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Moriarty’s DVD Shelf! RAMBO III Vs. THE ENFORCER! Sly Vs. Clint Round Three!

Published at:  Jun 26, 2008 2:13:29 AM CDT

Hey, everyone. “Moriarty” here.

Time for another installment in my cross-franchise comparison between Stallone’s manliest series and Eastwood’s only real franchise. It’s been a few days since the last one of these went up, but I’ve been watching the movies as double-features, and really enjoying my reintroduction to each of them. This was the double-feature I was looking forward to the least out of the entire series, and the two films out of the series that I have seen the fewest times, but once I finally sat through them both again, I was interested to see what they each do with their central characters.








First thought on THE ENFORCER: great ass. Way to rock those Daisy Dukes, Jocelyn Jones.

Between this movie and THE GREAT TEXAS DYNAMITE CHASE, I’m guessing she sold a whoooole lotta denim back in the ‘70s. These days, anyone can buy hot. ‘70s hot, though... that’s real hot. In general, it’s a promising opening scene. Scorpio was a great villain in the first one, and the guy in the opening sequence here looks like a good psycho at first. By this point, the DIRTY HARRY films were just bigger-budget TV episodes, and as long as that’s all you expect of it, it’s solid stuff.

One of the reasons this one isn’t a total washout is because of the dialogue. They turned up the funny for Dirty Harry in this one, and as a result, it might be the most quotable of the films overall, even if things like “Make my day” and “Do you feel lucky, punk?” are better known as individual lines. Like I love it when Harry’s boss busts him down to personnel, and Harry stares at him like he’s insane.

“Personnel? That’s for assholes.”

“I was in personnel. For ten years.”

“... yeah, well...”

This is the moment where Harry’s anti-authoritarian streak really turned into a sitcom joke, and as a result, this film stands alone in the series. It’s nothing like either MAGNUM FORCE or SUDDEN IMPACT in tone. This is the most deliberately fun, and the bad guys aren’t that bad, all things considered.

In fact, it’s hard to figure out what their overall plan is. They’re radical militants, but they don’t really have any philosophy they state or any specific mission. Instead, they’re mainly just trying to steal weapons and cause some chaos. The warehouse robbery where they steal a bunch of weaponry is one of the film’s best sequences. One thing that helps is Jim Fargo, the film’s director, has a decent eye for scope, so he manages to use it better than Ted Post, who damn near kills MAGNUM FORCE with his indifferent visual style. Fargo was a second-unit director who had worked with Eastwood repeatedly on films like OUTLAW JOSEY WALES and EIGER SANCTION and HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER and BREEZY, and THE ENFORCER was his debut as director. He also made EVERY WHICH WAY BUT LOOSE with Eastwood, and it’s obvious that he likes to play up the looser comedic side of Eastwood’s persona. The entire premise of the film, written by Stirling Silliphant and Dean Reisner, is one designed to milk laughs from the character’s mounting frustration. And what’s he frustrated about the most in this film?

In order to answer that, let me pose another question: was there a time when Tyne Daley was actually considered hot?

Because of the whole “wimmen folks can’t be cops” storyline that is the backbone of this film, this one’s more dated than the first two films. You do have to respect a line like “If she wants to play lumberjack, she’s gonna have to learn to handle her end of the log,” but overall, I’m amazed that the ‘70s were still wrestling with this as a dramatic issue. I guess I forget sometimes how radically ideas on gender roles have shifted even over the course of my lifetime. Daley’s fine in her role, but it’s one joke over and over. She gets the job to fill a quota, and repeatedly, Harry has to help her keep up. One of my favorite scenes is when Harry goes to question a black militant leader to try and get a lead, and they have to wade through the guy’s followers first. When the guy agrees to only talk to Harry, he leaves Tyne Daley to fend for herself with a wry “That’s mighty white of you” as he walks away.

By the second half of the film, the one-liners are coming fast and furious, like when Harry’s captain demands that he turn in his badge.

