Rambo: Last Blood [Rambo 5]

[jye4ever]

Rambo the 13th

Ramboween

My Bloody Rambo

Directed by Rob Zombie

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[Wor-Gar]

Rambo Campout

 

[jye4ever]

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[MaulFan]

The franchise is 37 years old, frankly, I think what it's been doing, all things considered, is fine. It's a franchise based on a character who is a human who ages and is now 73 years old. In today's movie world, I don't think a Rambo 2 aged Stallone out their kicking ass would do well. The character's peak value was during the 80s when muscle men and action thrived, today we're in an age where Daniel Craig as Bond or Keanu Reeves as John Wick are your action stars, it's a different age of action movies. I applaud that Stallone has been willing to keep doing his thing regardless of how popular it may or may not be. The Terminator franchise keeps trying to cater to today's audiences to keep life going there instead of taking the risk of being what it's always been and risking failure.

I for one loved the trailers and ads, thought they did a good job of building excitement and paying homage to the history without giving away too much, sure the posters look lacking but Stallone himself wasn't a classic image of Rambo in this movie either.

I have no problem with this film being the end in that it features Rambo being the best of everything that made the character awesome, my only let down as a finale is that his story doesn't feel closed like it did after 4 and if we're not getting more, I want closure, it's like a TV show that goes off the air before a finale and you're left wondering what would have happened. After 4, I figured what would happen would be fairly boring home life on a ranch and didn't feel a need to see what comes next, I was good, but here, I want to know what becomes of him after everything.

 

[jye4ever]

My show starts in 2 hours i?m glad to give Stallone $13 bucks lol

FB is in my top 25 list of best action movies but Rambo 2-3-4 are not.

Top 50 then i?ll include Rambo 4 why not it?s brutal.

My ranking before seeing this is:

FB

then far below FB is

Rambo 4
Rambo 2
Rambo 3


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[Wor-Gar]

i?m glad to give Stallone $13 bucks lol

$13? Where do you live? The popcorn alone is $13 where I live.

 

[The Clown Prince of Crime]

I paid $10 dollars. You guys must live in the rich part of town. Are the floors even sticky?

 

[jye4ever]

$13? Where do you live? The popcorn alone is $13 where I live.

That?s my discounted price lol


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[jye4ever]

Oh well I just got home from Rambo.

sigh


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[The Clown Prince of Crime]

Oh well I just got home from Rambo.

sigh


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I see, you're disappointed that you're home and not watching Rambo, right?

 

[jye4ever]

I see, you're disappointed that you're home and not watching Rambo, right?

My wife was balling in this movie lol

Well not that kind of balling that comes later.


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[Wor-Gar]

Did it suck Jye?

 

[jye4ever]

Yes I seriously contemplated walking out at the start of the assault on his farm I had lost all interest in the movie by that point and knew I would just be wasting time seeing him take out canon fodder.

The movie has a fast straight line narrative going from A to B to C really quickly to accomplish just one simple task to show Rambo kill boring cartoon villains.

Honestly I was invested up until the girl was buried.

For starters there should?ve been an extra hour in this movie showing Rambo trying to take the legal route against her kidnappers showing that red tape and legal double talk was as much a problem today as the corruption he encountered in his history.

Wealthy Jeffrey Epstein was just as destructive as the macho Mexican sex trade henchmen if anything Epstein?s grip was more frightening because of his connections he didn?t require violence to keep his trafficking healthy for decades.

Anyways only after hitting a wall there would Rambo then go on his his revenge mission BUT it should?ve been in Mexico because making it in his tunnels removed all tension and stakes.

The housekeeper should?ve also been given dialogue acknowledging she knew what Rambo was planning and her being upset over losing him on a suicide mission which it wasn?t the guy was 100 x more efficient at killing then John Wick, Punisher, Jason Voorhees and Michael Myers combined!

Also what the hell, INSTANT FAMILY!

Actually considering it was an instant family in his life the family dynamic between the 3 worked good enough which is a miracle considering we never met them before.

Up until the killing of the first brother the movie was solid enough but even then Rambo deserves more than just being about quick succession of events just to lead up to him being Rambo the Punisher.

