First Blood
Encyclopedia
First Blood is a 1982 action
thriller film directed by Ted Kotcheff
. The film stars Sylvester Stallone
as John Rambo
, a troubled and misunderstood Vietnam War
veteran
, with Sheriff Will Teasle (Brian Dennehy
) as his nemesis and Colonel Samuel Trautman (Richard Crenna
) as his former commander and only ally. It was released on October 22, 1982. Based on David Morrell's
1972 novel of the same name, it was the first of the Rambo series. Unlike the sequels, which were war adventure films set in foreign countries, First Blood was a post-Vietnam War psychological thriller
set in the United States. First Blood lacks the gore and violence that would become a trademark of the series.
Since its release, First Blood has been a critical and commercial success and has had a lasting influence on the genre. It has also spurred countless parodies. The film is notable for its psychological portrayal of the after-effects of the Vietnam War, particularly the challenges faced by American veterans attempting to re-integrate into society, something not deeply examined in subsequent Rambo movies.
In 2008, the film was chosen by Empire magazine as one of The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time.
(Sylvester Stallone
) is a former member of an elite United States Army Special Forces unit and was awarded the Medal of Honor
for his service in the Vietnam War
. The film begins after the war, in America, and takes place in December 1981. Rambo is searching for one of his friends from his unit, Delmare Berry and soon learns that he has died from cancer due to Agent Orange
exposure. Although not yet revealed to the audience, Rambo knows he is now the last surviving member of his unit. The scene cuts to Rambo entering the fictional small town of Hope, Washington (actually filmed in Hope, British Columbia
) on foot. With his long hair and military-style coat, he is quickly spotted by the town's overzealous and paranoid sheriff, Will Teasle (Brian Dennehy
) who quickly drives Rambo out of town, noting his strong distaste for "drifters
." Rambo heads back toward town immediately, causing Teasle to get suspicious and arrest him.
Rambo stands his ground against the deputies at the station and is brutalized
and harassed by Art Galt (Jack Starrett
), the sheriff's cruel head deputy and closest friend. While being processed, Rambo has flashbacks to his time as a prisoner of war
. When Galt and two other officers (Chris Mulkey
and David Caruso
) attempt to dry-shave him with a straight razor, Rambo has a flashback
to being tortured in a North Vietnamese P.O.W. Camp back in 1969 and loses control, escaping on instinct using his military training. He fights his way out of the station, assaulting most of the deputies, throws a civilian off a motorcycle, steals it, and is pursued into the nearby mountains. The deputies are eventually forced to search for Rambo on foot and he climbs down onto a steep cliff to elude capture. After spotting Rambo from a helicopter, Galt blatantly disregards protocol and attempts to shoot him in cold blood. Rambo drops into a mass of trees and, while cornered, throws a rock at the helicopter in self-defense. The helicopter, struck by the projectile, pitches, causing Galt to fall to his death. Teasle, who had not seen Galt's attempt to kill Rambo, vows to avenge his friend's death.
Rambo tries to convince them that he did not mean to kill anyone, but they do not listen, and Teasle leads his deputies into the woods in an attempt to capture Rambo. The deputies are inexperienced and bicker, particularly after learning over the radio about Rambo's combat experience and status as a war hero. Rambo quickly disables the small, disorganized team using guerrilla
tactics and booby trap
s, severely wounding but not killing the deputies. In the chaos, Rambo isolates and confronts Teasle with a knife to the throat. "Don't push it...or I'll give you a war you won't believe. Let it go!" he warns before disappearing into the woods. A base camp is assembled near the site, the State Patrol and the National Guard
are called in. United States Special Forces Colonel Sam Trautman
(Richard Crenna
) arrives, taking credit for training Rambo. He is surprised to find any of the deputies still alive and warns that it would be safer to let Rambo go and find him after the situation has calmed down. Fueled by a mixture of scorn and pride, Teasle refuses to heed his advice.
Rambo is eventually cornered by the National Guard in a mine entrance. The novice guardsmen fire a M72 LAW
rocket at him, collapsing the entrance and trapping him inside. They assume Rambo is dead. Unbeknownst to his pursuers, Rambo has escaped into the tunnels of the mine. Rambo finds some old fuel and makes an improvised torch. After wading through waist‑deep water and fighting off rats, Rambo cleverly uses the flame of the torch (as an indicator of air flow) to find an escape. Rambo hijacks a passing M135 2½ ton cargo truck and is chased by a police car. He rams the car into an abandoned car, which explodes and overturns it, killing the two people inside. Rambo returns to town, crashing it into a gas station. He blocks the highway to anyone in pursuit by igniting the spilled fuel, also destroying the stolen truck. Armed with an M60 machine gun
, Rambo destroys a sporting goods shop and a few other businesses in an attempt to confuse Teasle and identify his position before spotting him on the roof of the police station.
