Rambo (2008)
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A weary war veteran is forced to lead a group of mercenaries into a dangerous conflict in Burma to rescue kidnapped missionaries.
The story
Twenty years after leaving Afghanistan, Vietnam War veteran John Rambo lives in Thailand as a snake catcher and ferryman. He is approached by a group of missionary doctors from Colorado who need to be transported across the Salween River into Burma to provide medical aid to a village inhabited by the Karen people. Although Rambo initially refuses to take them, he is eventually convinced by one of the doctors. During the journey, they face immediate danger from pirates. Later, Rambo is hired by a group of mercenaries to rescue the missionaries after they are captured by a ruthless local military force during a period of intense political unrest.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Set during the Saffron Revolution in Burma, Rambo is hired to transport a group of missionaries across the Salween River. After a pirate encounter, the missionaries reach their destination but are captured by the forces of Major Pa Tee Tint. Rambo is subsequently hired by a group of mercenaries to rescue them. The two groups eventually converge at the village. Rambo joins the mercenaries to fight against Tint's soldiers. After a series of intense battles involving explosives and heavy weaponry, the mercenaries and local Karen rebels successfully overwhelm the Burmese forces. Rambo personally defeats and disembowels Major Pa Tee Tint. In the aftermath, Rambo returns to the United States to visit his father in Arizona.
- First release year
- 2008
- Runtime (minutes)
- 91
- Original languages
- English; Burmese; Thai
- Directors
- Sylvester Stallone
- Writers
- Art Monterastelli · writer; Sylvester Stallone · writer
- Cast and characters
- Sylvester Stallone · John Rambo; Julie Benz; Paul Schulze; Matthew Marsden; Graham McTavish; Rey Gallegos; Tim Kang; Jake La Botz; Maung Maung Khin; Ken Howard
- Genres
- war; action; splatter
- Themes
- war; survival; redemption
- Setting
- Burma (Myanmar) and Thailand during the Saffron Revolution.
- Premise and plot tags
- war; action; mercenaries; rescue mission
- Source material / true-story basis
- Rambo series based on the character created by author David Morrell.
- Franchise connections
- Rambo
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews from critics, with praise for Stallone's performance and the action, but criticism for its plot and extreme violence. It was a modest commercial success.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 46 · scale: 100 · review count: 26
- Production trivia
- The film was banned by the Burmese government.; Stallone's character, Rambo, was inspired by the character created by David Morrell.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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