Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985)

As usual, Rambo didn't do first blood. Part II sets Rambo back on Vietnam for a simple mission: take pictures of a dead camp. Of course things aren't as simple as it is.It's linear 80's action. Some tough stereotipical dudes, a lot of testosterone and gun/bow/hand-to-hand fighting.Stallone's acting is good, same goes for Crenna, Napier and Nickson; the rest is acceptable-ish.A good no-brainer.

Sent back to Vietnam on a reconnaissance mission under explicit instructions to just observe and report, John Rambo finds himself compelled to intervene after finding mistreated US prisoners of war in this violent sequel to 'First Blood'. The dynamics are vastly different this time with Rambo initiating dozens of kills. The antagonists are also less complex, as opposed to in the first film where Rambo has to protect himself from the prejudiced policemen of his own country. That said, the film carries forward the original's resentment over the reception of Vietnam War veterans very well. Rambo describes himself as expendable, but the POWs are even more expendable, and there is much to ponder when it is revealed that his mission is a box-ticking exercise for the government in order that they can say that they are looking for missing soldiers. In short, this is a more intelligent film than one might expect, if a heavily flawed one. The carnage is even more extreme this time round with whole human beings exploding (!) and Rambo's ability to escape everything unscathed is even more unlikely this time round. There is also an awkward romance and the Communist villains are downright campy, especially Steven Berkoff's Russian officer assisting the North Vietnamese. The film has more virtues than vices overall though; the film's Oscar nomination for Sound Effects Editing is particularly well deserved with all those electrocution noises and excellent background ambiance. Charles Napier is also perfectly slimy as the closest the film has to an American antagonist.

"Rambo: First Blood Part II" is a great step up in pace from the first movie "First Blood" from 1982. Director George P. Cosmatos managed to take the contents of the first movie and bring it back in part two, but also managed to spice it up quite a lot from the first movie.What worked out so well for "Rambo: First Blood Part II" was the fact that the movie took place in the jungle, where Rambo is now tracking down American POWs left behind. And it is so obviously clear that the Rambo character is right at home in a jungle setting.The story told in "Rambo: First Blood Part II" is somewhat of a continuation from the the first movie, but not a direct continuation. John Rambo is freed from prison on terms that he has to go to the jungles of Vietnam to look for American POWs left behind in hidden camps.There is a lot of action in this 1985 sequel and director George P. Cosmatos kicks off the movie into high gear almost from the very beginning, and the movie never really slows down. And the director managed to keep the movie interesting all throughout the course of the entire movie. So thumbs up to the director on that accomplishment.The cast list in "Rambo: First Blood Part II" was quite good, as it also was in the 1982 prequel. The cast list for part II included Richard Crenna (playing Col. Samuel Trautman), Charles Napier (playing Marshall Murdock), Steven Berkoff (playing Lt. Col. Podovsky) and Martin Kove (playing Ericson). And of course there is Sylvester Stallone in the iconic John Rambo character.If you enjoy action movies, then this 1985 movie is definitely a worthy addition to your movie collection. And if you were growing up during the 1980's then you should be more than familiar with "Rambo: First Blood Part II" already. And if you are not, then you should take the time to watch it, because it is an entertaining movie.

Continuing my plan to watch every Sly Stallone movie in order, I come to Rambo: First Blood Part 2.Plot In A Paragraph: Colonel Trautman (Richard Crenna) pulls some strings to get Rambo (Stallone) released from prison and reinstated into Special Forces, to go on a covert mission back to Vietnam, in search of proof they are still holding American POW's. This movie is nothing like its predecessor, which I rated a 10/10, it's so far removed from it, they should have dropped the 'First Blood Part 2' part of the title and simply called it 'Rambo'. First Blood was a tight thriller with some bits of action here and there, with politics (about how America treated its soldiers returning from Vietnam) in there too. This movie is an over the top, patriotic red, white and blue flag waving action movie that has Rambo killing 74 people (as opposed to 1 in 'First Blood') as the one man army once again goes on the rampage. And I love it. When I was younger this was my favourite Rambo movie, and I still have a massive soft spot for it. Stallone has never looked better than he does here, he is in the best shape we have seen him so far. He is once again backed up by the brilliant Richard Crenna (How did this man not get more work?) Julia Nickson is absolutely gorgeous (and is the reason I developed a bit of a fetish for oriental women) and does a great job. Charles Napier is perfectly cast as Murdoch (who gets of lightly in my opinion) unlike an under used Martin Kove who takes the brunt (Or end of a machine gun) of Rambo's anger. Whilst the one man army does take some believing, most are killed one of one, with Rambo sneaking about the jungle (like First Blood) slowly disposing of them. It's not a thinking movie, but it is an enjoyable one.Once again Stallone made changes and extensively rewrote the script. This time, one wrote by James Cameron (Terminator, T2, Aliens) who claims hardly anything of his screenplay was left in the final movie. Stallone had done this on every movie since 'Rocky' if he didn't write the movie, he made changes to the script to suit him.