Rent Rambo III on Amazon Video (paid link)
Written by: David Morrell (characters), Sylvester Stallone and Sheldon Lettich (written by)
Directed by: Peter MacDonald
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Marc de Jonge, Kurtwood Smith
Rated: R
Watch the trailer
Plot
Rambo mounts a one-man mission to rescue his friend Colonel Trautman from the clutches of the formidable invading Soviet forces in Afghanistan.
Verdict
Maybe it wasn't at the time, but now this is just a generic action movie. Rambo is a one man army that can destroy everything in his path, but he also has a heart of gold. I find mindless action boring, and this is one explosion after another with the slightest of story to connect it all. It's a bit over the top with Rambo helping monks, driving tanks, and saving everyone.
Skip it.
Review
This movie feels like a trope, but for all I know Rambo invented the warrior outside of his homeland who's in an underground fighting ring to raise money for a monastery. Is the departure from the first movie a change in movie culture or Stallone realizing it was the path to monetize the franchise? In pop culture, Rambo III is used as the example for the franchise. When I first watched all of these movies, somehow never seeing them in their heyday, I was surprised at how different the first movie is. First Blood delivers a striking message.
 |
| Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna play Rambo, Trautman |
What made Rambo interesting in the first movie is abandoned in the second and third in favor of a one man army action hero. It was through Rambo's commanding officer Trautman's compassion that the first movie came to a close. In the sequels Trautman calls upon Rambo for these one man suicide missions with no regard to how that would affect Rambo. There isn't a character continuity after the first movie. Rambo is tortured in the first one and an action hero after.
In this movie Rambo is a bad to the bone, one man wrecking crew, ultimate soldier. That's how people remember these movies. When Rambo refuses this mission, Trautman goes alone, is capture, and it's up to Rambo to save the day. Rambo proceeds to drive helicopters, tanks, and could have piloted anything else probably while firing a machine gun with his other hand. I don't like this movie because of the mindless action, but it is a great example of this super solider movie trope.
No comments :
Post a Comment