Rambo (Rambo IV) (2008)
Average Rating: 4.8/10
Reviews Counted: 142
Fresh: 53 | Rotten: 89
Sylvester Stallone knows how to stage action sequences, but the movie's uneven pacing and excessive violence (even for the franchise) is more nauseating than entertaining.
Average Rating: 4.1/10
Critic Reviews: 30
Fresh: 8 | Rotten: 22
Sylvester Stallone knows how to stage action sequences, but the movie's uneven pacing and excessive violence (even for the franchise) is more nauseating than entertaining.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.4/5
User Ratings: 383,329
Movie Info
When a group of missionary aid workers in Myanmar disappear into the vast green inferno, vigilante Vietnam War veteran John Rambo (Sylvester Stallone) leaves his job as a Salween River boatman behind to accompany a group of mercenaries on a daring rescue mission. It's been 20 years since Rambo helped mujahedeen rebels fend off Soviet invaders in Afghanistan, and these days the former soldier lives a simple life in northern Thailand. Meanwhile, the world's longest-running civil war rages into its
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Cast
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Sylvester Stallone
John Rambo -
Julie Benz
Sarah -
Paul Schulze
Burnett -
Matthew Marsden
School Boy -
Graham McTavish
Lewis -
Tim Kang
En-Joo -
Rey Gallegos
Diaz -
Jake LaBotz
Reese -
Maung Maung Khim
Tint -
Ken Howard
Arthur Marsh -
Cameron Pearson
Missionary #4 (Jeff) -
Thomas Peterson
Missionary #2 (Dentist) -
Tony Skarberg
Missionary #3 (Videogra... -
James Wearing Smith
Missionary #5 (Preacher... -
Kasikorn Niyompattana
Snake Hunter #2 -
Shaliew Bamrungbun
Snake Hunter #1 -
Suparkorn Kijsuwan
Myint -
Aung Aay Noi
Lt. Aye -
Aung Theng
Pirate Leader -
Pornpop Kampusiri
Snake Village Owner -
Wasawat Panyarat
Snake Village MC -
Kammul Kawtep
Snake Village Young Cha... -
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Noa Jei
karen Interpreter -
Kjam Saen
Karen Interpreter #2 -
Aun Lung Su
Burmese Hut Guard #1 -
Pan Dokngam
Burmese Hut Guard #2 -
Han Pik
Burmese Hut Guard #3 -
Tip Tiya
Burmese Gate Guard #2 -
Nee Lungjai
Burmese Gate Guard -
Yupin Mu Pae
Karen Begging Mother -
Moan Adisak
Burmese Morning Guard #... -
Somsak Wongsa
Burmese Dancer Trooper ... -
Surachai Muangdee
Burmese Dancer Trooper ... -
Mana Sen-Mi
Burmese Patrol Boat Cap... -
Toole Khan Kham
Burmese Sergeant -
Saiwan Lungta
Burmese Trooper - Lt. A... -
Watcharentr Sedtho
Burmese Young Boy -
Rapimpa Dibu
Karen Young Naked Girl -
May Kung
Pirate Bar Hooker #1 -
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Rambo (Rambo IV) Trailer & Photos
All Critics (143) | Top Critics (30) | Fresh (53) | Rotten (89) | DVD (10)
The orgy of violence, as ghastly as in any video game, should go a long way toward erasing whatever goodwill Stallone earned with his sentimental Rocky Balboa.
Top Critic90 minutes of violence. No more, no less.
As the current obsession with Reagan suggests, it's back to fantasyland!
Well-shot and well-edited violence porn.
No longer is Rambo killing for a cause, but for kicks. And his portentous blather, even by Rambo standards, becomes unintentionally hilarious.
"So they send in the devil to do God's work," says a hulking Australian mercenary, part of the rescue attempt. "It's ironic, isn't it?" Highly ironic. The implications of that irony are not explored in the movie.
Stallone uses his iconic character here to explore the necessary evils of violence through a brutal pop lens.
Sly may be a crass tyrannosaurus, but he's not a fake
Light on plot, heavy on violence - Rambo isn't for everyone, however I think it perfectly appeals to the video game crowd.
Do you want disembowelment and decapitation with your popcorn? Is gore glorious? Is brutality orgasmic? Is spurting blood the fountain of fun? If so, Rambo is 4 U.
Straightforward wish fulfillment -- imagine what crimes against humanity we could punish if we had real, indestructible Rambos.
It's not the perfect Rambo film I was hoping for, but it was a pretty entertaining one.
Now we are no longer observing the icon... we are the icon.
I know my credibility could take a hit here, but I am man enough to admit that I enjoyed watching Rambo once again don his famous headband and shoot enemies with his trusty bow and arrow.
(Rambo) really only has 3-4 minutes of redeeming entertainment.