The assault on his compound and him killing the bad guy was extremely boring and anticlimactic for me.

Stallone?s plastic surgery was distracting at times but honestly he still has it I still like him.


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[JAWS]

Yes I seriously contemplated walking out at the start of the assault on his farm I had lost all interest in the movie by that point and knew I would just be wasting time seeing him take out canon fodder.

The movie has a fast straight line narrative going from A to B to C really quickly to accomplish just one simple task to show Rambo kill boring cartoon villains.

Honestly I was invested up until the girl was buried.

For starters there should?ve been an extra hour in this movie showing Rambo trying to take the legal route against her kidnappers showing that red tape and legal double talk was as much a problem today as the corruption he encountered in his history.

Wealthy Jeffrey Epstein was just as destructive as the macho Mexican sex trade henchmen if anything Epstein?s grip was more frightening because of his connections he didn?t require violence to keep his trafficking healthy for decades.

Anyways only after hitting a wall there would Rambo then go on his his revenge mission BUT it should?ve been in Mexico because making it in his tunnels removed all tension and stakes.

The housekeeper should?ve also been given dialogue acknowledging she knew what Rambo was planning and her being upset over losing him on a suicide mission which it wasn?t the guy was 100 x more efficient at killing then John Wick, Punisher, Jason Voorhees and Michael Myers combined!

Also what the hell, INSTANT FAMILY!

Actually considering it was an instant family in his life the family dynamic between the 3 worked good enough which is a miracle considering we never met them before.

Up until the killing of the first brother the movie was solid enough but even then Rambo deserves more than just being about quick succession of events just to lead up to him being Rambo the Punisher.

The assault on his compound and him killing the bad guy was extremely boring and anticlimactic for me.

Stallone?s plastic segment was distracting at times but honestly he still has it I still like him.


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Bah!

Go back to your SJW Star Wars ST and your Captain America porn.

 

[The Clown Prince of Crime]

Rambo would crush CA's ass.

 

[JAWS]

I'm sure no one cares at this point, but I finally put my thoughts together.

----------------------------------------------

I?m going to break down my review into two angles because for me, my thoughts are very different depending on where you come at it from. I have feelings about this movie as a stand alone Rambo story, and I have feelings about it standing as very likely the final Rambo story.

Stand Alone

I?ve been thinking about the movie all day since I left the theater, and thinking on it, I feel like this film is very similar to Rambo 2 in terms of Rambo?s core story. Rambo 2 finds John in a seemingly good place mentally. Sure he is in a prison, but as he says, in there, he knows where he stands, whereas on the outside, he doesn?t know his place in the world now. To me, that?s where Rambo is at the start of this movie, he?s found a place where he can feel he belongs, and it?s isolated from the rest of the world. From there, the specific events he endures differ a little, but are somewhat similar, he?s tortured and scarred in Rambo 2, here he?s beaten to the point of concussion and scarred, and in both cases, in the end, that which he holds onto as hope for a life away from the evils of the world, Co and Gabriella, are taken away from him forever. What follows in both cases is a trail of revenge, culminating with Rambo facing off one on one with the person who set the horrible chain of events in motion for him, only in Rambo 2 he showed restraint because he found use for Murdock, but here, there was no good and he dispensed with his antagonist.

While trailers and photos were hard to view as Rambo and not just old Sly, I feel Stallone gave a solid performance and tapped more into the cynicism that Rambo was living with in Rambo 4. Even the smallest actions felt more like Rambo than just Stallone in an action film, so while I missed the bandana and long hair, it didn?t impact feeling like I was watching a Rambo film.

While the gore in this one definitely went above Rambo 4 in how graphic it was, I would say the overall amount felt equal or even less than Rambo 4, at least to me, I was expecting the movie to be a bloody mess.

I thought the plot line worked, though the overall pacing of the movie felt a bit too fast at times, where Rambo 4 had a better overall pace. This was definitely all about Rambo being Rambo, much less time spent developing the real world troubles being depicted and giving Gabriella more meaningful value to the story, like Sarah in 4, they really did a lot with her to make her relevant overall. Granted she was part of the story longer, but still.

