Film and TV

Return of the lean, mean killing machine

By Kim Francis
February 28, 2008

Rambo(18)
Starring - Sylvester Stallone, Julie Benz, Matthew Mardsen, Graham McTavish & Reynaldo Gallegos

Following the success of the sixth Rocky film in the series last year, it was inevitable that Sylvester Stallone would revisit another of his most famous and most popular characters for the fourth film in the Rambo series.

Twenty years after Rambo III, we find John Rambo working in Northern Thailand, catching snakes.

As uncommunicative as ever, he ekes out an existence, keeping himself to himself.

All that changes when he helps a group of American missionaries, escorting them down the river into Burma where they intend to take medical supplies and expertise.

Instead of a quiet life, he finds himself drawn into a bloody battle as the group is captured and he is forced to mount a rescue mission.

Fans of the original Rambo film will no doubt find plenty to fault in this fourth instalment, but, if First Blood passed you by, you might just enjoy this belated resurrection of the violent Vietnam veteran.

Rambo is extremely violent with a body count amounting to more than 200.

This is all the more shocking in an age when Hollywood films of this type are usually watered down to obtain a 15-certificate in order to ensure a wider audience.

Bloody and visceral, it shows you almost everything; there is no subtlety or suggestion.

This is arguably justified by the fact that the film attempts to depict the real atrocities of a real war, including unspeakable acts carried out on women and children.

Rambo is tense, pacy and thrilling; it batters the senses and pulls no punches.

And, in case you were wondering, Stallone proves he is still very much up to the demands of the job with the agility, boundless energy and muscular frame of somebody half his age.

If you are a fan of the type of violent 80s’ action flick that you rarely see these days, there is no doubt that you will love Rambo.

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