Rambo (franchise)

"John Rambo" redirects here. For the 2008 film of the same name, see John Rambo (film).

For other uses, see the Sylvester Stallone character and films.

Rambo is a saga of popular action films starring Sylvester Stallone, based on the characters created by David Morrell in his novel First Blood. The films are: First Blood (1982), Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985), and Rambo III (1988). A fourth film, titled John Rambo, will be released on January 25th, 2008. The films focus on a troubled Vietnam War veteran, John James Rambo, who is greatly skilled in all aspects of survival and guerrilla warfare.

In popular culture, the name has become an eponym for a tactic of military aggression or, alternatively, a person demonstrating heroism through extreme violence, especially when outnumbered.

Character

The fictional character of Rambo (given the name John J. Rambo in the motion picture version of First Blood) was born on July 6 1947 in Bowie, Arizona of Native American and German descent. He joined the United States Army on August 6 1964, shortly after leaving high school. Rambo was deployed to South Vietnam in September 1966. He returned to the U.S. in 1967 and began training in the Special Forces (Green Berets) at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. In late 1969, Rambo was re-deployed to Vietnam. In November 1971, Rambo was captured by North Vietnamese forces near the Chinese-Vietnamese border. At the POW camp, Rambo was tortured along with other American POWs. Rambo escaped captivity in May 1972, but was then re-deployed. Rambo was discharged on September 17 1974. In his return to the U.S., Rambo discovered that many civilians hated returning soldiers from Vietnam. His experiences in Vietnam resulted in an extreme case of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

About eight years later, Rambo has difficulty adjusting to civilian life (presumably after losing his job managing motor vehicles) and wanders the country as a drifter. He eventually has a run in with the police in Hope, Washington.(in the novel, the town was located in rural Kentucky), which results in Rambo being the subject of a manhunt which culminates in the destruction of most the town's main street, and Rambo being taken into custody by his former special forces commander, Colonel Trautman. In the second installment of the series, Rambo is tasked by Col. Trautman to return in Vietnam to search for American POWs remaining in Vietnamese captivity. After another successful mission, Rambo goes to fight the Soviets in Afghanistan and rescue a captured Col. Trautman.

Animated series

• Rambo: The Force of Freedom

Video games

• Rambo - (NES)
• Rambo - (MSX)
• Rambo: First Blood Part II - (DOS)
• Rambo: First Blood Part II - (ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC)
• Rambo: First Blood Part II - (Master System)
• Rambo III - (Sega Genesis)
• Rambo III - (Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, DOS, MSX and ZX Spectrum)
• Rambo III - (Master System)
• Rambo III - (Arcade)
• Rambo On Fire - (Mobile phones)

Controversy

The Rambo movies are often praised for their themes of the individual's struggle to regain acceptance in society, and the ethical limit of retaliation against the unjust state; these themes are often obscured by the violence of the pictures, though they were all financially successful. The tone of the first film is also different from the other two pictures which are more violent in comparison. Rambo: First Blood Part II and Rambo III are the most frequent targets for criticism. According to the Guinness Book of Records, Rambo III even broke a record as the most violent film ever made with 221 acts of violence and over 108 deaths. Ironically, First Blood only had one confirmed death, and three possible deaths.

The films received further criticism when, in August 1987, Michael Ryan killed sixteen people and injured fifteen more before killing himself in Hungerford, Berkshire in what came to be known as the Hungerford massacre. Witnesses' claims that Ryan had been dressed like Rambo led to the British tabloid media stating that Ryan was mimicking scenes from the film First Blood. However, it was later discovered that he had never seen the film - which has been the case in many apparent copycat incidents.

Music

The original scores for all three films were composed and conducted by Jerry Goldsmith. The music from the second film was performed by the National Philharmonic Orchestra and the music from the third by the Hungarian State Opera Orchestra. Goldsmith's main theme for Rambo was the basis for the end title song "It's A Long Road," performed by Dan Hill, part of the "First Blood" soundtrack.

The music for the first film is harsher and more dissonant than that for the sequels, as is keeping with the tone of the film. As such, it bears more of a resemblance to Goldsmith's output of the 60s and 70s than it does most of his work in the 80s. The first film's score does use electronics but is primarily orchestral while the sequel scores incorporate heavier use of electronics. The second film's score is the most popular, being that it is the most exciting. The music in the third film is an extension of the style used in the second, but with a few new themes. Both sequels feature new themes for Rambo that are based on elements found in the original "It's a Long Road" theme, which is also heard in its original form in each film as well.

