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John Rambo (Rambo: Regreso al Infierno) [NTSC/REGION 1 & 4 DVD. Import-Latin America]

5 star:		(179)
4 star:		(80)
3 star:		(33)
2 star:		(24)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

Well I must admit I had to have this, cos let's face it, it's Rambo. I'm a huge fan of the original trilogy and was a huge fan of Stallone's recent revival of the character in 'John Rambo' which i thought was a raw and gritty supercharged action film yet with depth of character and story that easily surpassed any of it's disposable contemporaries. Make no bones about it; "the expendables" sticker on the front the "expendables" trailer; the trailers of films from all of the actors in the "expendables" - this is a pure money making and marketing combo to tie in with the release of Sly's latest actioner. BUT, I have to say, what whilst expecting nothing more than the all new "Rambo - to hell and back" production diaries special feature, and maybe a couple of extended scenes in the movie, I was actually really surprised at just how different this new cut of the film is.

This is not just the theatrical cut with a couple of extra bits, this is a true director's cut style extended edition with a completely re-edited opening, many extended takes, many alternate takes, and whole new extra scenes that all blend seemlessly to really compliment and add much to the film. A lot of this really helps to elaborate the story, and really flesh out character and themes that whilst hinted at in the original, were never really fully explored. When Rambo says in the original "no, what you're trying to do is change what is", and Sara asks him "and what is?"; he just says "go home". I always used to wonder, "yeah, what is??". Well, a whole knew alternate take here reveals all, and also a few real home truths about his real feelings about war and regret. And that's not all, you find out so much more about the characters, their relationships, motivation, and so many tiny insertions of lines here and there, very subtle shot changes, alternate dialog, black and white flashbacks, that it's almost an entirely new take on the film. It's all great stuff!

A word of warning tho, there do appear to be a few cuts and alterations to some of the more violent and extreme/controversial scences. Some of these bits are alternate takes (when the main bad guy leader takes delivery of the young village boy for example), but others are just plain removed, or cut short. The child being stabbed in the attack on the village is missing, the guy flying though the air with both legs blown off is cut short, the bearded mercenary stabbing the solider under the hut is removed, and a few other bits that seemed slightly shortened. I should add that these alterations are VERY few, I probably counted 5 or 6, and doubt that this was a censorship issue as the majority of the blood soaked limb exploding violence is completely intact. I'd imagine this was purely a directorial/artistic decision, (a lot of the excised scenes were digital effects, some of which don't stand up quite as effectively as others). Something to bear in mind though before you buy!

The stunning MPEG 4 AVC encoded 1080p picture and 7.1 dts hd master audio remain, giving an blu-ray experience of reference quality, just like the original lionsgate release. People may hesitate to buy this, thinking that they're not really getting much for their money, but trust me this is FAR from a lazy release to steal your money, this is a superb director's cut edition that totally delivers. Also, for any foreign buyers, the blu ray is officially ABC encoded, so it will play on any blu ray player. Enjoy an all new Rambo!

I must admit, that as of recent I have enjoyed current mainstream movies regardless if they are released to the theater or directly to video so I can abase them. In other words, I truly find pleasure in ripping movies apart. It has been my perception, my perception, that about 70% of movies made in the past 5 to 6 years are horrid.

One might ask why I feel this way, well it is rather simple. Most movies are a plug in for a new phone, car or maybe to promote a soundtrack. These movies also rely more on special effects and visual stimulation, where acting, directing and story take the backseat. Therefore, movies (for the most part) in modern times are nothing more than a 90 to 100 minute commercial.

Then of course there are the movies that are so over the top they are just down right silly. This is the perception I had when I saw the trailer for "Rambo" (it was titled "John Rambo" when I first viewed it on the internet). I thought, "What the hell is Stallone thinking"? I didn't see the most recent "Rocky", but I heard it wasn't any good. I didn't really care too much about the quality of a new "Rocky" movie, but I felt like there was nothing else to do and all doors were closed when "Rocky 5" was made. Why was Stallone going back to Rocky? Was there a point to it? Now he is going to make another Rambo movie, why? Both these characters whose names start with "R" make a return after not being seen for almost 20 years?

