Rambo Last Blood movie review

MOVIE TITLE: Rambo Last Blood

RATING: R (Sylvester Stallone seemed pleased when he got his “hard” R rating. Hard, indeed)

LENGTH: 1 hour, 41 minutes (This is actually the shortest movie in the Rambo franchise)

Movie Review Mom GRADE: B+

IN A NUTSHELL:

I have loved this action franchise ever since I saw Rambo in First Blood when it first came out. I know it seems like a money grab, but I’m happy to see Sylvester Stallone attempt to close out a series before he gets too old (he’s 73 years old!) That is, unless this movie makes a bunch of money and then Stallone says he’ll come back as anti-hero John Rambo AGAIN.

Director Adrian Grunberg offers a SUPER violent finale. After this movie, there is simply no blood left…it’s THAT bloody, brutal, and gory.

It’s been a 10 year absence from the Big Screen. Was it worth the wait? What did YOU think of this movie? I’d love to read your thoughts in the comment box below!

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

A TON of Spanish is spoken with a TON of subtitles to read if you don’t speak Spanish.
A lot of different kinds of weapons
A lot of people die brutal, gory deaths
Lots of violence
F-bombs and profanity in English and Spanish

THEMES:

PTSD
Anxiety and depression
Change
human trafficking
Revenge
Be prepared
Family

THINGS I LIKED:

I liked the double meaning of “blood” in the story and title. Not only is there a lot of actual blood, but blood also refers to the people who have become his family and given him happiness and meaning in life.
This is the most vulnerable we’ve ever seen John Rambo. If you’ve seen the other movies in the saga, you’ve seen a huge character arc take Rambo from the troubled Vietnam vet to this older, wiser, family man at peace. Just when we settle in to seeing Rambo surrounded by loved ones, he is forced to return to survival/soldier mode and use his skills that bring death and revenge.
I’ve never seen a horse skid before!
There are only a handful of actors who can pull off such a hardcore macho man movie like this anymore. When everyone seems to be shouting about “toxic masculinity” these days, Stallone reminds us that men can be vulnerable and manly at the same time.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

A lot of viewers are comparing this movie to mixture of Taken and a really violent version of Home Alone
The movie starts out with an exciting scene and good special effects, but then comes to a screeching halt. If you love classic Rambo revenge, you have to wait until the last 20 minutes of the movie when the hardcore action finally takes place.
The plot is SUPER obvious in about 15 minutes. We’ve seen this story before many times, more often with Liam Neeson or Bruce Willis.
The camera zooms in on various objects in very obvious ways to let you know that something is important and you’re going to need to remember it.

INTERESTING LINES:

“You are not in the war anymore.” – Maria Beltran (Adriana Barraza) “It’s hard to turn off.” – John Rambo (Sylvester Stallone)
“I’ll fight to keep their memory alive forever.” – John Rambo

OTHER MOVIES LIKE THIS YOU MIGHT ENJOY:

First Blood