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Post by Ragingblues on May 19, 2007 22:18:21 GMT -5
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Post by pastimesteve on May 19, 2007 22:55:54 GMT -5
Thanks Ken.
You know, I had to watch the clip if anything for the '80s nostalgia trip, but I can't help think how overdone this looks. Is all of the blood and ripping out of internal organs really necessary? Is that what this culture needs right now? Gosh...
I commended Stallone for Rocky Balboa, a sweet movie with heart that exceeded my expectations, but this? Why was it even necessary?
Sorry to get on my soapbox... I guess I'm too old fashioned.
Steve
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Post by pitfallharry on May 19, 2007 23:33:23 GMT -5
I watched the clip and it's nice to see Stallone not holding back. This to me looks more realistic than the last 2. Yes, it is quite bloody but so is every war. I'm wondering though if they'll be able to keep this at an R rating or it will get pushed up to an NC-17?
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Post by Kaplan on May 20, 2007 0:47:29 GMT -5
I watched the clip and it's nice to see Stallone not holding back. This to me looks more realistic than the last 2. Yes, it is quite bloody but so is every war. I'm wondering though if they'll be able to keep this at an R rating or it will get pushed up to an NC-17? Jeez!!! The trailer alone is rated R. If the film is 93 1/2 minutes, the other 90 minutes are the guts splattering everywhere. I think they gave away all of the dialog. That was the best part of First Blood...the fact that Stallone didn't say much. "He just Kills!" |
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Post by IndyBlues on May 20, 2007 9:03:28 GMT -5
I'll go see it, always been a fan of the Rambo films. This one looks alot less "bubble-gum" than the last 2 installments. More like Rambo Voorhees. Very gory, but then again, so is war.
'Blues
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Post by pastimesteve on May 20, 2007 10:12:29 GMT -5
Guys -- I agree about war being gory, but there have been other fine films that have pointed this out in the context of history and reality. This looks like it was made to give the portion of the video game generation who digs violence a desensitized high.
I'm not sure this type of film has any value in a day and age where kids are beating up a 91 year old man to steal his car. I don't want to exclusively blame film or video games on this type of behavior, but I do believe it all has a snowball effect.
But, to each their own...I don't mean to start a big debate. I like you guys and I understand your point of view. I'm sure Stallone will make some money off of this one.
Steve
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Post by pitfallharry on May 20, 2007 10:31:28 GMT -5
First Blood was good and it was realistic. Once Rambo 2 hit the screens he had become some super soldier and everything was waaay over the top. 3 was even worse than 2. Now don't get me wrong I enjoyed those films for what they were but they made the Rambo character very cartoonish.
I think Stallone's intent with this one is for it to be gritty and realistic. Considering the kind of world this character came from and what he's gone through in his life I think it works. The man is a killing machine. I think he wants to show that killing someone isn't pretty. Shooting someone at close range with a gun like that isn't going to leave a little speck of blood on their shirt......they're going to splatter like that bad guy did.
I'm not saying that I like bloody movies and I wouldn't want to see stuff like this in an Indy film. For this character though it works and I think it's nice to see Stallone trying to get the character back into the real world.
I doubt this is going to be all blood and guts either.
By the way I think Stallone had more lines in that trailer than he had in parts 2 and 3 combined.
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Post by Ragingblues on May 20, 2007 11:16:51 GMT -5
I think "John Rambo" and "Rocky Balboa represent Stallone's intentions to return both characters to their roots in a real world fashion. Having looked back at both series years later, I'm sure he felt there were things he would liked to have done differently. Along with still having some stuff inside him (a line from Rocky Balboa), and wanting to prove some things as a man his age... I believe he wanted to send both Rambo and Rocky out on a solid note. Also... has anyone else noticed how much bigger he is now than in the past Rambo/Rocky movies? Sure... there are elements of his physique that just won't be as cut as they used to be, just given the way age affects the body. But, size wise... the guy is built like a horse (or stallion... pardon the pun) in this clip!  I have always liked Stallone as an action hero/tough guy, and he really is very smart and creative. I applaud his efforts to wrap up the storylines of his two greatest roles on his own terms, and for staying in such great shape over the years. Ken |
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Post by GCR on May 20, 2007 19:08:33 GMT -5
Don't know about anyone else, but I'll be in line for this flick!  Looks like a hell of a way to send off the Rambo character, in my opinion!  Thanks for posting the link, Ken!!! -GCR |
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Steve
Treasure Seeker
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Post by Steve on May 20, 2007 20:20:30 GMT -5
Duuuuuuude, that was intense. I cannot believe that Stallone is as old as he is; I wish I was in that good of shape.