Rambo carefully enters the police station. Aware of Teasle's presence on the roof, Rambo darts under the skylight to draw fire as bait to reveal his exact location. Teasle immediately fires at Rambo who notes his position and returns fire through the ceiling with the M60, injuring him. Teasle falls through the skylight onto the floor. Rambo steps over him, prepared to kill him. Before Rambo can shoot Teasle, Colonel Trautman appears and tells him that there is no hope of escaping alive. Rambo, now surrounded by the police, rages about the horrors of war. He weeps as he recounts a particularly gruesome story about witnessing his friend dying by having his legs blown off by a booby-trapped shoeshine box planted by a Viet Cong child operative. Realizing he has nothing left to live for, Rambo then turns himself in to Trautman and is arrested. Teasle is taken to the hospital. The credits roll as Rambo and Trautman exit the police station.
None of these above scenes have ever appeared as extras on DVD or on Blu-ray.
, Al Pacino
, Robert De Niro
, Paul Newman
, Steve McQueen
, Nick Nolte
, John Travolta
, Dustin Hoffman
, James Garner
, Kris Kristofferson
and Michael Douglas
. Terence Hill
, as recently confirmed during an interview to an Italian
TV talk-show, was offered the role but rejected it because he considered it "too violent". Dustin Hoffman
and John Travolta
declined the role for the same reason. When Al Pacino was considered for the role of John Rambo, he turned it down when his request that Rambo be more of a madman was rejected.
For the role of Sheriff Teasle, the producers approached Academy Award-winners Gene Hackman
and Robert Duvall
but both turned the part down. Lee Marvin
, another Oscar winner, turned down the part of Col. Trautman.
Various screenplays adapted from Morrell's book had been pitched to studios in the years since its publication but it was only when Stallone, who at the time had limited success outside of the Rocky
franchise (most of his non-Rocky films either barely broke even or were flops altogether), decided to become involved with the project that it was finally brought into production.
Stallone’s star power after the success of the Rocky films enabled him to suggest changes to the script, to make the character of John Rambo more sympathetic. While Morrell's book has the Rambo character violently kill many of his pursuers, in the movie version Rambo does not directly cause the death of any police or national guardsmen.
Prior to Stallone taking the lead role, Steve McQueen
expressed interest in it. When David Morrell wrote the novel in 1972 the producers first considered McQueen but then rejected him because they considered him too old to play a Vietnam veteran from 1975.
Just before shooting began, Kirk Douglas
quit the role of Col. Trautman over a script dispute; Douglas wanted the film to end as the book did, with the death of the Rambo character. Rock Hudson was approached but was soon to undergo heart surgery and had to pass up the chance to work with Stallone. Richard Crenna was quickly hired as a replacement; the role of Trautman became the veteran character actor's most famous role, his performance of which received much critical praise. A suicide scene was filmed but Kotcheff and Stallone opted to have Rambo turn himself in at Trautman's urging. The town scenes in the movie were shot in Hope
, British Columbia
, Canada
. The rest of the movie was shot in Golden Ears Provincial Park
and Pitt Lake in Pitt Meadows, also in British Columbia, Canada.
, whose theme 'It's A Long Road' added a new dimension to the character, and featured in the film's three sequels and animated spin-off. The soundtrack was originally released on LP by the Regency label, although was edited out of sequence for a more satisfying listen. The album was reissued on CD with one extra track ("No Power") twice, first as one of Intrada Records
's initial titles, then as an identical release by Varese Sarabande
. The complete score was released by Intrada in a 2-CD set, along with a remastered version of the original album, on November 23, 2010, as one of their MAF unlimited titles.
Tracklist
CD 1 – Complete Original Soundtrack
CD 2 – Original 1982 Soundtrack Album
In some other countries, the film was titled simply Rambo.
In Spain and Latin America the film was titled "Acorralado" (Surrounded). A few years after the film's release, the film was broadcast on television as Rambo in the United States.
, with a budget of just $10.5 million, brought in nearly $12 million in its opening weekend and went on to gross over $350 million. Similarly, both Tootsie
and Porky's
grossed over $100 million each. Stallone's other 1982 film, Rocky III
, also beat First Blood at the box office, pulling in over $12 million on its opening weekend with a total gross over $125 million domestically. However, First Blood was not a commercial failure, either. Blade Runner
performed comparatively at the box office, and grossed only $32 million. Poltergeist, although more successful in total sales, brought in similar numbers at the box office.
wrote that he did not like the film's ending, but that it was "a very good movie, well-paced, and well-acted not only by Stallone...but also by Crenna and Brian Dennehy". He even went as far as to say, "although almost all of First Blood is implausible, because it's Stallone on the screen, we'll buy it". In 2000, BBC
film critic Almar Haflidason noted that Stallone’s training in survival skills and hand-to-hand combat gave the film, "a raw and authentic edge that excited the audiences of the time". James Berardinelli
of ReelViews called the film "a tense and effective piece of filmmaking". He noted that film's darker tone, somber subtext, and non-exploitative violence allowed the viewer to enjoy the film not only as an action/thriller but as something with a degree of intelligence and substance. On Stallone's performance, he wrote "it seems impossible to imagine anyone other than Stallone in the part, and his capabilities as an actor should not be dismissed".
