Directed by:
Adrian GrunbergCinematography:
Brendan GalvinComposer:
Brian TylerCast:
Sylvester Stallone, Paz Vega, Joaquín Cosio, Yvette Monreal, Óscar Jaenada, Sheila Shah, Sergio Peris-Mencheta, Adriana Barraza, Jessica Madsen, Owen Davis (more)VOD (4)
Plots(1)
Sylvester Stallone returns to star as Vietnam War veteran John Rambo in this fifth instalment of the action franchise. Still haunted by his violent past, Rambo embarks on another revenge mission when his niece, Gabrielle (Yvette Monreal), is kidnapped by a Mexican cartel headed by brothers Victor and Hugo Martinez (Oscar Jaenada and Sergio Peris-Mencheta). After venturing across the border, Rambo is aided in his search by reporter Carmen Delgado (Paz Vega), whose sister has also been abducted by the cartel. When his initial attempt to confront the cartel fails, Rambo lures them back to his Arizona ranch for an explosive showdown. (Lionsgate UK)
(more)Videos (2)
Reviews (12)
Eighty minutes of tired old-man melancholy without a drop of action and fifteen minutes of a sped-up Home Alone ripoff. This is, in short, Rambo: Last Blood. Did anyone actually want that? After a high-quality, action-packed and especially ballbusting fourth movie, which should have ended the series with all its dignity intact, came this practically unjustifiable lullaby, built on a banal script and forced emotions for one-dimensional supporting character shoehorned into an established series, who the audience is expected to feel for. A forgettable sequel with ugly CGI effects and a picture undeserving of the character John Rambo.
()
This B-movie works thanks to nostalgia for John Rambo and Sly. And also thanks to the sufficient work with emotions (however basic they may be). Last Blood takes its time and gives plenty of space to all of its few characters in the simple story. Because of that, the climax is surprising and seems unpleasantly rushed, while lacking the energy accumulated in the build-up and coming up short with the catharsis that the film was aiming for and which should have been substantially more powerful.
()
Rambo has changed in the last two episodes and it's understandable because Stallone has changed, too. While the first three episodes show Rambo as essentially a good guy cornered by the political system and other people's prejudices, the last two episodes refer very well to current issues in the world today and the inability to systematically address them effectively enough. It doesn't matter if it's tribal wars in Burma or hunting prostituted girls in Mexico. Both are and have been more or less topical, and both Stallone and Grunberg are keeping within identical intentions and boundaries. So the last episode is still a relatively dark, raw carnage, only that it moves from the natural jungle to the urban jungle, with similar results and message – it is there, you just need to find among the clichés that surrounds it. Because yes, somehow a simple revenge story has to be grafted onto that core in order to even make it to the cinemas and at least be somewhat appealing to those viewers who only see the peripheral attributes of explicit violence, cool weapons and an iconic hero. The objections are that it's not quite the same, but when compared to the original films, which had a completely different focus and defined 1980s action. You have to take into account that this is still the same hero at the core, just living in a different time, in a different world. It doesn't reach the high-octane carnage of the previous episode, but I take the melancholic first half as well as the second one any day.
()
It’s not too surprising that Stallone has never been able to understand that he simply cannot replicate one of the greatest successes of his career. The name Rambo has very little significance in relation to one fictional character. Its cultural capital and iconic nature are derived solely from Rambo: First Blood Part II and its association with the waning days of the Cold War. Stallone’s tenacious effort to continue the franchise’s box-office success was still endearingly entertaining in the third instalment thanks to the camp dimension of that film. The fourth one was just tiresome and toxic with it old man’s stubbornness and toxic conservativeness. Because Stallone doesn’t have any sense of humour or self-reflection, the title of the parody flick Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping describes his career. Like Sly, unfortunately, some of his viewers still hope to at least dip a toe into the old waters. To this day, I still remember the wearying disappointment creeping through the screening room at the cinema. It’s true that the particular screening was on the day of the premiere as part of a double feature with the iconic First Blood Part II at the Aero cinema in Prague. The futile digital effects and the drawn-out ideologically focused melodrama about the need to protect the US southern border were downright off-putting for the viewers looking forward to bombastic action, which finally came after 90 gruelling minutes with truly devastating sadistic explicitness, so the irritated audience welcomed it with a clamorous roar of relief. However, that doesn’t change the fact that all of the other sequels only diminish the legacy and significance of Rambo: First Blood Part II as a pop-culture milestone. On the other hand, that’s a good thing, because we now live in a different era and a different world. It’s just a shame that Stallone still doesn’t understand that.
()
I gave this a slightly higher rating because it’s just the kind of film you make a daughter watch if she refuses to do what she’s told… This brutal Rambo epilogue has a long, unsurprising exposition, a classic western structure and an aging legend that can still deliver the goods. Direct, hard-hitting. The climax in John’s tunnel of surprises is really bloody and the annihilation of the evil Mexicans is heartwarming... Hehehe.
()
Ads