I think Rambo, as presented in this film at least, is a part of what every man wishes he could be: a ruthless fighter that will do anything to accomplish a noble goal. Over the top? Maybe; but I don't think this film is about intellectual stimulation; though it does have aspirations of depth, if the trailer is any indication.
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Post by Stefana Jones on May 20, 2007 23:16:23 GMT -5
My feeling exactly !! The violence seems a little too...graphic for my taste !  I think it should have been done more suggestively. The way I see the trailer, it looks like the film is based on...violence and gore !  And I don't really see nothing new or appealing in the story line either. If it is so graphic in the trailer imagine in the movie itself !! I mean how can you cheer a hero who blasts his enemies in little pieces at point blank range ? I can't understand why Stallone would even do that sort of graphic violence in his movies?! Except of course to cash in on it !! Too bad 'cause I really liked the original movie of the series "First Blood" . I will absolutely not see this new movie.  |
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Yan
Treasure Seeker
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Post by Yan on May 21, 2007 8:56:10 GMT -5
Stallone will laugh all the way to the bank...
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Post by Havana on May 23, 2007 7:08:13 GMT -5
I'm not against violence and gore if it's used selectively but the violence in this trailer seemed cartoonishly overdone or at least over emphasized. It seemed like everyone was exploding or gushing gallons of blood. The camera angles seemded to indulge in it like in B-movies. It reminds me a bit of one of the greatest comedies ever made, Commando. They might tame down the violence in the final edit. I guess they want to show that Rambo still has some "stones." I can appreciate that aspect at least. A kinder, gentler Rambo is not anything I want to see. I like seeing the old fashioned 80's type action scenes but the whole one man army idea seems really outdated and possibly in bad taste given the current real life conflicts going on in the world. I don't know if the public will be willing to buy into a war fantasy these days.
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Post by Ragingblues on Jul 19, 2007 17:38:29 GMT -5
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locoindhead
Temple Guard
"I'm like a bad penny, I always turn up."
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Post by locoindhead on Oct 9, 2007 23:56:28 GMT -5
I'm happy to see Stallone has held up better in his age then Gov. Arnie. I love Schwerzanegger (I'm sure thats not even close) movies but He's a bit saggy these days.
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Post by Ragingblues on Jan 22, 2008 23:35:40 GMT -5
A new interview with Sylvester Stallone has been posted, regarding the story and filming of " Rambo": www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=41047 It's been 20 years since audiences have seen Vietnam vet John Rambo kick some serious ass and now the classic warrior is back on the big screen to take on the Burmese military in the war-torn region of Thailand to help a group of Christian missionaries.
Sylvester Stallone may be in his early 60s now, but that hasn't stopped the action star from taking the necessary risks and treading through dangerous terrority to make Rambo, the latest installment in the popular series.
Stallone talked to ComingSoon.net about why he chose the Burmese-Karen civil war, which is still happening, as the political conflict for the storyline of the latest Rambo flick and what the challenges were of bringing back the iconic character.
ComingSoon.net: What happened to the shot where you punch the guy's head off?
Sylvester Stallone: I know, that's an optical confusion. What it was, was the knife and it was such a bad print, it looked like I punched his head off. No, that's the shot, absolutely. I kept reading blogs and said, "Guys, look closely. No one can punch someone's head off."
CS: Do you ever imagine a world where you shot the ending of the book "First Blood" and didn't have "Rambo" with you all these years?
Stallone: Yeah, I think about it all the time. I had that debate with Quentin Tarantino who thought I made a mistake. I said, "You know, on an artistic level, you're probably right." But at the time, I had spent a lot of time doing research with veterans and it seemed like this terrible, nihilistic ending that just reveled in complete despair. At that time, we had almost a quarter of a million Vietnam suicides. So I thought, do I want to just end it on that note? Or make him more of a victim who has been created to do a job, does the job, comes home, gets "You know what? You no longer fit in." It's like you train a pit bull. Take a dog, turn him into a killer, now what do you do? You've got to put him down. What happens if that pit bull gets loose? And you realize it's not as bad as you think. You can somehow redeem him. I thought that was more of an interesting story. Again, as Kirk Douglas says, "Not artistic, but commercial."
