MoeFOH's Movie of the Week... Week #36...

[MoeFOH]

MoeFOH's Movie of the Week 🎥

Each week we're going to spotlight a movie... be it a classic, new release, hidden gem, or outright turd... and open it for discussion: i.e. post up your favourite quotes, clips, memories... or dive deeper and give us a critique on why you think it's great, overrated, or a complete train wreck... And finally score it for us...  

All contributors go into a monthly prize draw for a 3-cigar sampler! 

PM me with suggestions if there's a movie you want to nominate for next week's discussion. 

 

Week #36: Rambo: First Blood (1982)

Wiki says:

 

First Blood (also known as Rambo: First Blood) is a 1982 American action film directed by Ted Kotcheff, and co-written by Sylvester Stallone, who also stars as Vietnam War veteran John Rambo. It co-stars Richard Crenna as Rambo's mentor Sam Trautman and Brian Dennehy as Sheriff Will Teasle. It is the first installment in the Rambo franchise, followed by Rambo: First Blood Part II.

The film is based on the 1972 novel First Blood by David Morrell, which many directors and studios had unsuccessfully attempted to adapt in the 1970s. In the film, Rambo is a troubled and misunderstood Vietnam veteran who must rely on his combat and survival skills when a series of brutal events results in him having to survive a massive manhunt by police and government troops near the fictional small town of Hope, Washington.

First Blood was released in the United States on October 22, 1982. Initial reviews were mixed, but the film was a box office success, grossing $156 million at the box office. In 1985, it also became the first Hollywood blockbuster to be released in China, holding the record for the largest number of tickets sold for an American film until 2018. Since its release, it has been reappraised by critics, with many highlighting the roles of Stallone, Dennehy, and Crenna, and recognizing it as an influential film in the action genre.

Its success spawned a franchise, consisting of four sequels (co-written by and starring Stallone), an animated television series, a comic books series, a novel series, several video games, and Indian remakes.

Thanks to @Edicion for this week's title.

How do you rate it? Favourite scenes?

Best moments?... etc, and so on... post 'em up!!

Give us your score out of 10!

[MoeFOH]

 

[Fuzz AI]

I always have a giggle at the guy who shouts out "Bullseye!" after firing the LAW rocket at the mine. If you can't hit a mine at point blank range, you really shouldn't be toting around the LAW.

[KCCubano]

Not a big movie person by any means but did find it to be decent when it came out. 7/10 which is high score for me. 

[Paladin865]

A classic action movie of the 1980's, The scene when Col. Trautman, played be Richard Crena, first came in was great. He tell the Sheriff he was surprised Rambo did kill more men. I got a kick out of when he said, Rambo trained to eat things that would make a billy goat puke. A classic action movie I give a solid 9 

[Fuzz AI]

42 minutes ago, Paladin865 said:

A classic action movie of the 1980's, The scene when Col. Trautman, played be Richard Crena, first came in was great. He tell the Sheriff he was surprised Rambo did kill more men. I got a kick out of when he said, Rambo trained to eat things that would make a billy goat puke. A classic action movie I give a solid 9 

 

[Ford2112]

This film is underrated. Great cast. A young David Caruso. Crenna as Trautman. Dennehy always played a good heel. This movie dealt with some pretty heavy subject matter. PTSD. Being left behind. Unwanted in a country you fought for. And as a kid when Rambo was dressed up like a bush I thought it was the most badass thing ever. Stallone seems to get a lot of flack for the Rambo films. Personally I'm a big fan. 9/10. 

[Edicion]

I watched it recently and felt the movie was surprisingly contemporary despite now being 40 years old. Stallone plays this extremely dangerous and combat experienced veteran that is actually a gentle and humble guy battling PTSD, broken and disappointed in how he is treated by society after his service overseas.

It started the whole Rambo franchise but much more than that, it feels like a well-thought through and intelligent movie of a book adaption, while Rambo II and on are more in the same action genre as Commando, Predator and the likes. 

Good movie, 8/10

[bassistheplace]

a movie that makes me stop and watch everytime i see it as i'm flipping around TV. its a classic Stallone 8/10

[SonGoku]

Another movie from my childhood. Everybody wanted a Rambo knife with a sewing kit, compass and what not built in. Great music too. Watched a lot of movies with my dad back then. These kind of movies he would call "americanadas" 

 

8/10

[Boxer31]

Definitely a Stallone classic,  his 2nd best movie right behind Rocky. Rambo and Rocky part of the vocabulary growing up. 

[Capn_Jackson]

I absolutely love to talk about this film. Many write it off as an action/renegade flick, but it is much more. Heavy, important subject matter. I’m a Music Professor at a community college, and have been fortunate to teach many, many veterans over the years. Some of them have had severe PTSD. A couple times, I’ve even had a student go into a panic in class. I have always carefully tried to reassure them that they are in a safe place. I have seen many of those same students thrive into very productive and social members of the community. I’ve actually talked about this movie with a few of them, and it still resonates. The sequels, in my opinion, tell a completely different story, though some of them have very topical themes.

What I always come back to about First Blood, though, is the soundtrack. Jerry Goldsmith was hired to compose the score for it, and he took the job very seriously. Many parts of it are typical of that genre of film, certainly the incidental music in the action scenes, but the overlying theme in the whole film, “It’s a Long Road,” is really poignant. Not talking about the version with vocals, sung by Dan Hill. I never personally liked that song much. The melody itself, though, played by a trumpet and other instruments in various places throughout the soundtrack, is stark, sorrowful, and really brilliant. It encapsulates so much about Rambo and his journey, in a way that’s damn near poetic. That’s what a good film composer can do, and Jerry Goldsmith was one of the greats. He also did the music for the second and third movies, but died before the 2008 sequel. When I saw that one, I was expecting that melody in the soundtrack, and of course it showed up. It was used right at the end of the movie, and was probably my favorite thing about that sequel, honestly. If you’ve forgotten the soundtrack of First Blood, check out “It’s a Long Road” (Instrumental version, rather than the vocal one), or the other track on there called “Homecoming” which also uses the same trumpet melody. It carries home the drama of the story so well.

[Fuzz AI]

The novel, which was written about 10 years before the movie is very different, and would not have gone on to be such a hit if they didn't make changes. The novel has Rambo (no first name) as a very different character to the one Stallone plays. The author actually prefers the movie over the novel, but hates the following films.

[Tdm_86]

How coincidental, our kid was watching it when I came home the other day. So, naturally, I sat down and watched it with him. It had been a while, I forgot how much more than just an action movie this is. Throughout the movie there are these bits of information that tell the story of John Rambo’s trauma, this gives context and makes this much more than ‘just an action movie’.

8/10 after just having watched it. If you’d have asked me last week, it would’ve been so long since I’d seen it that I would’ve rated it 2 points lower. 

[Doctorossi]

Very watchable and, indeed, there's a lot more going on and being said here than in the execrable sequels. 6/10 for me.

[Chucko8]

This one is a classic from my recollection. What kid didn't want to have one of those survival knives after watching this movie.

[helix]

In 1982 it was epic. 10.

[Nevrknow]

On 11/15/2022 at 5:55 PM, MoeFOH said:

Initial reviews were mixed, but the film was a box office success, grossing $156 million at the box office.

Love this part. Always seems that way to me. If the critics pan it, it's great. If they love it, straight to dvd it is. 😁