• Jerry Goldsmith on Rambo

Trivia

• Hoyt-Easton archery marketed a compound archery bow with the name Rambo in conjunction with the movie First Blood at the time of its release.
• Hot Shots! Part Deux parodies the Rambo movies, as does the movie UHF.
• John Rambo appears in the alternate history novel Back in the USSA training the communist soldiers of Vietnam.
• Coincidentally the Japanese word ranbō (written 乱暴) literally means violent; rough; reckless.
• In Japan, First Blood was released simply under the title Rambo. This was due to the later Japanese release date and introduction of the sequel, Rambo: First Blood Part II. Many films' releases in foreign markets receive similar name changes.
• The Arkansas Knifesmith, Jimmy Lile, created the knives that Rambo used in first two Rambo movies. Stallone specifically asked for a large knife with a hollow handle capable of storing a "survival kit". In reality, a full tang knife is more sturdy and practical. The knife used in Rambo III, created by Gil Hibben, is a full tang knife.
• On the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the name "Arthur John Rambo" is inscribed on a granite panel. David Morrell did not know of "John Rambo" when he wrote First Blood in the late 1970s. He claims to be inspired by the french poet Raimbaud.
• In the RTS video game Evil Genius the Super Agent Enemy Dirk Masters is a parody of John Rambo and wields two of Rambo's famous M60 machine guns
• According to the author of First Blood, David Morell, the name Rambo originates from the "Rambo Apple" [1], which is named after Peter Rambo who 1639 emigrated from Sweden to New Sweden. One of Peter Rambo's children was named John Rambo.[2].
• In the Metal Gear video game series, the protagonist Solid Snake very much resembles the character Rambo. Snake has long dark hair, wears a bandana, is usually sent into missions "naked" (without weaponry) for the sole purpose of recon and not engagement, but eventually ends up doing just that. In Metal Gear Solid, Snake is captured and tortured by electrocution in a predicament much like First Blood: Part 2. In Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, the protagonist, Solid Snake's genetic father, Naked Snake, may acquire an M60 similar to the one Rambo has at the end First Blood: Part 2. If the player holds the fire button long enough, Snake will let out Rambo's famous battle roar when he fires the M60 before his confrontation with Marshall Murdock. Solid Snake is also depicted as a retired war veteran brought back into service because of his great skill as a soldier. Also, like Rambo, Big Boss/Naked Snake was a Green Beret and Vietnam War veteran.
• In the Tiny Toon episode The Looney Beginning one of the versions of Buster Bunny resembles Rambo.
• Soldat has a game type called "Rambomatch" in which players can only score if they kill another player with a bow and arrow, a weapon that can fire 1-shot kill arrows or exploding arrows, and slowly heals wounds. There's only one bow, and other players try to kill the player with the bow so they can pick it up.
• In the movie Tango and Cash, also starring Stallone, a bystander compares Stallone's character to Rambo and Stallone's remark is, "Rambo is a pussy!" then he fires at the gasoline truck.
• In the PC video game rise of nations there is a character called the lone wolf, which is the code name Rambo uses.
• There is a Beavis & Butthead trading card called Rambutt which features Butthead dressed as Rambo.
• In the Frontline episode The Siege, the host Mike Moore refers to the circumstances at the besieged farmhouse as a "Rambo situation".
• One of the ill-fated soldiers in the 2007 version of The Hills Have Eyes II has the nick "Rambo Resurrected."
• In the PC game "Day Of Defeat: Source", a player who kills another with a machine gun while standing and away from cover is referred to as Rambo, and the kill is referred to as "a Rambo"
• In the film Lord of War, a minor character that asks the main character, Yuiry Orlov, a gun dealer, for "the gun of Rambo", referring to the M60.
• In the film The Boondock Saints, as the two brothers are gathering weapons, one comments to the other how it is not like a movie. His brother responds by looking at the large knife he has taken saying "is that right Rambo?"

Rambo's Military Decorations

•   Medal of Honor

•   Distinguished Service Cross

•   Silver Star with oak leaf cluster

•   Bronze Star with three oak leaf clusters and Valour device

•   Purple Heart with three oak leaf clusters

•   Prisoner of War Medal

• File:Vietnam Service Ribbon.gif  Vietnam Service Medal

• File:VietCamp.gif  Vietnam Campaign Medal

External links

• First Blood at IMDb
• Rambo: First Blood Part II at IMDb
• Rambo III at IMDb
• John Rambo at IMDb
• John Rambo Polish Site
• John Rambo Blog
• John Rambo Video
• All Rambo movie trailers
• The Rambo Knives
• {fr} John RAMBO sur le site Stallone.biz

See also

• The Intruder (1986 film), An Indonesian film based on Rambo.