CS: Did you have to go back and watch the previous "Rambo" films to get back into character?
Stallone: Yeah, you know kind of just the ponderousness that comes with aging, the sense of weight, the sense of knowledge, knowing too much, the lack of naiveté which happened in my life, sort of set the stage for me. I wanted Rambo to be heavier, bulkier, that's why his first line in the movie is pretty negative. He's given up. He has nothing. The other Rambos I felt had a bit too much energy. They were a little too spry. I'm not trying to run myself down but there was much more vanity involved. Tank tops, it was all about body movement rather than just the ferocity and the commitment of what he was doing. This character to me is much more interesting. I like "First Blood" and I like this one, just like the first "Rocky" and the last "Rocky Balboa." Everything in between was kind of trying to figure out what I should do.
CS: Talk about the tone, can you enjoy the gratification with the realistic depiction of violence?
Stallone: If you notice over the opening credits, I had to live up to a certain kind of responsibility because people are dying as we're making the film. Therefore, to just have me running through the film doing these extraordinary heroics I thought would demean what they're going through. So they had to have their moment where you see a village that is decimated. That's what happened. As a matter of fact, it's even worse but I said, "I don't know if that other stuff would fly today. I think the audience really wants something that's hard hitting but has a semblance of reality." We went too far in the old days. We got away with murder. "Jump out of a plane? Well, I don't need a parachute. You use mine." And you made it. Somehow you made it. You landed on a convertible roof and you did it. I said no, this time I'm going to really show it and the violence has to be extraordinarily brutal because we see people beheaded on television. How much harder can you get? You cannot water it down, at least I didn't feel. That was a big bone of contention really. The other thing was do you do a film about a caper, like they wanted to have the corrupt CIA guy and he was trying to sell plutonium rods. I said no. The biggest and most interesting crises in the world is the human crises. It never gets boring. Just like Shakespeare. You don't need a gimmick. It's just man against man, just their intolerance of each other.
CS: How did all the production companies come in?
Stallone: I don't know any of them either. [Laughs] What happened was Weinstein came about 12 years ago. "Would you want to do a Rambo?" I said, "okay." He goes, "We've got this great idea where Camp David's attacked." I go, "I'm out." It just can't be. There's something about nature as part of the character. There's something about the primitive man. He's almost like an Indian. Set in the city, I just didn't think it would fly. So it died for 10 years, resurfaced. At one time, Mark Burnett was talking about doing it when I was doing "The Contender" and then that didn't work. Then I called Harvey Weinstein and talked about these missionary groups that were going to Afghanistan. I said, "This is interesting." No, never got called back on that. So Avi Lerner bought it, New Millennium. He was open to this whole idea. The thing was, I was going to do something about Mexico. Actually the whole Coyote Mexican, remember the people disappearing in Juarez and that whole world. So we went that way and I said, "No, not working. I need something more international." So I did research and found that Burma is one of the great hellholes on the planet. But no one knows about it. It's exotic and it's near Vietnam. The synergy was perfect so that's why.
CS: Discuss location scouting before the movie and the shooting conditions themselves?
Stallone: Funny you bring that up because the location scouting was truly hell. We had to go to places where we were not going to be so confrontational with Burmese agents that are all over Thailand and they're very, very sensitive to their image. Especially down in Mae Sai where people have disappeared. It's a serious situation. The Thais were very, very worried about their image so we decided to go up north to Chiang Mai, try to find something that would sort of be obscure to both of them. We wouldn't be in their faces but the locations themselves were so inland, sometimes we would have to use elephants to get inland. We spent days on the river. In the mountains would have been great to go up to these areas, but just something that felt as though this would be Rambo territory, would be as rugged as his life had been and bleak, but also serviceable for some of the actors who I didn't want to put them through the kind of hell that they had to be put through. But it was a lot of work. It took four different trips back and forth. 18 hours each way is a lot of scouting back and forth, a lot of jet lagging.
CS: How do you bring back someone else's franchise, "Death Wish?"