David Nusair of Reel Film Views praised the film stating that "First Blood is an engaging piece of work that ultimately doesn't have a whole lot in common with its increasingly cartoonish follow-ups and is anchored by Stallone's effective, surprisingly low-key performance". Film critic Eric D. Snider described the film as "a dark drama about war and the exorcising of demons, and an unforgettable one at that" and that "it's a shame this film became a prototype of sorts for shoot-'em-up, one-man-against-the-world action flicks, because it's so much better than that". He also praised Stallone's "haunting performance which showcased great range from the actor, and provided the film with its resonating depth and thought-provoking morality". Alex Sandell of Juicy Cerebellum called the film "a thriller that's actually thrilling".
The film has not escaped criticism. Although Bill Chambers of Film Freak Central praised Stallone's performance, stating that he "hits his climactic breakdown monologue out of the park” with a performance that was “sweet and moving,” he gave the film two stars out of four. He stated "devotees of Joseph Campbell embrace First Blood because it has clear mythological roots, but recognizable art isn't always valid art". Brian Webster of the Apollo film site called First Blood, "an embarrassingly sloppy production,” with a weak script. Leonard Maltin
gave the film one-and a half stars out of four, saying that it "throws all creditability to the winds about the time [Rambo] gets off with only a bad cut after jumping from a mountain into some jagged rocks."
First Bloods portrayal of a Vietnam veteran also sparked some controversy. Bill Chambers argued the film "reflect[ed] a new compassion towards traumatized veterans of the Vietnam conflict".
magazine on their 2008 list of The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time. The character of John Rambo was considered a possible candidate for the American Film Institute
's list 100 Years…100 Heroes and Villains. The film itself was also a candidate for AFI's 100 Years…100 Thrills, a list of America's most heart-pounding movies.
First Bloods release on DVD sparked a series of contemporary reviews, earning it an 86% "Fresh" rating from Rotten Tomatoes
and a score of 62 ("generally favorable") from Metacritic
.
In a 2011 article for Blade Magazine
, by Mike Carter, credit is given to Morrell and the Rambo franchise for revitalizing the cutlery industry in the 1980s; due to the presence of the Jimmy Lile
and Gil Hibben
knives used in the films. In 2003, Blade Magazine gave Morrell an industry achievement award for having helped to make it possible.
. Both commentary tracks are on the Blu-ray release.
Momentum Pictures
released an HD DVD
version of First Blood in the United Kingdom
in April 2007. Lionsgate also released First Blood as a double feature on February 13, 2007, along with the 2004's The Punisher
.
The film was re-released as part of a 6-disc box set, which contains all 4 films in the series, on May 27, 2008. However the box set is missing the David Morrell commentary, even though the packaging clearly states it is included. In anticipation of the release, the film was shown back in theaters for one night, May 15, 2008, through Fathom Events.
Action film
Action film is a film genre where one or more heroes is thrust into a series of challenges that require physical feats, extended fights and frenetic chases...
thriller film directed by Ted Kotcheff
Ted Kotcheff
Ted Kotcheff , sometimes credited as William Kotcheff or William T. Kotcheff, is a Canadian film and television director, who is well known for his work on several high-profile British television productions and as a director of films such as First Blood.-Early life:Kotcheff was born William...
. The film stars Sylvester Stallone
Sylvester Stallone
Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone , commonly known as Sylvester Stallone, and nicknamed Sly Stallone, is an American actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, film director and occasional painter. Stallone is known for his machismo and Hollywood action roles. Two of the notable characters he has portrayed...
as John Rambo
John Rambo
John Rambo is an iconic fictional character and the basis of the Rambo saga. He first appeared in the 1972 novel First Blood by David Morrell, but later became more famous in the film series, played by Sylvester Stallone...
, a troubled and misunderstood Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
veteran
Vietnam veteran
Vietnam veteran is a phrase used to describe someone who served in the armed forces of participating countries during the Vietnam War.The term has been used to describe veterans who were in the armed forces of South Vietnam, the United States armed forces, and countries allied to them, whether or...
, with Sheriff Will Teasle (Brian Dennehy
Brian Dennehy
Brian Mannion Dennehy is an American actor of film, stage and screen.-Early years:Dennehy was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, the son of Hannah and Edward Dennehy, who was a wire service editor for the Associated Press; he has two brothers, Michael and Edward. Dennehy is of Irish ancestry and was...