“Here’s a seven-point suppository, Captain,” he snarls as he hands the badge over.

“What did you say?”

“I said stick it in your ass.”

The transfer’s gorgeous, a lovely reproduction of the actual look of film, and not one of these transfers where they’ve pushed it too far to look more digital than anything. That’s a problem we’re starting to see more and more, and I think it’s going to be the defining issue of this first generation of high-def titles.

It’s kind of a crummy ending, all things considered, a fizzle when the film needs to build to something genuinely thrilling. It does raise the question, though: is Clint Eastwood is the only person to ever break out of Alcatraz in one film and into Alcatraz in another?

I’ll leave you with my favorite line from the film, and one I look forward to incorporating into a conversation the first time it’s appropriate:

“Can I make a statement, McKay?”

“Go ahead.”

“Your mouthwash ain’t makin’ it.”








I find myself wrestling with contradictory thoughts at the start of RAMBO III. Yes, there’s Kurtwood Smith, so you have to hope you’re going to get some prime douchebag, but at the same time, check out Rambo’s hair. That’s about as sure a sign as you could ask for that the film’s going to be crippled by ‘80s excess. In the meantime, can someone do me a favor and edit RAMBO III and CHARLIE WILSON’S WAR together into one big pile of politically naïve bullshit? In the last article in this series, I talked about how perfect a reason FIRST BLOOD 2 has for existing. It answers a deep need in the character, something the first film couldn’t do by design. Even if you don’t like the second film, you have to admit... it’s completely justified. The notion of going back to win Vietnam, even if it’s just a small-scale symbolic win, was enormously potent when that film was made.

Obviously Stallone wanted to make something else with that same sort of relevance to the moment. The problem is that this film ties itself in knots trying to justify sending Rambo back into an active war zone, but it’s all just silly blah blah blah, lots of textbook “characterization” for people who die six minutes later. There’s a lot of talk about how Afghanistan is “Russia’s Vietnam,” and the most interesting thing about the film is how palpable the desperation is. “SEE?! SEE?! THEY HAD A VIETNAM, TOO! IT’S NOT JUST US!” They hammer the message so hard that it’s almost like a paid ad by the Reagan administration.

And, yes, it’s pretty hard to avoid the inherent humor in watching Rambo basically arm and train the Taliban. Thanks, douche. Way to go.

The film’s only 1:41, but it crawls like four hours go by. I was restless by the halfway point, and the film never seems to get moving at all. The action sequences aren’t badly staged... Peter MacDonald is still a pretty major second-unit guy on films like the BOURNE series and several of the HARRY POTTER films. He’s been in the business since the ‘50s, and he did some of everything over the years. I don’t think he ever demonstrated a knack as a director, though, and the awkward overall construction of every single dramatic beat is a testament to just how badly he bungled things.

It’s really no contest here, since RAMBO III is nearly impossible to sit through, but just to make it official...

DECISION: THE ENFORCER

Now let’s see if I can finish my looks at the new films from Werner Herzog, Peter Berg, and Timur Bekmambetov before I have to leave to catch my flight...





Drew McWeeny, Los Angeles



    + Expand All

    Readers Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:12:42 AM CDT

    first

    by bunkyboo

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:12:47 AM CDT

    FIRST!?!?

    by deweyoxburger

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:12:55 AM CDT

    second

    by bunkyboo

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:12:56 AM CDT

    second

    by bunkyboo

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:13:01 AM CDT

    FUCK!

    by deweyoxburger

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:16:31 AM CDT

    Damn You MCMLXXVI

    by theycallmemisterbay

    Damn You MCMLXXVI

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:16:51 AM CDT

    by all acounts...

    by blckmgk13

    ...you both are idiots regardless of being first or second.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:22:14 AM CDT

    blckmgk13

    by stevie grant

    Some friendly advice: this is AICN's, you don't make friends here by bringing up reality.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:26:47 AM CDT