Stallone: I think "Death Wish," if it were done today, would be volcanic. The idea of Jeff Goldblum being a mugger who breaks into an apartment is very simplistic. It gives you an idea how bad the elevation of violence has become. I would focus on defense attorneys, I would focus on [the people] allowing this crap to happen – not so much the guy on the street, it's like who permits it. What if it happened to you, that your daughter was grabbed and her eyes were put out; would you want to sit there and defend that guy? So there's moral questions here that are being presented that have not been answered in 30 years. So by no means is it the pacifist [origin of the original]. Also, I see – I'll give you a little hint – he was a very violent human being, completely violent, an ex convict who walked the walk, was accepted back into society and did everything he could to be a [good person]. Like these thieves and junkies who now work on the side of the law, they've gone that way, but when something happens he reverts back to that guy. So now you've unleashed a man who really understands the world of violence; he isn't burdened with this passive-aggressive, conscientious-objector kind of thing. That's been done. It's like what happens when the wolf has gone from wolf to wolf in sheep's clothing back to the wolf. Now the fellow on the street has a problem because he knows how to deal with that kind of mentality because he was a prisoner. So it would be a different take [Laughs].
CS: How do you make "Rocky" and "Rambo" relevant today?
Stallone: If I were trying to go after a youth audience and trying to find something hip, using certain music and whatever, I think that would be pretty obvious and be rejected. There's some things that never change and are universal truths. As you get older, they become more and more apparent about how difficult life is and like the speech in "Rocky" about taking punches and life gives you punches. The young people who would support "Rocky" more than even people my age I think really enjoy and embrace those kinds of lessons. I think the lesson that is somewhat presented here, that war is hell and there is no winner ever and unfortunately people just have to find it out the hard way, will translate. And eventually after a man takes that journey, a woman takes that journey, you always hope that you can go back home, that there's still some gateway back to peace, peace of mind where you can start to rebuild. That's the only thing I hope works. I think it does work because they're just universal truths that never, ever change. No matter what society is, just everybody wants freedom, everyone wants peace of mind but it comes at a horrible price.
CS: Was it hard to bring the movie in at an R rating? Did you want more?
Stallone: I couldn't believe it first of all. When babies are being bayoneted, I thought this will never go. We presented it but I did have a caveat with the MPAA. I said, "Guys, this is happening today. If we're ever going to do something responsible where art has the ability to influence people's awareness, impact the lives of these people, don't dilute it. Don't water it down. It's got to be uncomfortable. It is uncomfortable. It's miserable. It's distasteful. It's horrifying. But if you're not going to do it, don't do the movie. Don't do violence light. It's just wrong. Don't cut away too soon. Just let it sit in. I want people to feel it." To their credit, they allowed this film to be as truthful as it could.
CS: What was the most challenging in making this film?
Stallone: Well, we had a crew in "Rocky" of about 60 people. There was 570. That's how hard it was to move through the jungle and everything else. It was the hottest temperatures in 94 years. They called it the burning season. I even wrote lines in there about when they're going up the river and it's always hazy and foggy. That was the burning season. The entire country's burning to the ground. They can see it from satellites. They had to send in military. It was just out of control. It was just burning and burning and burning their land. Every time we cleared it, people were just getting sick. There are 165 different snakes in Thailand, 90 that were poisonous. So we lived with the constant problem of people being bit. Centipedes which are the size of your shoe being found in your shoes. It was a rough, rough... Julie Benz coming from "Dexter" went, "What?" Welcome to action films. But it was extremely difficult. You know what it reminded me of? I was watching the making of David Lean's film, "Bridge Over the River Kwai," how much you just had to truck and use brutal manpower and get inland. There's nothing glamorous about it. I'd watch these men shoulder these giant generators and cut trails with a cigarette in the mouth, no shoes. You could never have done it anywhere else on the planet. Believe me, when we were starting to get all the threats from the Burmese, I said, "Can't we shoot this in Puerto Vallarta?" I tried, you don't know. You don't know.
CS: Any more "Rocky" movies on the way?
Stallone: No. They talk about Son Of… But no. I got so lucky with the final image of "Rocky," the rack focus and the fade. I can't go any further. It was a miracle that it even got done. I'm just glad. That was my finest moment. I was so happy with it. I just wanted to end it on a certain note and was lucky to get that shot.
CS: Are people surprised by your artistic motivations because the characters are so physical?