I digress to the trailer for Rambo I saw on the internet. I was laughing so hard I couldn't take it. The way this movie was presented was comical. I had said to my brother and some friends, "I can't wait to see this movie, I need a good laugh". Then the day came, it was a work night (the same as a school night, but you go to work early the next day instead of school) and I went to a 9:40pm showing with my brother and two of our friends. I was so pumped and all four of us were ready to laugh very hard. As a side note, this is the first time I had been in a movie theater to watch a new release in a very long time.

We watched and we absorbed this movie and when the end credits rolled and the lights came back on in the theater we were speechless. I thought this was the first wonderful and moving film I had seen in a long time. (So did everyone else in my view party.) I couldn't believe it. I have seen all the other Rambo films and yes they were entertaining, but I wouldn't say they were deep or compelling pieces of cinema. This new Rambo movie had something to say.

It followed a different format, it seemed more dramatic and the violence (there was plenty of it) was brutal and candid. When I say candid, I mean that many of things that happened in this movie, happens in the real world.

The plot of this film is rather simple, Rambo now lives in Southeastern Asia near Burma and some American humanitarians need a guide and ride by boat to provide health care, food and education to the poor people in the area. They find John Rambo and after some persuasions from a female team member (Julie Benz) Rambo signs on.

Consequently, there is a large militant and fundamental group that has nothing better to do than torture and massacre the less fortunate people in their country. It doesn't take a wizard to figure out what happens next, Rambo, guns, violence, death, and blah, blah, blah. However, the violence doesn't seem to be moot or without justification if that makes sense. The best comparison I can make is to "Saving Private Ryan", the violence in that film was graphic and at times over the top, but made a point to portray the reality that was World War 2. "Rambo" has the exact type of feel to it with respect to violence being graphic, over the top and making a point. Mind you I am not saying that "Rambo is a better film or as good as "Saving Private Ryan", but it was used more as a frame of reference. Oddly enough, "Saving Private Ryan" came out in 1998 and "Rambo" came out ten years later (2008), perhaps in 2018 there will be another violent film with a message.

Stallone did a good job too in this film he gave a rather minimal performance, not much dialogue but did display a level of dichotomy towards his emotions to events in the plot. I felt the story was also simplistic, but it worked, the movie didn't need a multi-leveled storyline. I also felt the direction of the film was very good too; by the way Sly wrote and directed this movie.

"Rambo" was a motion picture that stirred myriad thoughts in my head when it was over. It made me think how revolting and disgusting it is that there are still countries in the world that can't get health care or are being "controlled" and/or restricted to certain living conditions by a dictatorship or totalitarian government that results to violence or casualties of human lives. It also made me think how insane it is that U.S. presidential candidates are able to raise thousands, if not millions, of dollars for their campaigns, but when they get into office, it then becomes difficult to "raise" money for the things they promised before they were the incumbent. Then I thought about how everyone wants to go "green" and save the environment, yet it costs more money and there is less tax breaks to "go green". Not to mention Earth Day is only one day a year, rather than year long recognition. What about relying on fossil fuel when there are other forms of fuel for our cars/machines? Or that many people are more up to date with Reality Television than what is going on in the world.

In conclusion, I am not sure this was Sylvester Stallone's intention to stir the pot of modern social sciences or in my case promote schizophrenia when making this movie. However, I felt this film didn't pull any punches and says a lot about the world we live in, on many levels. I recommend this film to anyone who wants an eye opening experience. This is a lot coming from a person who thought this movie was going to be the number one unintentional comedy of 2008 and now believes it was one of the best movies made in a very long time.

Sly, I commend you.

Of all the Rambo movies this one is the best. The most violent, brutal stunning movie I have ever seen. Emotionally draining story of some do gooders that want to take medicine and help to a group of poor opressed people in Burma. They are under control of the brutal military that wants no one to hear this story let alone help these people. The do gooders talk Rambo into taking them up river to the settlement. He is reluctant to take them but the woman with the group talks him into taking them. Of course they are taken by the military and most everyone in the village is slaughtered. Someone from back home comes looking for them when they never return home. Rambo takes a band of merceneries to the settlement to bring them back. The do-gooders are held captive and tortured. It's nonstop heartpounding action after Rambo gets there.
Iv'e never seen anything like the violence in this movie. It's incredible.
It's filmed in Burma and the cinemaphotography is outstanding. Beautiful scenery. Good use of light and dark and camera angles. Very well done.
Be prepared for the violence because it is extreme. What's shown in this movie is going on there as I speak. We don't hear the story in the media. Stallone made this movie with Burmese people as actors and they were all at risk making this movie. Stallone still has it at 61 years.
If you don't like Rambo then don't bother. Otherwise it's highly entertaining!
Steve

Ignore the fact that this is a Rambo movie and some have the audacity to say that Stallone is past his prime. This Rambo movie is not only the best in the Rambo series, but it's also one of the best action movies of all time.