    No mention of Trautman or Goldsmith's score?

    by iamjack'suserid

    Two of the best, most redeeming aspects to Rambo III and not even mentioned? I don't like the film either, but Trautman's humanity and Goldsmith's exciting and memorable music make it at least watchable.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:34:17 AM CDT

    RAMBO III fucking rocks!!!

    by motoko kusanagi

    And Michael Bay is fucking awesome!!!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:35:01 AM CDT

    What are we going to do now John?

    by kwisatzhaderach

    Fuck 'em.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:35:54 AM CDT

    IAmJack'sUserID

    by kwisatzhaderach

    Yup, the Goldsmith score is absolutely incredible.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:54:45 AM CDT

    Fuck, Rambo III shits all over that piece of crap

    by nomoredirtyjokespleaseweareyanks

    I was with you till now dude. First blood is weaker than Dirty Harry, Rambo 2 deserved the next win but come on man.... I fuckin LOVE Rambo helping the Taliban. Oh wait, I guess that didn't actually have basis in fact. Rambo wasn't the asshole, the U.S government was...... again.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 3:02:03 AM CDT

    watch zach talk to someone not from aicn about watchmen

    by bacci40

    http://tinyurl.com/5hfs8j...and check out his piece of ass wife

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 3:02:09 AM CDT

    Who is this Goldsmith?

    by therealkumar

    Is he related to Michael Giacchino?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 3:52:42 AM CDT

    Not all Mujadin became Taliban...

    by tarl_cabot

    The Northern alliance, a resistance group of Muslim afghans, hated the totalitarian rule of the Taliban and helped the CIA and Special Forces wipe out the Taliban regime. James Bond(Timothy Dalton) is also off the hook. ;)

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 3:56:13 AM CDT

    I meant Mujahadin...

    by tarl_cabot

    You get the idea. Rambo III is pretty lame but like Rocky V it gives The follow up that much more credit. Rambo is exactly what Sly needed to redeem the cheese of III. Rambo III was all about Sly's gay huge body while Rambo didn't take off his shirt and proudly carried 215 pounds of aging menace.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 4:05:05 AM CDT

    read more than a headline idiot!

    by hairy's fat ass

    Ok first off rambo3 is ok. but the taliban where a movement from namely a town called kandahar. not all fighters that fought the USSR were even from the same tribe or the same belief.

    Second the northen alliance were not taliban they were just as much and even more so involved in making the russians suffer. their leader was known as the lion of panshear and he fucking hated and fought against the taliban. in fact he was killed by al quadia the morning of sept 11.

    do some homework you retards and stop reading the first line of the story!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 4:12:01 AM CDT

    btw

    by hairy's fat ass

    I love how uninformed gas bags like to say bin ladin was funded by the cia. the afgans were against the ussr but he funded himslef with his own millions.

    Even though he was fighting for and with afgans against a coomon enemt they really didnt trust him. different culture and langage. the afgans dont trust any outsiders even if same cause and religion. not so cut and dry.

    read books and not web movie websites to form real opinions.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 4:13:38 AM CDT

    Rambo 3 was good in its own right!

    by dogmatic

    Better than most drivel that passes for action movie these days....and it gave him a nice change of scenery putting him in the desert. The cave action scene was great and who didn't love the stick fight at the beginning?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 4:17:52 AM CDT

    Ehhh... healing the wound in Rambo III

    by kirbymanly

    is about all it has going for it. I was a HUGE Rambo fan back then and thought it was junk on its initial run. Rambo III is the Indy IV of its day

    Reply to Talkback

  • appreciate your help, you can pack your shit and split now, it's not like we need some help to form a country after the anarchy vacuum that's happening right now for any terrorist organizations. nope no sirrey !

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 5:49:49 AM CDT

    Here fishy fishy, afish afish afish ahooo

    by nomoredirtyjokespleaseweareyanks

    wher o' where did my little fish gooooo?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 6:50:09 AM CDT

    Just don't start comparing their directorial output...

    by tonagan

    "Next week - Unforgiven Vs. Staying Alive!"