Stallone: I don't know if that's quite apparent but I know what you mean. If there isn't some kind of thought behind it, because muscles are easy. Anybody can do muscles. You just go violence, violence, violence, violence, action, action, action. But if you can find those little moments in between that connect to the people that aren't so physical, that's what takes the time and that to me is the challenge and that's what I love about it. Anyway, thank you.
CS: You should do another little character like Shade?
Stallone: I enjoyed this even though I never saw it in this form.
CS: When did you ask Jackie Chan to do a "Rambo" movie?
Stallone: This was during "Demolition Man," so 1993. Now you've got Jason Statham, you lucky people.
CS: This is more than just an action film, I felt.
Stallone: Do you think it's kind of like the reincarnation of "The Wild Bunch?" Remember how everybody was going along and then all of a sudden you'd have these bloodbaths. It was that part of the movie that actually he didn't sell out. Remember in "Bonnie and Clyde," the whole thing, what was the most important thing in the movie? So I don't know, maybe I'm just on some kind of historical treadmill here.The offficial movie website: movies.break.com/rambo/Ken |
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Post by COWBOY on Jan 23, 2008 0:57:21 GMT -5
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BLAKE
Trail Guide
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Post by BLAKE on Jan 23, 2008 10:34:57 GMT -5
I think it is amazing to see Mr. Sly looking as he does as many of you have mentioned. If there is one thing to be said about this guy, it is discipline. That is why so many of his movies are inspirational in terms of working out and attempting the long shot. If you stick to it you can achive any goal. Thats the message I get from Stalone.
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Post by Ragingblues on Jun 3, 2008 12:11:26 GMT -5
Okay, our family budget doesn't allow for trips to the theater. In fact, the only movies we have seen in a theater over the past couple of years have been paid for with gift cards. My point? We just saw "Rambo" on DVD. This movie was made by independant movie studios, directed by Stallone, and then distributed through Lionsgate (the same thing he did with Rocky Balboa). The result was a very different look and feel from many Hollywood releases, which was huge bonus, IMO. I happened to enjoy it and was very glad to see things handled so differently from the way Hollywood mage studios like to churn out movies these days. Whether or not you like the character, the story, or the brutal action of it, you have to admit that this movie was very realistic looking. Who would have guessed that filming a movie actually on location instead of using sets and green screens, would make such a difference? Can you sense the sarcasm there? I sure hope so. Rambo was the type of movie I really wished KOTCS had been; A film that returned to the roots of the character, stayed true to the look and feel of the first film in many ways, used real locations for shooting, used local actors to legitimize the story, and even offered closure in a non totally non cliche' way. The fact that they did all this outside the bubble of Hollywood thinking makes it a huge plus. These types of movies should be a wake up call to the studios of old. Your formulas are getting too stale, and there are cheaper ways to get things done while breaking new ground. Three cheers for Stallone's hard work on "Rambo" (as well as the other folks). Judging by it's success and reception worldwide, it appears many people agree that real beats fluff. Oh yeah... a new Rambo movie is already in the works. Ken |
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Post by Desert Dweller on Jun 3, 2008 18:57:49 GMT -5
I loved this movie! I definitely agree about it showing what a film can do when its got limited hollywood influence. I thought that it was...hands down...the best Rambo movie ever!
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Post by Kaplan on Jun 3, 2008 20:13:30 GMT -5
I just saw Rambo the other day. I really liked it. It was short and sweet and Stallone didn't have too many lines, so it was better than I thought it would be. Plus, what other movie do you get to see so many people's limbs fly through the air? .....No other movie...that's right.
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Rock Ford
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Your a daisy if you do!
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Post by Rock Ford on Jun 3, 2008 20:32:00 GMT -5
My wife could not watch some of the stuff, but I though the movie rocked and agree it is the best Rambo movie ever. I don't really know how it only received a R rating with all the gore and killing of women and kids.
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Post by Desert Dweller on Jun 3, 2008 22:34:31 GMT -5
Stallone said in an interview that when the film was being put through the ratings process, that he emphasized to..whoever it was...that the carnage by the Junta towards women and children in the film was actually going on in Burma (Myanmar).
Recent events over there and the Junta's insolar attitude and lack of concern for the disaster victims in their country seem to support Stallone's arguement (imo). Disease and starvation are a reality and the Junta military regime has been quoted as saying that these are a self sufficient people who require no help from outsiders.
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