) as his nemesis and Colonel Samuel Trautman (Richard Crenna
Richard Crenna
Richard Donald Crenna was an American motion picture, television, and radio actor and occasional television director. He starred in such motion pictures as The Sand Pebbles, Wait Until Dark, Body Heat, the first three Rambo movies, Hot Shots! Part Deux, and The Flamingo Kid...
) as his former commander and only ally. It was released on October 22, 1982. Based on David Morrell's
David Morrell
David Morrell is a Canadian-American novelist, best known for his debut 1972 novel First Blood, which would later become the successful Rambo film franchise starring Sylvester Stallone. He has written 28 novels, and his work has been translated into 26 languages...
1972 novel of the same name, it was the first of the Rambo series. Unlike the sequels, which were war adventure films set in foreign countries, First Blood was a post-Vietnam War psychological thriller
Psychological thriller
Psychological thriller is a specific sub-genre of the broad ranged thriller with heavy focus on characters. However, it often incorporates elements from the mystery and drama genre, along with the typical traits of the thriller genre...
set in the United States. First Blood lacks the gore and violence that would become a trademark of the series.
Since its release, First Blood has been a critical and commercial success and has had a lasting influence on the genre. It has also spurred countless parodies. The film is notable for its psychological portrayal of the after-effects of the Vietnam War, particularly the challenges faced by American veterans attempting to re-integrate into society, something not deeply examined in subsequent Rambo movies.
In 2008, the film was chosen by Empire magazine as one of The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time.
Plot
John RamboJohn Rambo
John Rambo is an iconic fictional character and the basis of the Rambo saga. He first appeared in the 1972 novel First Blood by David Morrell, but later became more famous in the film series, played by Sylvester Stallone...
(Sylvester Stallone
Sylvester Stallone
Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone , commonly known as Sylvester Stallone, and nicknamed Sly Stallone, is an American actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, film director and occasional painter. Stallone is known for his machismo and Hollywood action roles. Two of the notable characters he has portrayed...
) is a former member of an elite United States Army Special Forces unit and was awarded the Medal of Honor
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
for his service in the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. The film begins after the war, in America, and takes place in December 1981. Rambo is searching for one of his friends from his unit, Delmare Berry and soon learns that he has died from cancer due to Agent Orange
Agent Orange
Agent Orange is the code name for one of the herbicides and defoliants used by the U.S. military as part of its herbicidal warfare program, Operation Ranch Hand, during the Vietnam War from 1961 to 1971. Vietnam estimates 400,000 people were killed or maimed, and 500,000 children born with birth...
exposure. Although not yet revealed to the audience, Rambo knows he is now the last surviving member of his unit. The scene cuts to Rambo entering the fictional small town of Hope, Washington (actually filmed in Hope, British Columbia
Hope, British Columbia
Hope is a district municipality located at the confluence of the Fraser and Coquihalla rivers in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Hope is at the eastern end of both the Fraser Valley and the Lower Mainland region, and is at the southern end of the Fraser Canyon...
) on foot. With his long hair and military-style coat, he is quickly spotted by the town's overzealous and paranoid sheriff, Will Teasle (Brian Dennehy
Brian Dennehy
Brian Mannion Dennehy is an American actor of film, stage and screen.-Early years:Dennehy was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, the son of Hannah and Edward Dennehy, who was a wire service editor for the Associated Press; he has two brothers, Michael and Edward. Dennehy is of Irish ancestry and was...
) who quickly drives Rambo out of town, noting his strong distaste for "drifters
Vagrancy (people)
A vagrant is a person in poverty, who wanders from place to place without a home or regular employment or income.-Definition:A vagrant is "a person without a settled home or regular work who wanders from place to place and lives by begging;" vagrancy is the condition of such persons.-History:In...
." Rambo heads back toward town immediately, causing Teasle to get suspicious and arrest him.
Rambo stands his ground against the deputies at the station and is brutalized
Police brutality
Police brutality is the intentional use of excessive force, usually physical, but potentially also in the form of verbal attacks and psychological intimidation, by a police officer....
and harassed by Art Galt (Jack Starrett
Jack Starrett
Jack Starrett was an American actor and film director. He is credited as Claude Ennis Starrett, Jr. in some of his films...
), the sheriff's cruel head deputy and closest friend. While being processed, Rambo has flashbacks to his time as a prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
. When Galt and two other officers (Chris Mulkey
Chris Mulkey
Chris Mulkey is an American actor who most recently appeared in Against the Wall, Cloverfield, the NBC TV movie Knight Rider, and as a corporate executive in season 7 of 24...
and David Caruso
David Caruso
David Stephen Caruso is an American film and television actor and producer, best known for his role of Lieutenant Horatio Caine on the TV series CSI: Miami. The role that gained him initial significant recognition was the role of Det...