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 7:17:55 AM CDT

    Rambo 3 rules!

    by judge dredds fresh undies

    Its total macho bullshit for its entire runtime, its hilarious and I love it!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 7:29:42 AM CDT

    How are you John?

    by abominable snowcone

    Well done.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 7:30:08 AM CDT

    Remember, you taught us to ignore pain?

    by abominable snowcone

    Is it working?
    Neh.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 7:35:18 AM CDT

    That's it! You're off the case!

    by rev_skarekroe

    You're off YOUR case, chief!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 7:42:40 AM CDT

    Hey, we didn't know the Taliban were going to be assholes.

    by rev_skarekroe

    We were trying to stop the Soviets. I can dig that. Turns out the guys we were helping are a bunch of ingrates. We send you Rambo and you repay us by flying planes into our buildings? You guys suck.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 7:52:55 AM CDT

    Death Wish 3 is a better number 3 than these two

    by spandau belly

    And I have no idea how somebody can write about Rambo 3 without mentioning the stickfight.Come to think of it, a Death Wish movie needed a stickfight. So does every other movie.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 8:09:50 AM CDT

    Rambo 3 is the lighter Rambo

    by i dunno

    He cracks jokes, he doesn't give speeches, he plays football (sheep ball) and befriends a kid. He's actually happy through the whole film, content in working at some monestary or some shit. Oh, and his knife SUCKED. It wasn't even a survival knife. If he needed a compass he would have been fucked.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 8:10:50 AM CDT

    Trautman was a dick in Part 3

    by neal2zod

    Seriously, watch it again - it makes NO sense how he bullies Rambo into fighting again at the beginning. You need to go BACK to war to come 'full circle'? After all Rambo went through in Part 1 and 2?? Who wrote this shit? And the stickfight shouldn't be mentioned because it sucked. I liked it as a kid too, but it's just poorly shot and choreographed. Now Out for Justice, that's a stickfight.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 8:12:38 AM CDT

    Rambo 3 is a hell of a lot of fun...

    by sledge hammer

    ...Yes, it's lighter in tone, yes the bad guy is basically just a rip off of Steven Berkoff's baddie from Rambo First Blood Part 2, and yes, it's easily the weakest in the series, but damn if it isn't a hell of a lot of fun all the same. Basically it's a Rambo and Trautman buddy movie, and as a continuation of the Rambo character from the last two films it still feels like it fits into the tapestry of the series pretty effortlessly to me. It's not remarkable or anything, but it's a good, solid, enjoyable flick all the same, and as such I've never understood the rampant Rambo 3 hatred, and I guess I never will.Then again what do I know, I love all the Dirty Harry movies too, to varying degrees. Give me characters like Dirty Harry and John Rambo over todays action films and characters any day.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 8:15:46 AM CDT

    ...and Rambo wasn't helping the Taliban

    by i dunno

    For one thing, the "Taliban" is a made up entity so that the fear mongers in our gov't have a name for the boogie men out to get us. Almost everyone involved in 9/11 were from Saudi Arabia, the leader of which Bush has been photographed making out with on several occasions. Literally. Rambo was just trying to save Trautman, he didn't give a shit who he had to help or kill.Alliances and enemies change faster than club names on Sunset Blvd. Saddam Husein was our best friend at one point. Do a GIS for pics of him and Rumsfeld.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 8:45:09 AM CDT

    Dirty Harry would have killed the entire country without

    by pumpymcass

    breaking a sweat. Seriously nerds, who cares? The point is that Rambo sucks and Callahan rules. Everything else is moot. I'm not even going to get remotely political, here. Now if only someone could bring up Spike Lee, then we could really watch tempers flare. Pathetic.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 8:49:39 AM CDT

    Redbelt 2 needs to have stickfighting

    by spandau belly

    I'd like David Mamet to take Mike 'Redbelt' Terry to the jungles of Brazil and have him do some stickfighting. Possibly against William H. Macy.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 8:50:09 AM CDT

    Rambo arming the Taleban - :rolleyes:

    by cactusmaac

    I'm annoyed by how frequently this comment gets made. The Taleban were formed in the mid-90s and were armed by the Saudi Arabians (who liked their religous views) and by Pakistan (who needed a proxy they could rely on in their strategic backyard).