Did you think that Commando had a lot of killing? BAH!
Did you think that Saving Private Ryan had the most gruesome injuries? Hardly.

This movie is saturated with arms being cut off, legs exploding into bloody stumps, heads popping like over-inflated balloons, and enough gun-play to satisfy even the most hardcore, extremist gun-enthusiast. If it isn't an arrow evenly dividing a man's skull, or someone's intestines being spilled on the ground, then it's an extreme amount of people being sawed in half by high calibre machine gun fire. There's even a crazy-intense seen in which Rambo basically pulls off the throat removal move from Roadhouse, only with a little slower satisfaction to it. About the only thing lacking is a Colombian necktie.

The story itself plays second-fiddle to the incredible amount of action. A church-group from Colorado is doing peacework in Burma, bringing medicine and religion to people oppressed by a militaristic regime intent on genocide. To make their way into hostile territory, the church-goers ask for Rambo's services as a river guide. At first he is hesitant, but the kind-hearted but deadly Rambo eventually consents.

Sure enough, after Rambo drops them off for their jungle-trek to the villagers, the church-group gets caught in the middle of chaos, as the evil military members are senselessly slaughtering every villager in sight. Once they are captured, it's up to Rambo to save the day.

The rest of the movie is a whirlwind of action, as Rambo leads in a hardened group of mercenaries for an extraction mission. They plan on sneaking into the compound, killing anything and anyone that gets in their way, and saving the prisoners. What transpires is carnage the likes of which I have never seen before.

This version of Rambo is an incredible movie if you're looking for pure action and entertainment from beginning to end. I haven't been more entertained by a movie in a very long time.

The box cover says Rambo, but the title for the extended cut has been restored to the original JOHN RAMBO title.

The four-movie BluRay Box Set DOES NOT include the extended John Rambo.

Basically Stallone added nine minutes back into the movie, and most of it is dialog INCLUDING the Rocky Balboa style monologues.

There's a quick new scene on the boat in the beginning with the snakes.

Rambo has a big monologue along the same lines of Rocky's speech to his son in Rocky Balboa. It's in the rain when he's convinced to take the boat up river.

There's more dialog on the boat while he's taking the missionaries.

The pastor has more lines when he comes to get Rambo.

Going back to watch the theatrical cut makes it seem like an edited for TV version where they had to cut out big story bits. The extended cut feels more like an end for Rambo along the lines of Rocky Balboa, and restoring the John Rambo title makes sense.

Just a quick review for those wondering about this latest "Extended Cut". What hasn't been mentioned here and what I'm still trying to figure out is where this particular cut came from.

First of all, don't be fooled by the unrated info. on the back of the package. As with a large degree of unrated releases, this particular version was not passed by the MPAA, or even submitted. In fact, if I were on the board, I would give this latest edition of "Rambo" a PG-13. Yep. While there are longer sequences of dialogue, the violence is toned down considerably from it's prior incarnation.

Judging from the on-screen title here, "John Rambo" (the project's original title) and the missing Weinstein Company logo, this new "extended cut" is actually, most likely, Stallone's first cut of the film prior to adding additional insert shots of extreme violence. One can only guess, as Stallone hasn't made a statement, yet, concerning this release.

At first, I was frustrated thinking that Stallone had finally succombed to critics who bashed him for the film's unflinching savagery, but I'm fairly certain this is not the case.

Here are some of the drastic changes, in terms of violence, that I noticed:

- The village massacre after Julie Benz and her crew first arrive is now quite soft.
There is virtually no on-screen violence towards children. Also missing are the shots of rape and the legs getting blown off of one of the church group members.