) attempt to dry-shave him with a straight razor, Rambo has a flashback
Flashback (psychological phenomenon)
A flashback, or involuntary recurrent memory, is a psychological phenomenon in which an individual has a sudden, usually powerful, re-experiencing of a past experience or elements of a past experience. These experiences can be happy, sad, exciting, or any other emotion one can consider...
to being tortured in a North Vietnamese P.O.W. Camp back in 1969 and loses control, escaping on instinct using his military training. He fights his way out of the station, assaulting most of the deputies, throws a civilian off a motorcycle, steals it, and is pursued into the nearby mountains. The deputies are eventually forced to search for Rambo on foot and he climbs down onto a steep cliff to elude capture. After spotting Rambo from a helicopter, Galt blatantly disregards protocol and attempts to shoot him in cold blood. Rambo drops into a mass of trees and, while cornered, throws a rock at the helicopter in self-defense. The helicopter, struck by the projectile, pitches, causing Galt to fall to his death. Teasle, who had not seen Galt's attempt to kill Rambo, vows to avenge his friend's death.
Rambo tries to convince them that he did not mean to kill anyone, but they do not listen, and Teasle leads his deputies into the woods in an attempt to capture Rambo. The deputies are inexperienced and bicker, particularly after learning over the radio about Rambo's combat experience and status as a war hero. Rambo quickly disables the small, disorganized team using guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
tactics and booby trap
Booby trap
A booby trap is a device designed to harm or surprise a person, unknowingly triggered by the presence or actions of the victim. As the word trap implies, they often have some form of bait designed to lure the victim towards it. However, in other cases the device is placed on busy roads or is...
s, severely wounding but not killing the deputies. In the chaos, Rambo isolates and confronts Teasle with a knife to the throat. "Don't push it...or I'll give you a war you won't believe. Let it go!" he warns before disappearing into the woods. A base camp is assembled near the site, the State Patrol and the National Guard
Washington Army National Guard
The Washington Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the Washington National Guard based in Washington. The history of the Washington Army National Guard dates back to 1854 with formation of the Washington Territorial Militia...
are called in. United States Special Forces Colonel Sam Trautman
Colonel Sam Trautman
Colonel Samuel "Sam" Trautman is a fictional character in the Rambo novel and film series. His first appearance was in David Morrell's novel First Blood. His character was expanded on in the film series where he was played by Richard Crenna, although Kirk Douglas was cast in the part, been...
(Richard Crenna
Richard Crenna
Richard Donald Crenna was an American motion picture, television, and radio actor and occasional television director. He starred in such motion pictures as The Sand Pebbles, Wait Until Dark, Body Heat, the first three Rambo movies, Hot Shots! Part Deux, and The Flamingo Kid...
) arrives, taking credit for training Rambo. He is surprised to find any of the deputies still alive and warns that it would be safer to let Rambo go and find him after the situation has calmed down. Fueled by a mixture of scorn and pride, Teasle refuses to heed his advice.
Rambo is eventually cornered by the National Guard in a mine entrance. The novice guardsmen fire a M72 LAW
M72 LAW
The M72 LAW is a portable one-shot 66 mm unguided anti-tank weapon, designed in the United States by Paul V. Choate, Charles B. Weeks, and Frank A. Spinale et al...
rocket at him, collapsing the entrance and trapping him inside. They assume Rambo is dead. Unbeknownst to his pursuers, Rambo has escaped into the tunnels of the mine. Rambo finds some old fuel and makes an improvised torch. After wading through waist‑deep water and fighting off rats, Rambo cleverly uses the flame of the torch (as an indicator of air flow) to find an escape. Rambo hijacks a passing M135 2½ ton cargo truck and is chased by a police car. He rams the car into an abandoned car, which explodes and overturns it, killing the two people inside. Rambo returns to town, crashing it into a gas station. He blocks the highway to anyone in pursuit by igniting the spilled fuel, also destroying the stolen truck. Armed with an M60 machine gun
M60 machine gun
The M60 is a family of American general-purpose machine guns firing 7.62×51mm NATO cartridges from a disintegrating belt of M13 links...
, Rambo destroys a sporting goods shop and a few other businesses in an attempt to confuse Teasle and identify his position before spotting him on the roof of the police station.
Rambo carefully enters the police station. Aware of Teasle's presence on the roof, Rambo darts under the skylight to draw fire as bait to reveal his exact location. Teasle immediately fires at Rambo who notes his position and returns fire through the ceiling with the M60, injuring him. Teasle falls through the skylight onto the floor. Rambo steps over him, prepared to kill him. Before Rambo can shoot Teasle, Colonel Trautman appears and tells him that there is no hope of escaping alive. Rambo, now surrounded by the police, rages about the horrors of war. He weeps as he recounts a particularly gruesome story about witnessing his friend dying by having his legs blown off by a booby-trapped shoeshine box planted by a Viet Cong child operative. Realizing he has nothing left to live for, Rambo then turns himself in to Trautman and is arrested. Teasle is taken to the hospital. The credits roll as Rambo and Trautman exit the police station.