    They spent the 90s fighting the various Mujahideen factions who had previously been aided by the US government until the Russians pulled out. The fall of Kabul was a big story back then.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 9:01:52 AM CDT

    Rambo III is slightly underrated

    by nasty in the pasty

    Then again, I think First Blood is the worst of the bunch, so take that with a grain of salt...

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 10:01:50 AM CDT

    It all reaches its zenith in "The Dead Pool"

    by shallowgrave

    Harry: "You forgot your fortune cookie! It says, ... 'You're shit out of luck.'" Ka-Blow!

    Reply to Talkback

  • The opening stick fight scene sets the tone of this bad ass action extravaganza...then on to his mission. People often call this film hollow, but it has alot of good themes to it (ie)Rambo going in to not only help his only friend, but to help a people (who needed help at the time). As for the action scenes...they are OVER-THE-TOP and KICK MAJOR ASS...that raid on the camp, or when Rambo goes back to get Trautman, or when Rambo is on the rope of flames, or the cave sequence and finally the end battle. The film might have been excess, but STALLONE delivered on that excess.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 10:18:00 AM CDT

    WeinerPenis you are racist like hitler

    by g-ride9000

    and your opinions about the value of a foreigners life,,well i'm disgusted. I hope you wake up from your dismal fake ass life. I hope you are reincarnated as a innocent Iraqi child who is killed by some hick trying to "free them"

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 10:31:01 AM CDT

    Charlie Wilson's War...

    by mcvamp

    The message isn't that we "created" the Taliban by arming the Afghanis, it's that once we spent all that money making sure the Russians got their black eye, we pulled right the hell out and didn't spend any money helping rebuild the region that essentially fought our own war for us. We didn't literally train and arm the Taliban, but a lot of kids who never got rebuilt schools or municipal buildings or farmlands grew up awfully pissed off and uneducated--ripe pickings for terrorist organizations who love recruiting weak minded and angry youths by telling them that blowing themselves and their enemies to hell will get them repeatedly laid in a heavenly paradise because "god" says so in a book they aren't educated enough to read. It wasn't a very good movie, but the last ten minutes were pretty telling.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 10:32:09 AM CDT

    RAMBO 3 gets credit, audiences less

    by mullah omar

    I give RAMBO 3 credit for being one of a very small number of films to have any link whatsoever to Afghanistan prior to the Taliban taking over. The only others that come to mind immediately are that one Bond film and SPIES LIKE US.


    And yes, the Taliban are a real group - but like "Al Qaeda" or "racism", the term is overused and has lost some of its precision. And anyone who thinks that all mujahedeen are Taliban simply doesn't understand Afghanistan and/or is regurgitating someone else's propaganda. Hey, no sweat, the wheel turns - to genuine, hard-line, superstitious, rumor-mongering Taliban, there isn't any real difference between the US and EU, the Democrats and Republicans, George Bush and all Westerners, etc. All sides have their deaf extremists and head-burying idiots.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 10:43:50 AM CDT

    Goldsmith's Rambo 3 score

    by m_prevette

    Is pure genius...it was sliced and diced so badly in the movie however...the complete score CD from Intrada is a gem...NO ONE is writing dynamic action music like JG these days...and that gorgeous main theme gets a nice workout here too. I bought the first 3 Rambo movies on DVD JUST to hear the scores in the films again...genius...just genius...