- Later, when Rambo leads the mercenaries into the Burmese camp, one of which knifes a Burmese soldier in the throat and proceeds to stab him several times in the side. Just the initial knifing remains. And, one of the film's most memorable kills, Rambo ripping the throat of a soldier guarding Benz, is now a quick "wham-bam" shot.

This is as far as I have gotten in the film. I'm sure many more alterations remain, especially in the film's finale.

While I definitely prefer the theatrical cut, I'm still glad I purchased this version for the sake of completion and it serves as a nice glimpse at what might have been. Certainly not the final word on the subject, just an alternate view.

Another reason this release may be worth picking up for Stallone devotees, like me, is that it contains a new bonus feature: Stallone's video production diary, which runs 83 minutes in length.

I hope this helps!

P.S. This "extended cut" is not available in the "Complete Collection" Blu-ray set, which released the same day, and is only sold seperately. Puzzling, I know.

It is nothing short of astounding to me how many people (exception: ) seem to just not get this movie. To me, this is a very fine war picture.

In a misguided attempt to be witty, there are those who are saying that the film's body count should be compared to the number of words spoken onscreen, to see which is higher.

One must realize that David Morrell, the original author of "First Blood", and Stallone, who co-authored the original film's screenplay, and is a co-author of the "Rambo" screenplay, both envision and present John Rambo as a man who is profoundly introverted. Stallone has, at least partially, based his writing and protrayal of this character on his son Seargeoh, who is profoundly autistic. Stallone has stayed true to this portrayal, critics be damned. John Rambo shows little of his emotional and psychological identity to the outside world, and only slightly more to those few whom he considers to be his friends. Col. Trautman saw a side to "Johnny" that few others do. Sarah, a Christian Missionary in this latest installment, is only one of a few characters in the series to be distinguished as being someone John Rambo considers to be his friend.

Also present here is implication is that this is just a bloodfest for sick voyeurs who like to watch people suffering and dying.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Although this is, indeed, a profoundly violent film, that barely escaped an NC-17 rating, one thing must be made clear: THIS FILM DOES NOT GLORIFY VIOLENCE.

A Vietnam veteran once said to me, "The only thing that will prepare you for battle is to be in one. There is nothing that can truly prepare you for what war is really like. Nothing." Having written that, I cannot now tell you that seeing films like "Saving Private Ryan" with it's ultra-high body count will put you on a level of first-hand knowledge comparable to a combat veteran. No one has ever suggested such a thing, not should they. However, many veterans of the D-Day invasion had to leave the theatre during the scenes of storming the beach at Normandy. This tells me that Spielberg got it right, and his film will stand for decades as the best possible cinematic telling of what that day was like.

Stallone is doing something similar here. This film presents war at its most horrific. This film is quite dissimilar to "Saving Private Ryan" in that the storyline in "SPR" was an archplot. In other words, an epic, something Joseph Campbell of THE MONOMYTH fame would identify as a story that transcends cultures, identities and contexts. The mission that leads to the finding of Private Ryan reveals much about the nature of war and those that fight it, and in so doing much about the human condition is brought to light. Specifically, humanity fighting tooth-and-nail for survival against a culture that has been corrupted to the point of profound evil.

This installment of Rambo is distinct from this monomyth, archplot structure. This is by no means an epic. Stallone shows us one of his most famous characters, living by himself in Thailand, making a living selling snakes and piloting a boat on the Salween river. He is approached by a group of Christian missionaries intent on bringing medical and other humanitarian supplies to the Karen people of Myanmar (referred to as Burma in the film). Rambo initially refuses, making no emotional connection with Michael, a Christian doctor imploring Rambo to assist him in his cause. The missionaries' sole female, Sarah, then attempts to convince Rambo to help. It is obvious that an immediate emotional connection is made.

What is interesting here is that the missionaries are scripted by Stallone to sound exactly as they do in real life: profoundly idealistic, convinced that they alone understand how to change the world better than anybody else ever could, and absolutely unwilling to listen to reason (these aren't presented as negative traits per se, but rather as their mentality, for better or for worse). Stallone's Rambo is usually a man of few words, but he uses his economy of dialog to make his points quite clear. He has no interest in debate. He asks Michael, who has declared that he means to change things in Burma, if he's planning on bringing any weapons.