TV version
The TV version of First Blood premiered on NBC on Sunday night, May 12, 1985, as a tie-in to Rambo: First Blood Part II. Three minutes were edited out and any suggestive dialogue was changed. However, the following scenes were added in order to make up for anything that was cut:- A scene in the beginning where Rambo tries to order takeout at a diner but then gets hassled, making Rambo leave.
- A scene after the posse is injured.
- A scene showing the Paramedics putting the posse in ambulances and Galt's body into a helicopter just as Kern arrives.
- A longer version of the conversation between Trautman and Teasle about Rambo taking out his posse.
- A longer version of the conversation about the capture of Rambo.
- A scene where Teasle and Trautman land at the spot where Rambo is "killed".
- A scene where Teasle returns to his office and is congratulated by the townspeople for "killing" Rambo.
None of these above scenes have ever appeared as extras on DVD or on Blu-ray.
DVD/Blu-ray
Recent DVD/Blu-ray versions include the following deleted scenes as bonus features:- A scene where Rambo settles into a cave and while taking a nap, begins to have a flashback that shows Rambo and his friends at a Vietnam night club.
- The original ending that shows Rambo killing himself with Trautman's gun. Test audiences found this ending to be "too depressing," as Sylvester Stallone had realized they would after witnessing Rambo's ordeal and developing sympathy for him, so a new ending was shot; this one became the one seen in all versions of the film since its original release.
Cast
- Sylvester StalloneSylvester StalloneMichael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone , commonly known as Sylvester Stallone, and nicknamed Sly Stallone, is an American actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, film director and occasional painter. Stallone is known for his machismo and Hollywood action roles. Two of the notable characters he has portrayed...
as John RamboJohn RamboJohn Rambo is an iconic fictional character and the basis of the Rambo saga. He first appeared in the 1972 novel First Blood by David Morrell, but later became more famous in the film series, played by Sylvester Stallone... - Richard CrennaRichard CrennaRichard Donald Crenna was an American motion picture, television, and radio actor and occasional television director. He starred in such motion pictures as The Sand Pebbles, Wait Until Dark, Body Heat, the first three Rambo movies, Hot Shots! Part Deux, and The Flamingo Kid...
as Colonel Sam TrautmanColonel Sam TrautmanColonel Samuel "Sam" Trautman is a fictional character in the Rambo novel and film series. His first appearance was in David Morrell's novel First Blood. His character was expanded on in the film series where he was played by Richard Crenna, although Kirk Douglas was cast in the part, been... - Brian DennehyBrian DennehyBrian Mannion Dennehy is an American actor of film, stage and screen.-Early years:Dennehy was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, the son of Hannah and Edward Dennehy, who was a wire service editor for the Associated Press; he has two brothers, Michael and Edward. Dennehy is of Irish ancestry and was...
as Sheriff Will Teasle - Bill McKinneyBill McKinneyBill McKinney is an American character actor whose most famous role was the sadistic mountain man in the movie Deliverance...
as State Police Capt. Dave Kern - Jack StarrettJack StarrettJack Starrett was an American actor and film director. He is credited as Claude Ennis Starrett, Jr. in some of his films...
as Deputy Sgt. Arthur Galt - Michael TalbottMichael TalbottMichael Talbott is an American actor who is perhaps best known for his co-starring role as Det. Stanley Switek in the 1980s series Miami Vice....
as Deputy Balford - Chris MulkeyChris MulkeyChris Mulkey is an American actor who most recently appeared in Against the Wall, Cloverfield, the NBC TV movie Knight Rider, and as a corporate executive in season 7 of 24...
as Deputy Ward - John McLiam as Orval the Dog Man
- Alf Humphreys as Deputy Lester
- David CarusoDavid CarusoDavid Stephen Caruso is an American film and television actor and producer, best known for his role of Lieutenant Horatio Caine on the TV series CSI: Miami. The role that gained him initial significant recognition was the role of Det...
as Deputy Mitch - David CrowleyDavid CrowleyDavid Crowley was a politician from Cincinnati, Ohio who served on the Cincinnati City Council and as Vice-Mayor of the city. Crowley was elected in his first political candidacy in 2001 and was re-elected in 2003. In 2001, he came in seventh place; and in 2003, he finished ninth...
as Shingleton - Don MacKay as Preston
Production
Long before Stallone was hired to play Rambo, other actors were being considered for the role such as Clint EastwoodClint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
, Al Pacino
Al Pacino
Alfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
, Robert De Niro
Robert De Niro
Robert De Niro, Jr. is an American actor, director and producer. His first major film roles were in Bang the Drum Slowly and Mean Streets, both in 1973...
, Paul Newman
Paul Newman
Paul Leonard Newman was an American actor, film director, entrepreneur, humanitarian, professional racing driver and auto racing enthusiast...