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 11:15:11 AM CDT

    "What is this? An encounter group?!"

    by tacom

    My favorite line in The Enforcer! You're right Mori, it is the most deliberately funny Dirty Harry movie in the series! I don't think Tyne Daly was EVER considered hot even when she was young. If she were there'd be some sexual tension between her and Harry and there thankfully never is.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 11:38:02 AM CDT

    Mullah

    by toadkillerdog

    Once again, I find it funny to be addressing the head of the Taliban, but I must say, you 100% correct about the Mooj and the Taliban not being one in the same. And the parallel you draw between the US and EU is also correct. If more people in power -on all sides of the issues, had a clearer understanding iof who the major players really are, instead of just a poorly informed and stereotypical view, maybe, just maybe, it would lead to a less antagonistic approach. But that is pie in the sky. I do not remember the Enforcer, so I can not give an opinion on it. Rambo III was a true paid politcal ad for the Reagan administration. Even when it came out, Rambo was being held up as a true American Patriot figting the Godless commies. Stallone played that angle heavily.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 11:39:58 AM CDT

    Wow, ABKing likes Rambo!!

    by iamjack'suserid

    Now that is a seal of quality if I've ever seen one! I mean it isn't like the obsessive little pyscho likes EVERY SINGLE FUCKING THING Stallone, Schwarzeneggar, and all of those other 80's action guy make! So when does he predict all of those washed up guys will become kings of the box office again? Rocky Balboa and Rambo were great and good movies, respectively, but they did just ok at the box office and won't do anything for careers.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 11:58:20 AM CDT

    Hot Shots! Part Deux ruined Rambo III for me

    by tacom

    Can't watch it without thinking of the spoof especially considering Richard Crenna played almost the exact same role in both!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 12:11:22 PM CDT

    Love Rambo III

    by picardsucks

    Especially in blu-ray on a 65" DLP the stick fighting scene was killer as well.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 12:38:11 PM CDT

    I'm with ABKing

    by one nation under zod

    Rambo 3 is a little uneven, but it definitely kicks all sorts of ass. And whether intentionally or not, theres some scenes that are pretty fucking hilarious.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 12:55:42 PM CDT

    Hypothetical situation...

    by onephatnelly

    ...all right, I'm standing on a street corner and Missus Gray there comes up and propositions me. She tells me that if I go home with her, for five dollars she'll put on an exhibition with a Shetland Pony.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 12:57:04 PM CDT

    Rambo II, III and IV were great

    by second try

    Bad guys getting what they deserve in intense thrilling action. I agree Rambo III is lighter than the others and played a little bit for laughts. Tarl_Cabot, hairy's fat ass, WeinerPenis pretty much nailed the "Rambo (or CIA) armed the Taliban" argument.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 1:08:14 PM CDT

    Wouldn't it have been great

    by onephatnelly

    if we'd seen Sly and Clint in a movie together? Two completely different actor-directors with different styles, but I think there would have been major chemistry. It still ain't too late for them to do it either.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 1:50:20 PM CDT

    IAmJack'sUserID, Stallone writes his ticket in Hollywood.

    by abking

    You said "Rocky Balboa and Rambo were great and good movies, respectively, but they did just ok at the box office and won't do anything for careers." YOU ARE more DUMB than I thought!!! Stallone's career is already amazing (with ups and downs of course). You are right about one thing... Rocky Balboa and Rambo won't do anything for his career because his career doesn't need anything done for it anymore at this point. Both were very successful films and more important very liked films (by fans and moviegoers). The fact that Sly is still the biggest action star on the planet and at 62 (next month) --ARNOLD is the other of course-- says ALOT. ROCKY BALBOA and RAMBO grossed over 155.6 million and 113 million respectivly and on the pull of STALLONE's name alone. The man is on cloud nine again and hopefully his next film will be INGLORIOUS BASTARDS with QT! Sly writes his ticket now (he almost always did) and once POE comes out it will be his MASTERPIECE!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:07:43 PM CDT