One thing I really liked in this film was the showcase of Rambo?s intelligence, probably the best depiction of it since First Blood. Rambo 2-4 were really a showcase of his skills, but here we got to see how strong his mind can be, as he said in Rambo 2, the mind is the best weapon. There was a lot of emphasis in Mexico of him sizing up the situation, surveying the area, etc., I loved when he played dumb while the two cartel brothers were talking and didn?t flinch until they insulted Gabriella and then he showed his hand that he understood them all along. The trap setting at the ranch was fantastic and very methodical, and I didn?t even fully realize how he?d use them, like popping out of the ground like a golpher all over the yard.

Finale

So now the second angle to look at this movie from, how does it stand as an end to the series and character?s story.

I think you have to break down where each film has left off prior to see how it fits, because truthfully, any one of them could have been the end, it could have never gone past First Blood technically.

First Blood
He starts the movie as an outcast trying to find a place in the world post war, loses it when he?s mistreated one time too many, and ultimately ends up arrested with no good outcome for his troubles.

Rambo 2
He starts the movie in prison, removed from society, feels he has a place in the world, even if it?s not ideal, get used and betrayed by representatives of his government, and in the end, is basically left without a country or anywhere to go.

Rambo 3
He starts the movie looking for peace in a Buddhist monestary, gives it up to save his friend, and in the end returns to the world with his friend (presumably).

Rambo 4
He starts the movie living in Thailand hiding out where he feels he can escape the ugly side of the world, then faces it to rescue innocent missionaries and ultimately returns to his childhood home after running for decades.

Rambo 5
He starts the movie living a civilian life back home, still keeping a distance from most of society, loses the one glimmer of a life beyond war and the ugliness of the world, snaps and unloads all of his built up anger and rides off into the sunset.

So I?ve seen a number of folks here talk about how they wished a better ending for Rambo, but when you look back on it, Rambo 4 is the only movie to leave him in a good place, the first 3 movies never ended well.

To me it raises a discussion, was Rambo 4 a fitting ending, or was it an ending this character was never meant for.

Prior to Last Blood, I loved the symetry of Rambo?s introduction being his journey to find a place in the world and the end being his finding a place. Because it?s so balanced, I really felt like it should be the end, there?s no NEED to tell any more Rambo stories.

Now Last Blood comes along and says, he didn?t really find peace, peace is temporary, don?t get used to it, always be ready for a fight of some kind.

I guess for me the weakness of this film as an end to the story is that his future was very unclear. Pre-credits, you think he may die, post credits you see he rides off. As I mentioned before, there are parallels with Rambo 2 and the end here is very similar to that, ok, he walks off or rides off, where too, what will he do. I never experienced Rambo 2 without Rambo 3, so I don?t know how I would have felt then, but I just wish his future were more clear here. Rambo 3?s ending made me think he was going to go back with Trautman and stay part of the military, that he?d realized it?s his place. Rambo 4, again, what was he going to do back home, no idea, but I felt like his days as a soldier or warrior were over.

The take away here seems to be that once a warrior, always a warrior, and he will spend the rest of his days fighting and doing what he can to make sure those he?s lost were not for nothing.

It?s not a bad end, that he will never retire and will be a warrior until he dies, but at the same time, his journey started off in such a bad place, at least in Rambo 4, it ended on a positive note, like yes, what happened to him in the past was horrible but it doesn?t mean things can?t turn around.

The only message I take away from Last Blood is that war and such can take a very serious toll on a person, and sometimes recovering from it is not easy or even possible, but not to give up on life, there is always a purpose in it, and we should stop fighting and subjecting our friends and brothers and sisters and children to these horrors and putting them through such a thing.

Conclusion

Last Blood is a great Rambo film that falls flat as a finale but at least gives us a story where the character is still at his best and doesn?t go Rocky 5 where everything that made you want to watch movies with this character is taken away or tainted.

Didn't Rambo 3 kind of have an uplifting ending? Perhaps I don't remember because of the upbeat humor throughout.

But I did think about the fact that the original 2 Rambo movies ended on a downer note.. However that is why we want the happy ending for him.. Hasn't he been through enough?? Doesn't he deserve some happiness??

