Action films have been prolific for decades--probably since the '70's, so surely there is an audience for them. Between Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone, the two of them have been involved in a vast majority of them. "Terminator", "Rambo", "Rocky", "The Expendables"--shall I go on? I had trepidation about viewing "Rambo: Last Blood, but since Stallone co-wrote this, I figured it should be a fairly well written yarn.
Almost four decades after they drew blood, Sylvester Stallone is back as one of the greatest action heroes of all time, John Rambo. Now, Rambo must confront his past and unearth his ruthless combat skills to exact revenge in a final mission. A deadly journey of vengeance, "Rambo: Last Blood" marks the last chapter of the legendary series.
John Rambo lives on his ranch in So. Arizona with his niece, Gabrielle (Yvette Monreal), and before she heads out to college, finds out, through her friend in Mexico, Gizelle (Fenessa Pineda), that her father lives near her. Gabrielle had been wondering where her father was, so she confronted her uncle John about going. He warned her not to go since he was no good. Anyway, she left without his knowledge and is now caught up in a sex trafficking situation where she was kidnapped. Enter Rambo! He leaves for Mexico, where he plans on bringing her back, but not without adversaries at his heels.
Others to round out the cast are Paz Vega as Carmen Delgado, Sergio Peris-Mencheta as Hugo Martinez, Adriana Barraza as Maria Beltran, Oscar Jaenada as Victor Martinez, brother to Hugo, Joaquin Cosio as Don Manuel, Pascacio Lopez as El Flaco and Jessica Madsen as Becky.
This was rivetingly directed by virtual newcomer to feature films, Adrian Grunberg ("Get the Gringo" '12) plus a ton of TV. Although the characters represented here aren't extremely complex individuals, it still takes someone who knows their way behind the camera. Plus, this filmmaker has not only directed TV projects, but also a ton of 2nd unit director and assistant director work to his credit. This speaks volumes. And considering this was co-produced by Stallone's production company, Balboa Productions, I'm sure Stallone had his input. Grunberg already has a couple of films in pre-production. It was effectively written by Matthew Cirulnick ("Paid in Full" '02) plus TV and videos, and Stallone ("Rocky" '76, "F.I.S.T." '78, "Paradise Alley" '78, "Rocky II" '79, "First Blood" '82, "Staying Alive" '83, "Rocky IV" '85, "Cobra" '86, "Rocky V" '90, "Driven" '01, "Rocky Balboa" '06, "The Expendables" '10, "Creed" '15, "Creed II" '18) plus many others and a video short and game, based on a story by Dan Gordon and Stallone, which is based on the character created by David Morrell. While this story was riveting and a real nail-biter, it was also fairly predictable and formulaic, however, one would have to realize this before you entered the theater. Obviously Stallone has the lion's share of the experience here, however I'm sure Cirulnick had effective input. The obvious reason one would watch this is to see just how Rambo 'gets back'. The fact that he exacts revenge is a given, and the body count only increases as the film unfolds. Also it's way he kills the bad guys is unique, considering his extreme combat skills he brings into the fray. This, among many other action hero films are perfect for the 18-24 year old single male population demographically. The stunts and the amount of blood would satisfy any red-blooded American young man.
If you fit the aforementioned demographic, this is the film for you. It's not if the body count exists as much as how much. This is rated 'R' for a reason. The blood is beyond sufficiently flowing like water, so definitely not for the kiddies. As long as there is a need for us to see wrongs righted, we will always have a need for these types of films.
Out of 4 stars: 2.5 Rated: R 90mins.
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