Wednesday, January 30, 2008

RAMBO'S BACK!!! ... in theaters

Original Rambo Trilogy
HEROES NEVER DIE ... THEY JUST RELOAD


First Blood (1982)
Ex-Green Beret John Rambo returns from Vietnam still haunted by the violent, torcherous experiences he's been exposed to. Drifting aimlessly through rural regions in the Pacific Northwest, he seeks connection with the widow of a once brother-in-arms only to be shunned as an outsider and accosted by the local sherriff. The continued harassment soon culminates in a violent altercation leaving one man dead and Rambo on the run. Merely a victim of circumstance, Rambo must nevertheless re-engage his military tactics to thwart his pursuers and survive as a lone wolf against hundreds now trying to track him down.

First Blood Part II (1985)
Shady politics under bureaucratic protection have secretly left several American P.O.W.'s stranded in Vietnam. In an effort to set them free without unnecessary exposure, the feds employ
Rambo to infiltrate the enemy and free the captives from their jungle prison. Stylistically, this may be the best flick of the original three placing Rambo in a realistic vigilante role with enough grisly action and subversive attitude to satisfy any attention span. Even the tacked-on love story doesn't seem too overblown as Rambo's roguish loyalty to "the mission" and indifference to protocol give fresh meaning to the word 'mercenary'.

Rambo III (1988)
When lifelong friend and mentor Col. Sam Trautman is taken prisoner in Afghanistan, only Rambo has enough skill, expertise and warrior hutzpah to attempt the rescue mission. But even Rambo must acknowledge the suicidal conditions present: Trautman's prison compound is perched high atop a desert mountain surrounded by soviet troops in a region enduring continual war. The third Rambo features some gruesome carnage sequences akin to films like Death Wish or Bloodsport; and yet manages a worthy tale loaded with trademark shoot-'em-all-and-let-God-sort-'em-out explosiveness.

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