It was just a bit too much for me. She went through enough to justify his actions

Spoiler

before her death

I get what you are saying about 4 not being the ending he was meant to have.. But there is no reason not to give it to him.

 

[JAWS]

Rambo would crush CA's ass.

Jye watching Rambo

"Man I am kind of into this film but I now want to walk out because the action is about to begin and I know that Rambo is going to win"





Sometimes with a revenge film we don't want our ending to be in doubt.. Just give us the carnage

Give me this king of revenge hero over a Kevin Bacon type from "Death Sentence" any day.

 

[jye4ever]

What character growth was there though.

The movie served no purpose.

I?m supposed to care about an adopted niece we just met lol

That action scene at the end is the most pointless action scene in the series I was absolutely bored watching it.

Throwing the guys head in the road made zero sense especially since they never showed the other brother come upon it for the intended effect he should?ve stuck it on a pike on his property.

What was even the purpose of having Rambo get injured during the final battle it also served no purpose.

Was it meant to trick us into thinking he was going to die?

Certainly there are elements I enjoyed but once his plan was to get them back to his farm I checked out with boredom.

The movie is missing an entire layer of character depth connected to his past the guy freaking fought alongside Osama Bin Laden to take out the freaking russians for crying out loud lol

Yet he just strolls into the bad guys nest like an idiot.




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[The Clown Prince of Crime]

He walked in like Thanos, but forgot he no longer had the hair and headband which amplifies his power to IG levels. Instead got his ass kicked and the nice Mexican man gave him a nike logo on his cheek.

 

[JAWS]

What character growth was there though.

The movie served no purpose.

Wait a minute.. Character Growth?? This is a Rambo movie Damn it.. Save the character Growth for "The English Patient"

I?m supposed to care about an adopted niece we just met lol

I cared about the impact it had on Rambo... Same could be said for the girl in part 2, the Afganie kid in part 3 or the Church group on part 4.

Are we supposed to care about them? Probably but we really don't.. We care about what they mean to Rambo.

That action scene at the end is the most pointless action scene in the series I was absolutely bored watching it.

Oh man.. You need to watch part three again for boring action.

It wasn't the most exciting set piece.. I wont argue with you there. But I would not have called it boring.

Throwing the guys head in the road made zero sense especially since they never showed the other brother come upon it for the intended effect he should?ve stuck it on a pike on his property.

Rambo went to "I don't give a ****" territory.. He became more brutal then ever before.. There's your growth

What was even the purpose of having Rambo get injured during the final battle it also served no purpose.

Was it meant to trick us into thinking he was going to die?

I would say it was suppose to make us worry that he might die.. I thought there was a good chance.. Then he road off into the sunset and I laughed.

Certainly there are elements I enjoyed but once his plan was to get them back to his farm I checked out with boredom.

He that's like me for the final battle in Endgame

Hmm Endgame... Talk about lack of character development.. Tony proves that he is willing to die for the team.. Oh wait already did that... Well he reconciles his feeling for his father... Oh wait.. Already did that also... Cap decided to be selfish for once.. I guess that's something.

I kid... I kid... Or do I

The movie is missing an entire layer of character depth connected to his past the guy freaking fought alongside Osama Bin Laden to take out the freaking russians for crying out loud lol

Part three actually tried the hardest to give Rambo layers and character growth.. Is it a coincidence that its the worst film in the series?

Yet he just strolls into the bad guys nest like an idiot.

But that was the part when you were still enjoying the film..

Wait a minute... Didn't you like Jane's Punisher?? Talk about pointless and boring


In all honesty Jye I see what you are saying with all your points... But I guess I did not need character development for a character I spent 4 previous films with..

I cared about the niece because I cared about what she meant to Rambo. That was good enough for me

Like I stated before In other posts.. I was able to accept this film as a straight up revenge genre film that happened to have Rambo in it..

Is it deep? Plot driven? Full of robust character development? Nope.. But I personally did not need it for this film.

I was anything but bored.

But I can see how this film is not for everyone.. Take your seat next to Grace