The name "John Rambo" still elicits chuckles among film buffs. And even the first in the series - the arty one, for lack of a better word, the one people are allowed to admit they like (just like you're allowed to like the first Rocky) - has its moments of high camp: Sly Stallone running wild with his flaming mane of hair and bullets wrapped around his torso, Richard Crenna spitting out his exposition on Rambo's backstory with such gravitas ("Congressional medal of honour winner... trained killer... I've come to protect you from him..."), Sly's presence.
But its that rarity in the action genre: a genuine character driven movie. Rambo is a fully fledged, three dimensional protagonist - suffering from PTSD, broken, lonely, hungry for affection, touchy, indignant, with his own sense of honour. And Sly is really good in the role, with his haunted, lonely eyes and mumbling and howling at the injustice of it all. His monologue at the end is genuinely touching, talking about having an old friend die in his arms with bits of his body all over the play - "guy cry" at it's best.
As an action film this actually isn't that good - I'm not sure it's Ted Kotcheff's strength. It looks fantastic, with stunning British Columbia scenery (lush trees, craggy rocks, waterfalls, endless mountains). As a drama its very effective, with the sympathy loaded towards Sly. And it's well acted, Brian Dennehy and Richard Crenna providing effective support (though Crenna camps it up more than I remembered). But can you remember the action sequences? Mainly Sly firing off bullets and not hitting anyone, and running around.
I'm not saying it's not enjoyable - it's just not as well directed action wise as say a Michael Mann film. Still, very effective.
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