It’s certainly a good year for big action sequels (or is that every year these days?). There’s the recent release of John Wick: Chapter 3, The Governator returning in Terminator: Dark Fate on November 1st and, despite a long production period and rumors that Rambo would be recast, none other than Sylvester Stallone is back and bringing another installment to the Rambo franchise.
For those unfamiliar with the franchise (or at least in need of a refresh), John Rambo is a veteran of the controversial Vietnam War who returned to America with a Congressional Medal of Honor and the disdain of the American people. In Rambo: First Blood, after an encounter with a small town sheriff and his deputies, his PTSD is triggered and he loses control, fleeing to the mountains and taking out anyone who tries to stop him.
This classic action film spawned three sequels, all featuring Rambo kicking ass in increasingly unlikely situations as he fights to free POWs, missionaries, and anyone else who might need saving. The trailer for the fifth installment, Rambo: Last Blood, dropped this week, so let’s see what Rambo is going to face next.
The trailer starts slow, showing an idyllic farmhouse and what seems to be a relaxed, retired, John Rambo.
A mellow version of Lil NasX’s rap/country single “Old Town Road” plays over the trailer. Yee-haw.
It seems like this film had a rocky time getting off the ground. In 2010, Stallone said that he was done with the character of Rambo. As recently as 2016, there were announcements that Stallone would not return to the franchise, or that the fifth film was not going to be made at all. There were discussions of recasting or rebooting the franchise without Stallone, but eventually, he seems to have decided to return.
Stallone provides the only dialogue in the trailer. He opens on a grim note: “I’ve lived in a world of death. I’ve watched people I’ve loved die. Some fast, with a bullet. Some not enough left to bury.”
Rambo takes a sunset stroll to what looks like a recently dug grave.
It seems that Rambo may have finally settled into retirement. Despite his extensive collection of firepower, his iconic machete is hung up on the wall in a place of honor.
Related Topics: Adrian Grunberg, David Morrell, Rambo, Rambo: Last Blood, Shot by Shot, Sylvester Stallone, Trailers
