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Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985)

Starring Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Charles Napier, and Steven Berkoff.  Cinematography by Jack Cardiff.  Edited by Larry Bock, Mark Goldblatt, Mark Helfrich, Gib Jaffe, and Frank E. Jimenez. Produced by Buzz Feitshans.  Written by Kevin Jarre, Sylvester Stallone, and James Cameron.  Directed by George P. Cosmatos.

John Rambo (played by Sylvester Stallone) is rotting away in a military prison.  His former commander Colonel Samuel Troutman (played by Richard Crenna) approaches him with an offer.  Rambo is to use his expertise of the terrain of Vietnam to locate and photograph an alleged P.O.W. camp still in operation.  Rambo accepts and he is sent off on his one man mission.

When Rambo finds the camp he discovers that he just can’t leave the prisoners behind so he attacks single-handedly and frees the captives.  But corruption has reared its ugly head and Rambo is denied an extraction by military officials.  So instead of them coming to get him, he’s going to get them.

When shopping The Terminator around, James Cameron was not lacking for compliments on his well written script; he just couldn’t find a studio that would allow him to direct it.  His talent as a screenwriter soon became well known and the offers to write scripts started to trickle in.  One of these offers was for the sequel to the popular film First Blood starring Sylvester Stallone.  Cameron’s draft of the film, titled First Blood II:  The Mission, was for the most part pretty similar to the story that ended up on the screen, but Stallone decided to add a number of his own personal touches to Cameron’s story, hence the co-writing credit.

Rambo: First Blood Part II, like the other films in the Rambo series, is a visual cornucopia of gunfire and explosions set amongst fast paced military action. It did very well in the box office; it more than doubled the totals from the first film.  The film did however stir up a bit of controversy with its political statements and violent content. With the suggestion of surviving prisoners of war, and it’s heavy anti-war tones, all released in a Cold War climate, the film rubbed a little salt in the some of the wounds that were still left open from the Vietnam War.

But time has softened the blow a bit and it’s hard to remember how seriously you can you take a Sylvester Stallone action movie. The Rambo series has continued to thrive throughout the years spawning three films with the talk of a fourth, a video game, a number of toys and action figures, numerous weapon replications, and even a short-lived cartoon series.

Budget: $44,000,000

Total US Gross: $150,415,432

Genre: Action

Runtime: 94 Minutes

US Release Date: 5/24/85

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

Awards:

Academy Awards: 
Nominated for best sound effects editing. 

Tagline: No Man, No Law, No War Can Stop Him.

Quote: “I want, what they want, and every other guy who came over here and spilled his guts and gave everything he had wants! For our country to love us as much as we love it!  That's what I want!”