What a strange, strange franchise the Rambo series is. It isn’t just the bizarre titling that makes them stand out amongst other 80s born action series, but the thematic and political evolution of the films and their central character. Going from the empathetic survival thriller centered on the experience of disenfranchised Vietnam vets in First Blood to the jingoistic glorification of Reagan ideology in Rambo III. Calling any of these sequels good is arguably a stretch, but I always found plenty to enjoy, both as essentials in 80s action cinema and as time capsules that reflected the political shifts of the era they came from.
For the longest time, it seemed like 2008’s Rambo would be the final time we saw the character, and it was a damn good one. But it seemed like Stallone had other things in mind, which leads us to Rambo: Last Blood. Taking place eleven years after the events of the last film, we follow John Rambo (Sylvester Stallone) living a peaceful life on his ranch, managing the horses with his friend, Maria (Adriana Barraza), and her granddaughter, Gabrielle (Yvette Monreal). Of course, things go south, quite literally, as Gabrielle goes to Mexico to find her estranged father, but ends up captured by the cartel. John now has to make his way down, and try to get her back. Bloodbath ensues.
Right off the bat, the film presents a worldview that is likely to make many people uncomfortable because of how much it might connect with a lot of modern right wing rhetoric, especially in terms of our relations with Mexico. It’s not all that surprising, given the series as a whole has had a conservative bent in both subtle and not-so-subtle ways from the get-go. It is still troubling, nevertheless, to see Mexico shot to look like some third world wasteland, and offer nothing to counter the image that I’m sure many border wall supporters see in their head. It doesn’t help that the only on screen Mexican characters who aren’t a part of the cartel are three female characters, one who is killed, one who gets nothing to do, and one who is there simply to move the plot forward in two scenes.
Like I said, it’s not that surprising to see these elements at play here, in fact I’d be more shocked if it wasn’t. But I suppose it at least stays true to the franchise’s ability to reflect the current political zeitgeist, as ugly as that can be. And as upsetting as that is, what ultimately sinks the film has little to do with its politics, and more to do with its underwhelming screenplay, penned by Stallone and Matt Cirulnick. Keeping things at a mere 89 minutes, the film pays out like it originated as some kind of direct-to-video Taken knockoff. The plotting is incredibly simplistic, and is really lacking in the pathos that I feel could be found even in the lesser Rambo sequels. The film is stripped down to its bare bones, and John’s characterization feels like a pale imitation of what he was before. Perhaps not to the degree of other action heroes changing for the worse like the difference between John McClane in Die Hard versus John McClane in A Good Day To Die Hard, but this is the first time that John Rambo as a character leaves little impression.
That said, if you look at the film squarely as an action movie, Last Blood is actually pretty good. It’s helmed strongly by Adrian Grunberg, who is best known for his 2012 Mel Gibson starring actioner, Get The Gringo (a solid movie, if you can stomach seeing Gibson). The action is more sparse than before, taking things a bit slow before its final payoff, but when it happens, the suspense is well handled, the sound design hits like a sledgehammer, and the makeup and gore effects are stellar. Speaking of which, most of the action occurs in the climactic showdown, where John has his ranch rigged Home Alone style with deadly traps that rips people to shreds, figuratively and literally. It’s a legitimately exhilarating sequence, with an inspiringly grotesque showcase of brutality. It’s almost delightful enough to temper the fact that we’re basically watching a right wing fantasy hero slaughter a gang of brown guys.
So, I’m ultimately a bit mixed on Rambo: Last Blood. I can handle troubling politics, but when the storytelling itself leaves a lot to be desired, there’s not a lot to defend aside from some bloody spectacle. When the end credits popped up, I was genuinely caught off guard, thinking, “wait…that’s it?” The film seems to be constructed as the conclusion to the John Rambo character, but there doesn’t seem to be any more growth or change or development of any kind, which is why the 2008 Rambo is still a better sendoff. It’s disappointing because I do think Stallone typically has better instincts as a writer, and he is usually protective of his legacy characters, so it’s odd to see him not push himself into different territory. But who knows, maybe we’ll see him again in a few years in Rambo: Last Blood Part II or something. Maybe Stallone doesn’t have any intention of retiring the character after all, perhaps it’s even necessary to have our cultural ugliness reflected back at us from time to time.