocky was’nt meant to win the fight….Rambo IS, so go watch it for that!
Saw the movie last night and it was FANTASTIC!! Stallone rocks! If you’re a fan you’ll love it. Going to miss his movies ALOT!! I can’t believe hollywood with no more Rocky and Rambo movies. Maybe Stallone can come up with something new. As far as Oscars go…..he deserves one in my book. At least i NEVER fall asleep in a Stallone movie!
Good movie! If you like blood and guts being thrown around, you wont be disappointed. I was sickened by the imagery of the movie, but not at all upset it was there. Yes, I am a woman who went and saw the movie with her hubby last night, but am not upset we went to see it instead of a chick-flick. I appreciate the political attitude it showed, sometimes you just can’t “be peaceful” to make a difference; there really are just plain evil people out there that need to be “taken out”. I wouldn’t say I enjoyed it for the oscar winning performances, but I do think Sly made his point; it’s definately RAMBO.
Excellent movie! First half was a “normal” action movie, typical of an entire Rambo or Braddock film, the last half goes over the top…Awesome! Dont worry, you wont be disappointed.
I need to agree with the guys above me. Rambo had excellent social commentary and enough blood, guts and violence to make even the most war harden solider feel uneasy. The theater I was at gave a standing ovation the first time the showed us Rambo (character), the first time Rambo said one of his trade mark lines and at the end of the film people were on their feet cheering and clapping…reminded me of when I saw Transformers. Great, epic movie that will definitely be joining my DVD collection. Sure Rambo isn’t worthy of an Oscar, but for what it is, and what it is suppose to be, its a wicked movie.
This movie is awesome. It is even better than the prior Rambo movies.
Finally a movie that is not PC, and that shows things as they are.
Rambo is a masterful allegory:
1. The naive Christian missionaries represent the U.S.’s simplistic vision of bringing “democracy” to Afghanistan and Iraq. The Christians are completely ignorant of the history and circumstances in Burma. Their arrogance and ethnocentricism creates a quagmire. They unknowingly interpose themselves in a conflict and end up bringing more harm than good to those who they wished to help.
2. Rambo has a silent realization at the end of the movie as he surveys the carnage left in the wake of the film’s climactic battle. The dizzying torrent of violence has left all damaged. There are no winners. There is no sustainable peace acheived through extrinsically motivated war. Rambo’s love interest, Sarah, falls into the arms of her pathetic missionary colleague. The end of the movie doesn’t even yield a happy ending in terms of “the hero gets the damsel.” The illusion of a tightly knit happy ending is shattered. Rambo’s resolution: Pull out. He returns to Arizona. Abandon mission.
3. The climax of the movie finds John Rambo stationed behind an automatic gun on a truck. He obliterates hundreds of Burmese soldiers in his path. These soldiers become faceless, flailing bodies. The once inventive, hands-on hero is forced to conform to mechanized, remote warfare. Ramb doesn’t triumph by his own merit. He is merely a gun operator.
AMAZING!!! exactly what it should have been!
I’m sorry. BUT IF U GO RENT RAMBO 1 2 and 3 AND WATCH THEM AGAIN YOU WILL SEE THAT ALLL FcKING RAMBO MOVIE HAS THAT SAME KIND OF FIRST HALF. BEST RAMBO EVER PERIOD
A great way to end. Filled with mind blowing action that keeps you interested throughout the movie. If your a Rambo fan you will like this one. The graphics of this movie are awesome Its a must see.
you guys are crazy, this movie was great, alot of action, very real, it left me with just…WOW!, if you miss this movie your missing out, maybe you should go see G rated movies if you dont like this one.
Honestly…my friend took me to the movie last night, and I didn’t mind it…while he HATED it! lol
I actually wasn’t that bored in the first half…there’s still action in it.
The acting was atrocious and every “deep and profound TAGLINE” Rambo spouted out made me laugh, but I realized that this movie is about the action….it was never boring…and it wasn’t too painful to sit through…fans of the series were cheering and clapping in the theatres…
Oh yeah, I don’t remember Rambo 1-3, and I didn’t have to to watch this film. If you want to see gratuitous violence…RAMBO is the movie to see then….lol
I just hope he shoots people with exploding arrows. Blowing up a helicopter in 2 is one of my favourite movie moments.
Good I can skip that….
Confirms what I expected. Nothing to offer but empty violence, every other aspect of quality film making is ignored. It’s a good old fashioned terrible Rambo movie (with the exception of “First Blood” which I really like). I was in my late teens and early 20s in the 80’s and it holds no mythical sway over me. I remember what was crap then, and it does not surprise me that it’s apparently mostly still crap today.
This sounds like Death Proof, where the real payoff from watching shallow stuff is at the end. The difference is that with Rambo, an opera of violence is necessary.
Normally I wouldn’t want to see a movie that John gives a 5/10 rating, but this is Rambo, and I really want to check it out.
The reviews right now don’t look to good, I really hope they improve by tomorrow.
Good review, but honestly guys… I don’t mean to sound anal, but can you at least run your posts through spell check before you post them? This one was hard to read with so many errors.
Yeah, I kinda agree with “Me”, pun intended….
Movie sounds meh, I’ll pick them all up in a boxset or something.
Well i’ve got to see it. As a child of the 80’s, i’ve always been a sucker for gloriously ridiculous and violent action films and i’ve never seen one of that caliber on the big screen (not that i can remember anyway).
Now i’m prepared for a bad movie but, hopefully, i’ll leave it with a smile.
The bore fest in the beginnig probably made the action that much better. Thats what we call strategery.
Hmmm… might not want to see this now.
Might pick it up on DVD and rewind it to the end, like with Transformers.
I hope Doug wasn’t screaming out loud after you guys left, I can just picture it.