"Of course not," Michael responds, clearly contemptuous, not of Rambo, but of the idea of taking weapons to try to stop Burma's endless violence.

"Then you ain't changin' nothin'", is Rambo's response, spoken in an overtone of absolute finality, and with an undertone of the despair John Rambo's experience has bequealthed upon him, that further debate is clearly pointless. (In case you missed it, Stallone-hating reviewers, Sly is doing something called "acting". You wouldn't understand.)

A few scenes later, Sarah manages to convince Rambo to help the missionaries. Although payment is offered, Rambo refuses it. Rambo and the missionaries begin their journey up the Salween river. When Sarah begins to speak with Rambo during the boat ride, she asks his name, to which he replies, "John".

Are you getting me, dear reader? It isn't, "I'M RAMBO, THE MOST POWERFUL WARRIOR OF ALL TIME, HELPING YOU PUNY WEAKLING DO-GOODERS TO SAVE THE WORLD FROM ..." and yada-yada-yada. It's clear from Rambo's demeanor that he is not terribly impressed with himself. A first name introduction suffices just fine, as far as he's concerned. His violent resume? He'd just as soon not speak of it at all, answering Sarah's questions about his past with the shortest answers possible. "John", as he introduces himself, is profoundly divested of pride. Sarah's a committed Christian missionary, long in the habit of putting her money where her mouth is, and living selflessly according to her belief in aiding the oppressed in any way she can. John's lack of pride, in inextricable tandem with his very powerful presense, well be at least part what draws her to her friendship with him.

You'll recall, dear reader, if you watched "Rambo III", that Rambo refuses to join Col. Trautman in his mission to Afghanistan with the words, "My war is over." As Stallone has taken over the writing of this story from it's initial novelist creator, David Morrell, Rambo's inner conflict has become that he is supremely gifted in the art of waging war, but wants nothing more than to cease fighting and killing.

This is highlighted in this new installment of "Rambo" during a dream sequence in which Rambo is hearing the voice of Col. Trautman, these words from the final scenes of "First Blood" and also "Rambo III" haunting
John Rambo as he sleeps. Trautman accuses Rambo of tearing away at himself, resisting what he is. Rambo is, in Trautman's view, a one-of-a-kind warrior, capable of victory against overwhelming odds. This is John Rambo's gift.

John Rambo is then awakened from this dream by another missionary, who comes to tell him that Sarah, Michael and the other missionaries are missing. We in the audience already know this, as we've just witnessed the horrific assault on the village the missionaries had reached and were working to help.

This sequence is brilliantly shot by director Stallone, presenting a maelstorm of violence and atrocity that explodes on screen, each image presented telling a story in itself. This attack occurs during a moment of profound tenderness. Stallone shows us humanities' saving grace in his depictions of the doctor's ministering to the villagers both medically and spiritually. This culminates with Sarah moving towards a child, embracing him and comforting him. We see that this is the most natural expression of her identity. This is who she is. This child is someone she has never met before, is not related to, and is someone to whom most people would say she owes nothing. But there she is, putting herself in extreme danger of unimaginable torture and certain death simply because of her beliefs. You'll have to see this moment to truly understand it, but rest assured, you will see both the best and the worst of what it is to be human in these scenes that are onscreen for only a few moments. The attack quickly overwhelms the village. Sarah and her friends are taken prisoner.

From here, the pace of the film picks up quite a bit. John Rambo prepares himself for battle, forging a new blade at his anvil, his internal dialog a monologue of coming to terms with what he is, and what he is meant to do.

For now, John Rambo is not fighting a war his commanders sent him to fight, nor is he fighting the country that didn't want him back. He is not fighting to free POW's from that war, in an effort to right the wrongs of America's involvement in Vietnam. He's not fighting to free his mentor and teacher Col. Trautman, as doing so is his duty, dictated by the inescapable bonds of the warrior brotherhood. He is, possibly for the first time in his life, committing to an act of war based upon his own beliefs, period. It is clear an emotional bond was formed with Sarah. John Rambo cannot leave her to the atrocities of her captors.

