Rambo: First Blood Part II Movie Review

Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985)

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Written by: David Morrell (based on characters created by), Kevin Jarre (story by), Sylvester Stallone and James Cameron (screenplay by)
Directed by: George P. Cosmatos
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Charles Napier, Julia Nickson, Martin Kove
Rated: R
Watch the trailer

Plot
Rambo returns to the jungles of Vietnam on a mission to infiltrate an enemy base-camp and rescue the American POWs still held captive there.

Verdict
It's a by the numbers action movie. What makes this worse is just how good and nuanced First Blood is. In the first movie the action was an unfortunate consequence, in this it's the main attraction. This movie is mindless action. That's not a bad thing if that's what you're after, but there are certainly more interesting action movies. This makes sure to include Soviets, lots of explosions, choppers, and it even forces a love interest into the movie. In the first movie we were sympathetic to the underlying cause behind Rambo's rampage. That movie has a message about veterans, this movie exists only to entertain.
Skip it.

Review
Rambo is in prison, a result of his actions in the first movie. His chance to get out is a covert mission to Vietnam to free prisoners of war. It certainly seems like the government is using Rambo. If he goes on this mission, maybe they'll pardon him. If I was him I'd want a solid offer.

Sylvester Stallone plays John Rambo

It's clear this movie is more fascinated with military technology and state of the art toys more so that Rambo's emotional turmoil. A larger budget also helps. This is a different movie from the first one. Rambo is an action hero now, not a tortured veteran. This movie doesn't have a message.

This is a shallow one man army action movie. That's disappointing only because of the first movie and what it represented. There's no why behind Rambo's actions in this movie, other than box office bucks. There is more dialog and it's not very good. Rambo discovers the mission is a sham. He was sent because he's expendable. The government handler was hoping Rambo would discover nothing or get caught. Rambo doesn't get caught, and of course he finds prisoners and then frees them.

This is a typical action movie. That's not a bad thing, this just isn't particularly interesting. Rambo saves everyone and the day. I didn't expect this movie to match the first one, especially being an 80s sequel, but I was hoping for something. The Rambo franchise is regarded as whole like Rambo II or III. Pop culture forgets the level of depth in First Blood. The first one makes this movie worse in comparison, because the first movie is so good and such a contrast. In the first movie the action was unfortunate, here it's entertainment.