First Blood (1982) Orion/Action RT: 96 minutes Rated R (language, strong violence including torture, mature themes) Director: Ted Kotcheff Screenplay: Michael Kozoll, William Sackheim and Sylvester Stallone Music: Jerry Goldsmith Cinematography: Andrew Laszlo Release date: October 22, 1982 (US) Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Brian Dennehy, Bill McKinney, Jack Starrett, Michael Talbott, Chris Mulkey, David Caruso, John McLiam, Patrick Stack. Box Office: $47M (US)/$125M (World)
Rating: ****
You don’t push some people without getting pushed back. John Rambo, the stalwart anti-hero of First Blood, is one of those people. The former Green Beret and recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor doesn’t call anywhere home since returning from Vietnam. The news of the recent death of an old Army buddy leaves him distraught. He wanders into the Pacific Northwest town of Hope where he is immediately spotted by town sheriff Will Teasle (Dennehy, Best Seller) who doesn’t want drifters in his quiet, boring town. He makes it clear the ex-soldier’s kind isn’t wanted there. When Rambo ignores his warning, he’s arrested for vagrancy and carrying a concealed deadly weapon- i.e. his trademark knife.
Despite warning signs of PTSD (as it’s now known), Teasle’s deputies beat and brutalize Rambo causing him to flash back to when he was a POW. He finally snaps and beats the hell out of every cop in the building before escaping into the nearby woods where he has home court advantage. He’s been trained to survive in the harshest conditions. It’s second nature to him. Teasle sends his officers after Rambo only for the vet to neutralize each one with homemade booby traps before confronting the sheriff. Holding his knife to the lawman’s throat, he issues a warning: “Don’t push it or I’ll give you a war you won’t believe.”
With no other options, he calls in the National Guard to help flush out Rambo. It’s about that time when Rambo’s former CO Colonel Sam Trautman (Crenna, Wait Until Dark) shows up and expresses surprise that the man he trained “to kill, period” actually allowed any of Teasle’s men to live.
On the surface, First Blood is a straight-forward action flick about a loose cannon set off by small-minded small town cops. HOWEVER, there’s more to it than action and violence although there’s plenty of both. It also makes a statement about how America treated the soldiers who fought for their country in Vietnam. Unlike the vets of WWII (the big one), the soldiers returning from Vietnam didn’t get a ticker-tape parade. Instead, they got the royal BOHIC (Bend over, here it comes!) from the very country they fought for. They were spat upon by anti-war protestors. They were marginalized and ignored by the government and society. Many of them suffered serious psychological problems, but nobody cared. Rambo is one of many Vietnam vets who tried (unsuccessfully) to reintegrate into society, but the inhumane treatment he received at the POW camp left deep, unhealed psychological scars. Rambo is meant to be a symbol for the suffering of the Vietnam vets and how the war never really ended for them.
Directed by Aussie filmmaker Ted Kotcheff (Wake in Fright), First Blood is based on the 1972 novel by David Morrell. It’s very different from the movie according to what I read on Wikipedia. The character of Rambo was retooled for the 1982 movie. He became more of an action hero than a victim of an indifferent society. In that respect, Stallone does a great job in a role that involves very little dialogue until the end where he delivers a monologue about his post-war experiences. Although it’s hard to understand everything he’s saying, the viewer understands enough to sympathize with his character’s plight.
First Blood also features supporting performances from two of the most likable actors in the business, Richard Crenna and Brian Dennehy. The latter, in a rare bad guy role, makes a compelling antagonist. Small-minded and unjust, he can’t understand how things got so out of control. Crenna has a quietly commanding presence as the Army officer sent by the Pentagon to quell an already volatile situation. Starrett, looking much different than he did as town drunk Gabby Johnson in Blazing Saddles, is thoroughly hateful as Deputy Galt, the main aggressor at the station.
Now that I’ through with my psychological analysis of First Blood and how it tapped into the zeitgeist of a time when Vietnam was still a touchy subject, let’s focus on what really made an impression on me and other members of the moviegoing public. It’s 100% action from start to finish! The scene where he fights his way out of the police station has to be seen to be believed. I saw First Blood when it first came out. I was 14 and couldn’t believe my eyes. I’d never seen an action movie quite like that before. I was so impressed I talked my Uncle Jim, visiting from California, into seeing it with me the following weekend. I saw it a third time with my father and younger brother at a second-run $1 theater. I’ve watched it countless times since; it never gets boring. There are no significant female characters in First Blood unless you count the waitress who brings drinks to Teasle and Trautman in a local bar. It’s a guy’s movie all the way!
First Blood has the honor of being Stallone’s first successful non-Rocky movie. Who knew what Rambo would become? It’s an effective movie on a few levels. Not only does it speak for disenfranchised Vietnam vets, it’s also a slam-bang kick-ass actioner. You actually cheer on a guy who takes out almost an entire small town police force. It’s a GREAT, GREAT movie, one of my all-time favorites. It proves what they say about first impressions is true. John Rambo is THE MAN!