    Weird Scenes Inside the Gold Mine

    by sgt.steiner

    If Afghanistan is the success story, than things are pretty fucked. Nothing quite like a "democractic" government that sentences folks to death for converting to Christianity. Or executes by mass firing squad, fifteen at a time. And surely Saudi Arabia is exempted from George's grand vision of a wave of democracy sweeping the Middle East, as it would fuck his buddies out of their precious dough. This is where off-shore drilling comes into play. And Weinerwhateverthefuckhisname's "lesser of two evils" schtick highlight the morally corrupt nature of the Reagan Doctrine. Support repressive murderers(El Salvadoran government, Contras, Saddam Hussein, South African government) to oppose repression or an ideologically-opposed nation, condemn them to death. By proxy, of course, the wrong lessons having been learned from Vietnam. And yes, some of the Taliban were trained by our people. Mori did not say "all".

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:16:15 PM CDT

    Um...he didn't direct that Mori.

    by s0nicdeathmonkey

    He was a replacement director brought in more than half way through production.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:18:46 PM CDT

    And yet, still no THE HAPPENING review...

    by tophat

    Surprise, surprise. Also, what's wrong with CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR, Moriarty? I did a search for your review ...but of course, there is none.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 2:47:51 PM CDT

    ABKing, you are so dillusional it isn't even funny.

    by iamjack'suserid

    Seriously, you're a ranting little pyscho. Rocky only did $70m here and Rambo $42m. That's hardly what I would call domestic appeal. There is so much overhead in overseas distribution that barely a profit is made, so your figures aren't nearly as meaningful as you think. And what was the last popular Stallone movie before this? Yeah, that's what I thought. You aren't taken seriously because you are so far from being objective, like a little boy clinging to the delusion that there is a Santa Claus and balling his eyes out when he is told there is not one. Seriously, grow the fuck up and learn some objectivity.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 4:20:56 PM CDT

    IAmJack'sUserID, hahahahahahaha!

    by abking

    I'm not taken seriously??? lol, you are a fucking idiot afterall. Anyway, when you use the word Rocky Balboa and Rambo "ONLY" grossed 70 and 42 MILLION respectivly you prove my point. These films were NOT expected to make SPIDER-MAN grosses you asshole. Sly had to redeam himself in the eyes of fans/moviegoers who did not like ROCKY V and RAMBO III and he did. Add to that the fact that RB and RAMBO cost only 24 and 50 million to make...you do the math you fucking retard. Sly is also still a god overseas. Oh I see, you think Stallone is over now because of these two films...FAR FROM IT!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 4:29:46 PM CDT

    ...continue to IAmJack'sUserID.............

    by abking

    Add to that ROCKY BALBOA's rentals (not sales) alone are over 32 million and RAMBO has already in a few weeks reached over 30 million on dvd and presto...BIG HIT PROFIT MONEY MAKER! Grow a fucking brain next time.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 7:24:26 PM CDT

    JACK is a JACK-ASS!

    by abking

    With shit for brains!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 26, 2008 8:42:27 PM CDT

    IAmJack'sUserID come on! ABKing is right!

    by dogmatic

    Rocky Balboa and Rambo were huge sucesses if you base their success on how much money they made versus how much money it took to make them....and last I heard that is how any movie company looks at a movie....how much PROFIT...something that a TON of movies last year and in this decade cant say...they maybe manage to pull like 20 or 50% profit but Rocky Balboa and Rocky made well beyond 100% profits. So yeah they're successful. I'm there for ya ABKing! Keep on being the fan you and dont apologize to any thses sonszabitches my brother!