, Steve McQueen
Steve McQueen
Terrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was an American movie actor. He was nicknamed "The King of Cool." His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s. McQueen received an Academy Award nomination...
, Nick Nolte
Nick Nolte
Nicholas King "Nick" Nolte is an American actor whose career has spanned over five decades, peaking in the 1990s when his commercial success made him one of the most popular celebrities of that decade.-Early life:...
, John Travolta
John Travolta
John Joseph Travolta is an American actor, dancer and singer. Travolta first became known in the 1970s, after appearing on the television series Welcome Back, Kotter and starring in the box office successes Saturday Night Fever and Grease...
, Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Lee Hoffman is an American actor with a career in film, television, and theatre since 1960. He has been known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and vulnerable characters....
, James Garner
James Garner
James Garner is an American film and television actor, one of the first Hollywood actors to excel in both media. He has starred in several television series spanning a career of more than five decades...
, Kris Kristofferson
Kris Kristofferson
Kristoffer "Kris" Kristofferson is an American musician, actor, and writer. He is known for hits such as "Me and Bobby McGee", "For the Good Times", "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and "Help Me Make It Through the Night"...
and Michael Douglas
Michael Douglas
Michael Kirk Douglas is an American actor and producer, primarily in movies and television. He has won three Golden Globes and two Academy Awards; first as producer of 1975's Best Picture, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and as Best Actor in 1987 for his role in Wall Street. Douglas received the...
. Terence Hill
Terence Hill
Terence Hill is an Italian actor. He is best known for starring in multiple action and western films together with his longtime filmpartner Bud Spencer.-Biography:...
, as recently confirmed during an interview to an Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
TV talk-show, was offered the role but rejected it because he considered it "too violent". Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Lee Hoffman is an American actor with a career in film, television, and theatre since 1960. He has been known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and vulnerable characters....
and John Travolta
John Travolta
John Joseph Travolta is an American actor, dancer and singer. Travolta first became known in the 1970s, after appearing on the television series Welcome Back, Kotter and starring in the box office successes Saturday Night Fever and Grease...
declined the role for the same reason. When Al Pacino was considered for the role of John Rambo, he turned it down when his request that Rambo be more of a madman was rejected.
For the role of Sheriff Teasle, the producers approached Academy Award-winners Gene Hackman
Gene Hackman
Eugene Allen "Gene" Hackman is an American actor and novelist.Nominated for five Academy Awards, winning two, Hackman has also won three Golden Globes and two BAFTAs in a career that spanned five decades. He first came to fame in 1967 with his performance as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde...
and Robert Duvall
Robert Duvall
Robert Selden Duvall is an American actor and director. He has won an Academy Award, two Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards and a BAFTA over the course of his career....
but both turned the part down. Lee Marvin
Lee Marvin
Lee Marvin was an American film actor. Known for his gravelly voice, white hair and 6' 2" stature, Marvin at first did supporting roles, mostly villains, soldiers and other hardboiled characters, but after winning an Academy Award for Best Actor for his dual roles in Cat Ballou , he landed more...
, another Oscar winner, turned down the part of Col. Trautman.
Various screenplays adapted from Morrell's book had been pitched to studios in the years since its publication but it was only when Stallone, who at the time had limited success outside of the Rocky
Rocky
Rocky is a 1976 American sports drama film directed by John G. Avildsen and both written by and starring Sylvester Stallone. It tells the rags to riches American Dream story of Rocky Balboa, an uneducated but kind-hearted debt collector for a loan shark in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
franchise (most of his non-Rocky films either barely broke even or were flops altogether), decided to become involved with the project that it was finally brought into production.
Stallone’s star power after the success of the Rocky films enabled him to suggest changes to the script, to make the character of John Rambo more sympathetic. While Morrell's book has the Rambo character violently kill many of his pursuers, in the movie version Rambo does not directly cause the death of any police or national guardsmen.
Prior to Stallone taking the lead role, Steve McQueen
Steve McQueen
Terrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was an American movie actor. He was nicknamed "The King of Cool." His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s. McQueen received an Academy Award nomination...
expressed interest in it. When David Morrell wrote the novel in 1972 the producers first considered McQueen but then rejected him because they considered him too old to play a Vietnam veteran from 1975.