Don't try to attack that one either, Stallone-bashers; No, the scenes in which John Rambo and Sarah become friends were not too brief. Some people are true friends in a few moments, others would not become true friends if forced to spend a lifetime together. The depth of the emotional connection between John and Sarah is quite clear to me. If it isn't to you, that says more about you than it does about this film. Deal with it.

The film continues, with John Rambo guiding a group of mercenaries up the Salween River, staying out of their soldier's banter, and refusing to take the bait of the strongest of the mercenaries, who tries to intimidate John. We see from Stallone's enactment of his character that John Rambo is not at all intimidated, but will not engage in a fight with this man. John's abilities are quite intact, but his lack of pride in what he is persuades him that it's not worth showing this mercerary what he can do. The time for that, as we soon see, comes later.

To see what happens from here, go see the film. It's is a story about a man who makes a decision about who and what he is. He comes to realize that he is a warrior. He cannot escape this identity. He admits to himself that he has killed in the past, not for a cause but for the enjoyment of using this gift of waging war. Yet now, he commits himself to a fight for his own reason: his bond with Sarah. This film is about choosing to fight, not to defend one's pride against the taunts of a mercenary, or for a political cause, or for a warrior brotherhood, but for something that exists deep within oneself. At this point in John Rambo's life, this is all the really matters. It is about fighting to defend and protect that which we hold dear. It is about what Sarah was trying to communicate to John in the beginning of the film; it is about laying down your life for your friends, for those you care for.

There is no great and complex plot in this film, no series of plot-twisting rising actions, each event in the storyline there to compel deep thought about our history as a nation, and about human history. No, this film drops us in to a particular point in John Rambo's life in which we witness him make a decision about his identity, and then act upon that decision in such a way that once committed, he can be true to his identity and very likely lose his life, or, he can deny who he is, and what he truly believes in, and so live a life that matters nothing to anyone, least of all to himself.

This is a film about John Rambo choosing, for the first time, to fight for what he himself believes in. It is a film that forces the audience to see war for the nightmare that it is, not a spectacle to entertain the masses by appealing to the lowest common denominator. This is a film about one man who makes a choice about what his gift is for, and in so doing is finally, at the end of his saga, true to what he really is: One who is supremely gifted at sheperding the weak through the valley of the shadow of death.

I recommend this film without reservation. This is one of the best war films ever made.

There isn't a lot of dialogue or even plot to this action film, but that doesn't mean it has no message.

Stallone, still impressive at 60, brings back another beloved icon of film, John Rambo. The plot is deceptively simple in that a small band of religious good deed doers want to sneak into a Burmese village to give some much needed aid and go to the one nut case most likely willing to take them up the dangerous river, Rambo. While he thinks they are foolish wishful thinkers, he does take them up and does so without payment of any kind making one think that deep down, Rambo would love to seem the succeed somehow after all the violence he has seen. He even says, in a rare moment when he does speak, that they, these religious warriors, have good lives that they should be grateful for instead of coming here in a vain attempt to change things.

Unfortunately, Rambo turns out to be all too right in that their attempts end up getting an entire village wiped out and themselves held captive. Rambo is then hired by a small commando group of mercenaries to retrieve the kidnapped church team and, naturally, all hell breaks lose.

The violence, contrary to some critics, is NOT the type we've seen before. The battle sequences are disturbing realistic and capture the brutality of war, especially a civil one, in all its intensity. We see people literally blown apart by mines, 50 caliber machine guns, and bombs. We see children crushed under boot in front of parents and parents hacked to death in front of their children. We witnessed rapes interspersed with these other violent images. It's horrific to say the least. My heart sank as I watched this realizing it was probably all too realistic.

For me the main theme of this Rambo film is a constant theme in our world today, "Man's inhumanity to man." Is there anything in the natural world that even comes close to what we humans do to each other over land, race, religion, ethnicity, or social class? I think this is what this Rambo film is all about.

I know that Stallone is criticized for what some call a vain attempt to relive his youth, to bring back a franchise, and just plain old make money, and the fact remains that all this may very well be true, but these "facts" don't change the fact that this is a powerful film that is well-crafted. Stallone has always been an excellent actor, screenwriter and director, and just as he pulled off a terrific end to his Rocky character recently, this is an appropriate end to his other much loved character, Rambo.

I consider this film a must-see. Either rent it or own it.