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  • Jun 26, 2008 10:05:30 PM CDT

    Thanks Dogmatic...

    by abking

    Every media outlet refers to ROCKY BALBOA and RAMBO as big successes yet turds like "IAmJack'sUserID" wants to label them otherwise. Stallone is on a role both hit wise and with fans and moviegoers. Bring on INGLORIOUS BASTARDS (I hope) :)

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 27, 2008 12:10:19 AM CDT

    hot shots part deux IS the best!

    by prossor

    especially the part where martin sheen cameos his willard role from apocalypse now on the PT boat, charlie is narrating his mission and the boat passes by with martin and teh narration switches over to willard's narration verbatim LOL. they stare at each other... "I LOVED YOU IN WALL STREET!" damn that movie rules. WAR! IT'S FAAAANTASTIC! [big smile]

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 27, 2008 8:18:50 AM CDT

    Rambo III was enjoyable

    by silver screen surfer

    I don't see how people can enjoy Rambo 2 and at least not get a kick out of the third one. Its the weakest of the four Rambo films, but still alot of fun. The midnight raid into the Soviet camp, the cave battles that follow, and final all on all war in the desert are cool action sequences. And who could forget the gun-powder into the hole in his side? Great stuff.

    Long Live Rambo III!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 27, 2008 8:54:42 AM CDT

    More liberal douchebaggery from AICN?

    by luscious.868

    Color me surprised!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 27, 2008 8:45:23 PM CDT

    so does Rambo 3 make you think???

    by j2talk

    that what happened to the soviets in Afghanistan is going to happen to us too?????

    Reply to Talkback

  • God. If you think about it, it's fucking excellent. The first one about an ex-soldier, whose life turns to shit because of Vietnam. The second one is about him basically getting the opportunity to ' win ' Vietnam over there - and the battle within himself. The third one basically puts him in a the same Vietnam War situation, only the communists are the agressors this thime, and he's on the side of its Vietcong, arming them, and all the unintended moral consequences. Thinking about that, with the persistent puissant need for ' closure ' and ' winning the war ', and how it all ended up badly - meaning more quagmire, post 9-11 - the fourth one fits as kind of a logical conclusion, in which he basically becomes honest with himself, and goes ' hell fuck it. I'm really just in it for the killing. Might as well '. The ensuing giddy, savage mayhem and total butchery becomes justified as it is entertaining, seen from that light. Even if it doesn't exactly continue the thread. Thanks, Moriarty, for making us realize this.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jun 29, 2008 1:25:59 AM CDT

    No man, YOU"RE the douchebag :

    by ptsdpete

    Explain why being critical in the politics is WRONG. Seeing as you're critical about it yourself.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 01, 2008 1:34:19 PM CDT

    Russell Mulcahy directed some of RAMBO III

    by palimpsest

    but was booted off - McDonald, who was DP, then took over.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 03, 2008 12:29:49 PM CDT

    ABKing is sticking it in and breaking it off...

    by one nation under zod

    IAmJack'sUserID is totally his bitch.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 10, 2008 9:24:57 PM CDT

    FROM THE DIRECTOR OF HIGHLANDER 2

    by mace tofu

    COMES RAMBO 3.
    Someone realized that wouldn't look good on the poster : )

    Reply to Talkback

  • Jul 23, 2008 10:44:01 PM CDT

    cant see the forest,you haters.

    by arockfosheezy

    the action and sheer scope of rambo 3 sets it apart from any other action film ever made. i dont think ive ever seen a film that big that wasnt a drama first. the dialouge may be bad,and people might not like the politics,but,come on. that night raid on the camp was packed with action. rambo does so much shit from one minute to the next, hes earnin the money harder than ahnuld ever did. ive barely ever seen ahnuld run above a jogging pace,and stallone is simply all over the place in rambo 3. under tanks, stealing helicopters,on horseback, in a tank, just awesome. an action has never felt so animated,and rambo is flying off the screen. b-movie action with an epic feel,i dont care what people say. for all its shortcomings,rambo 3 will forever be hard to out-do when it comes to action. i mean seriously,rambo 3 or xXx? fuck,rambo 3 or transformers? watch this movie again with an eye for action sequences,and try to ignore what we already know is forgettable,and ask yourself again how bad this flick really is.






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