Take the first 20 minutes of "Saving Private Ryan" - with soldiers limbs being shot off at the D-Day landing at Omaha Beach, add some magnificent jungle scenery and action a la "Tears Of The Sun, and put it all in " Blackhawk Down" mode with gunfire dominating the film....and you have the latest Rambo movie.
Hey, I knew it was going to be a tough, adventure story but this was a shock. I've never seen so many heads blown off, limbs blasted away with blood spurting out and holes blasted in the middle of chests and stomachs in one movie in my life.....and it's only 81 minutes long! (The last dozen minutes are ending credits.) Man, this is almost non-stop action and suspense/ Yeah, a bunch of it is overdone but overall, it still was an entertaining movie.
I know it sounds like some dumb Texas Chainsaw Massacre-type thing, but it wasn't despite the mayhem. There actually was a small story with a decent message about making your life stand for something. "Rambo Gets A Conscience" could be another title to this movie.
However, if you are the least bit squeamish about bloody violence, you better skip this movie. If you enjoy a good action movie and don't care if it gets a little gross in spots, this is your cup of tea......in spades. If you have any hostility in you, after 80 minutes of watching this, it should be gone.
After an absence of 20 years, Sylvester Stallone's "John Rambo" comes back to the screen. Rambo is the kind of guy you don't want on your college debate team but he's a number one draft choice on the field of battle. He's a man of few words and a lot of testosterone. With veins popping out of his arms like a 25-year-old bodybuilder, Stallone looks more juiced than Barry Bonds but at least it makes him look the part, even if he does have bags under his eyes. I liked Stallone's comeback in the recent "Rocky Balboa" better, but this was still an entertaining flick.
The middle-aged John Rambo was more realistic than the male missionary, "Michael Burnett," who was a bit obnoxious for who he was playing. I've met a number of missionaries and none of them act or sound like this guy, but that's the film world for you. The guy with the Australian accent who was the "leaders" of the mercenary group was a bit over-the-top and cartoon-like with the profanity. With him, and the Burmese rebel leader, you had no probably identifying who the a-holes were in this movie, and who were the good guys. They weren't too subtle about that. Then again, the action scenes weren't too subtle, either - but it was entertaining, in a sick sort of way.
One last thing that everyone should agree with: this was nicely filmed, with fantastic jungle scenery. Kudos for cinematographer Glen MacPherson and director Stallone for some incredible shots. I cannot imagine how good this must look on a high-definition disc.