Suspiciously wrinkle-resistant Stallone in comeback, a Rambo in serious need of anger management and not too shy to get into a little ripping out of throats with bare hands and selective disemboweling too.
The film does for the Myanmar genocide what I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry did for same-sex marriage...
Luckily, Rambo's years away from war haven't dulled his ability to rip out a man's throat with his bare hands.
'Rambo' is pure adrenaline, a frenzied rush into the heart of a jungle where the prevailing darkness is far more horrific than anything Kurtz could have imagined.
However you parse the character's evolution, Rambo the film shows a peculiar understanding of changes in the industry.
Quando comemorei o retorno de Stallone à boa forma artística, não imaginei que empregaria sua recém-reconquistada influência para realizar algo tão abominável quanto este Rambo IV.
While Rambo is certainly not for everyone, it succeeds at being exactly what it sets out to be %u2014 a nostalgic, actionpacked, gore-splattered ode to the antihero of a bygone era.
I love Stallone, but this isn't any fun. I'm also concerned because he's starting to look like the Cloverfield monster. No more HGH!
The hero's iconic inertia is photographed against molten skies or Judgment Day sunsets, providing moments of mythic repose between the pell-mell battle scenes.
Makes First Blood look like Bambi.
Audience Reviews for Rambo (Rambo IV)
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
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- Lewis: Look at this fucking place. Only a fucking ape would live here. What the fuck am I doing here?
- En-Joo: Hey, knock that shit off.
- Reese: And you don't like the arts.
- Diaz: And you don't like shit.
- En-Joo: I like your sister, Diaz.
- Diaz: Yeah, she got a thing for retards.
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- John Rambo: Fuck the world.
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- John Rambo: You know what you are. What you're made of. War is in your blood. Don't fight it. You didn't kill for your country. You killed for yourself. The gods are never gonna make that go away. When you're pushed, killing's as easy as breathing.
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- Snake Village Owner: We need another python. See what you can do. We have enough Cobras, okay?
- John Rambo: Fuck off, okay?
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- John Rambo: Any of you boys want to shoot, now's the time. There isn't one of us that doesn't want to be someplace else. But this is what we do, who we are. Live for nothing, or die for something. Your call.
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- John Rambo: Are you bringing any weapons?
- Burnett: No, of course not.
- John Rambo: Then you're not changing anything.
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September 8, 2009:
Stallone Releases Synopsis, First Poster for Rambo 5You heard that the fifth "Rambo" was going to pit the titular hero against a drug-dealing slave...
August 31, 2009:
Fifth Rambo Gets a Green LightSylvester Stallone will "fight his way through human traffickers and drug lords to rescue a young...
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Movie: ID: 770670295 Title: Rambo (Rambo IV) Release Date: 2008-01-25 00:00:00.0 MPAA: 4 Status: 1
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Foreign Titles
- Rambo (DE)
- Rambo (UK)
This is a more mature Rambo. Not having any of the cheesiness of parts 2 and 3 really helps. Like Rocky Balboa, this film strives for a tone closer to the first film. In the case of this film though, it's not nearly as close as Rocky Balboa is. It's close though. I feel that this film is too short, but I don't really know what to add except for some more character development. The acting is decent (for what a film like this needs), but could have been better. It's clear Stallone wanted a Rambo more appropriate for his age, time, and to best fit the way the world is now, and he succeeded. Overall, this is a decently satisfying experience, despite its flaws- like being a bit predictable here and there.
He's spent years trying to achieve peace and put his past to rest, but Rambo still can't quite let go. He's gotten amazingly close, but finds himself forced to unearth his long buried but lethal set of skills in order to rescue a group of missionaries being held captive by the ruthless Burmese army and their vicious leader. Ordinarily Rambo wouldn't care, but he's regained some of his humanity and conscience, and I liked how the film handled the characters return to his old ways, but did so in a way that felt realistic and grounded.
This film probably has the most overt political and social message about it, and I liked it, although it can be hard to defend or justify the means used to solve problems. I mean, it's 91 minutes long, and there's a body count of about 236, so that's roughly over 2.5 kills every 60 seconds! Wow! And this is definitely the most visceral and brutal of the series too, as you see (in detail) bodies get blown to bits or shredded by gunfire instead of just falling down or going up in a puff of smoke. Like I said though, there is a purpose behind it.
The film is chock full of action, but there's a lot of down time as well, most of it well spent. When things get cooking though, this is definitely one of the most impressive and jaw dropping carnage fests ever, and it helps that the film actually tries to make it legitimately impactful.
All in all, a very satisfying, though still flawed film. What it lacks in overall emotional heft it more than makes up for viscerally. Plus, it's just nice seeing the character again, and the direction they they took him in. Having Goldsmith's old score get reincorporated was a wonderful nostalgic and masterful touch as well.