Sly might be old but the man still got it. A lot people has seen Rocky Balboa and loved the movie, but wait until Stallone gathers all of his strength and places all of his energy into making John Rambo, the fourth Rambo film of the saga. It's definitely not an upgrade from any previous Rambo installment; it's just the next one. The dialog is very 'Stallone-esque' (lots of cheesy tag lines that sometimes hit and sometimes miss) but tolerable if you keep your expectations realistic being that it's a Stallone movie.

For Rambo lovers and non-Rambo lovers the story is simple enough. John Rambo tells the story of John leading a group of mercenaries up a river, and takes them deep into the jungles of Burma to rescue a religious group that have been taken captive after a village was burned to the ground, and the villagers were brutally murdered, one by one. I really enjoyed this flick During the movie he is referred to by his name John or as "boatman." Stallone wants to distance his character from "super soldier" from the man Rambo was in the last two movies. He is no longer a hotshot. So no wonder he is not breaking teeth when he gets insulted by the leader of the mercenaries. It does not matter anymore but once the Rambo comes out he fights so ferociously as if his soul was already burning in hell for those 20 years after we last saw him in Afghanistan. As if his desperation, anger, sadness, guilt altogether explode on the screen. It's not pretty, it's not enjoyable and there is no easy way talking about it.

The character development is pretty poor with the main character jumping into a trusting relationship w/ the female lead the instant he makes eye contact without any real explanation as to why. The chemistry between these two was virtually non-existent, but this was probably due to just poor writing more so than casting issues. This may have also been a product of the very fast pace of the film as it really jumps right into the action, but it wasn't a very long movie so they could have done it a little more justice by making it somewhat believable. I think they did a better job with this in First Blood. The team really put together a shocking and graphic representation of war with all of the 'bits and pieces.' I was smiling in amazement of how realistic everything looked and ashamed at the same time for grinning at something so violent.
Still, even with the flaws above it doesn't need a continuing sequel and I think Stallone knows that. Got to pay tribute to this man because he had portrayed one of the best Action Hero's and at the same time reminded us what an action movie is all about. John Rambo came full circle with himself as well as his character's realization for his fans. Any doubt that action movies are dead? Look no further, Stallone still got it. OHH RAAHHH!!!

You know the critics hated it. And here's why: bad guys and good guys, no "nuanced" portrayal, and ... worst of all ... there are Christians in the movie who are not wacky, homicidal, perverse, sadistic, or hypocritical! It's Hollywood's worst nightmare, and certainly not a movie I would have expected to see these days. I can't imagine what must have been going through Stallone's head to be making this movie. I wish this DVD had a commentary or some special feature to shed some light on this.

What can I say? It's a beautifully shot (color-wise, that is) ballet of brutality, post-Saving Private Ryan. Not for the faint of heart. The pacing is perfect, the violence is horrible, when inflicted by Burmese militia upon innocents, and cathartic, when they're themselves shredded into bloody bits.

I had read criticisms to the effect that the bad guys were portrayed as "faceless" cannon fodder. Not true. They are portrayed as psychopathic, sadistic rapists and murdererers, and this is the true face of evil: boring as hell. It's why modern portrayals of villains, such as Wesley Snipes' character in Demolition Man, are surprisingly boring: you know they'll shoot their buddy in the head at the drop of a hat, just to show they're really bad. When it happens, big yawn. In the end, all really evil men look the same, devoid of what makes them truly unique or human. Faceless.

It's a reminder that out there are evil men with guns, ready to wreak havoc upon whomever they will, and that they will not be stopped by appeals to conscience. And it's a tribute to the soldier who defends the weak, perhaps at the cost of his own soul. In other words, a world totally alien to the progressive mindset of today.

Horrible things are happening in the world, and they're screaming cluelessly about ... carbon footprints. (Even though last year's temperature drop alone was enough to "wipe out" all the "warming" of the last decade ... hilarious!) Under Saddam, husbands were kidnapped by the government and returned in pieces, or fed into shredders, and whole villages were wiped out with poison gas, and they're screaming about ... outlawing plastic bags and trans-fats and SUVs.

What can I say? I enjoyed this film immensely. It's sad when it takes John Rambo to remind us what's really going on and what really matters.