Just before shooting began, Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas is an American stage and film actor, film producer and author. His popular films include Out of the Past , Champion , Ace in the Hole , The Bad and the Beautiful , Lust for Life , Paths of Glory , Gunfight at the O.K...
quit the role of Col. Trautman over a script dispute; Douglas wanted the film to end as the book did, with the death of the Rambo character. Rock Hudson was approached but was soon to undergo heart surgery and had to pass up the chance to work with Stallone. Richard Crenna was quickly hired as a replacement; the role of Trautman became the veteran character actor's most famous role, his performance of which received much critical praise. A suicide scene was filmed but Kotcheff and Stallone opted to have Rambo turn himself in at Trautman's urging. The town scenes in the movie were shot in Hope
Hope, British Columbia
Hope is a district municipality located at the confluence of the Fraser and Coquihalla rivers in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Hope is at the eastern end of both the Fraser Valley and the Lower Mainland region, and is at the southern end of the Fraser Canyon...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The rest of the movie was shot in Golden Ears Provincial Park
Golden Ears Provincial Park
Golden Ears Provincial Park is a Provincial Park in British Columbia, Canada at 555.9 km². It is named after the prominent twin peaks which are commonly referred to as Golden Ears...
and Pitt Lake in Pitt Meadows, also in British Columbia, Canada.
Music
The film's score was composed and conducted by Jerry GoldsmithJerry Goldsmith
Jerrald King Goldsmith was an American composer and conductor most known for his work in film and television scoring....
, whose theme 'It's A Long Road' added a new dimension to the character, and featured in the film's three sequels and animated spin-off. The soundtrack was originally released on LP by the Regency label, although was edited out of sequence for a more satisfying listen. The album was reissued on CD with one extra track ("No Power") twice, first as one of Intrada Records
Intrada Records
Intrada Records is an American record company based in Oakland, California. Intrada Records is an American record company based in Oakland, California. Intrada Records is an American record company based in Oakland, California...
's initial titles, then as an identical release by Varese Sarabande
Varèse Sarabande
Varèse Sarabande is an American record label, distributed by Universal Music Group, which specializes in film scores and original cast recordings. It aims to reissue rare or unavailable albums as well as newer releases by artists no longer under a contract...
. The complete score was released by Intrada in a 2-CD set, along with a remastered version of the original album, on November 23, 2010, as one of their MAF unlimited titles.
Tracklist
CD 1 – Complete Original Soundtrack
- Theme From First Blood (Pop Orchestra Version)
- Home Coming
- My Town
- Under Arrest
- The Razor
- A Head Start
- Hanging On
- Over The Cliff
- A Stitch In Time
- Mountain Hunt
- No Truce
- First Blood
- The Tunnel
- Escape Route
- The Truck
- No Power/Night Attack
- Hide And Seek
- It's A Long Road (Instrumental)
- It's A Long Road (Theme From First Blood) - Vocal: Dan Hill
CD 2 – Original 1982 Soundtrack Album
- It's A Long Road (Theme From First Blood) - Vocal: Dan Hill
- Escape Route
- First Blood
- The Tunnel
- Hanging On
- Home Coming
- Mountain Hunt
- My Town
- The Razor
- Over The Cliff
- It's A Long Road (Instrumental)
- It's A Long Road [Recording Session Piano/Vocal Demo]
- Carolco Logo
- Rambo [Special Summer 1984 Trailer]
Alternate titles
In the United States, the film was released as First Blood. In International markets, the film was re-titled Rambo: First Blood.In some other countries, the film was titled simply Rambo.
In Spain and Latin America the film was titled "Acorralado" (Surrounded). A few years after the film's release, the film was broadcast on television as Rambo in the United States.
Box office performance
First Blood, with a shooting budget of $15 million and a total domestic gross of $47 million and $125 million worldwide, was a moderate financial success, compared to other films released that year. For example, E.T.E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is a 1982 American science fiction film co-produced and directed by Steven Spielberg, written by Melissa Mathison and starring Henry Thomas, Dee Wallace, Robert MacNaughton, Drew Barrymore, and Peter Coyote...
, with a budget of just $10.5 million, brought in nearly $12 million in its opening weekend and went on to gross over $350 million. Similarly, both Tootsie
Tootsie
Tootsie is a 1982 American comedy film that tells the story of a talented but volatile actor whose reputation for being difficult forces him to go to extreme lengths to land a job. The movie stars Dustin Hoffman and Jessica Lange, with a supporting cast that includes Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman,...
and Porky's
Porky's
Porky's is a 1982 comedy film about the escapades of teenagers at the fictional Angel Beach High School in Florida in 1954. It was released in the United States in 1982, and spawned two sequels: Porky's II: The Next Day and Porky's Revenge! and influenced many writers in the teen film genre...
grossed over $100 million each. Stallone's other 1982 film, Rocky III
Rocky III
Rocky III is a 1982 American film that is the third installment in the Rocky film series. It is written and directed by and stars Sylvester Stallone as the title character, with Carl Weathers as former boxing rival Apollo Creed, Burgess Meredith as Rocky's trainer Mickey, and Talia Shire as Rocky's...
, also beat First Blood at the box office, pulling in over $12 million on its opening weekend with a total gross over $125 million domestically. However, First Blood was not a commercial failure, either. Blade Runner
Blade Runner
Blade Runner is a 1982 American science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, and Sean Young. The screenplay, written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples, is loosely based on the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K...
performed comparatively at the box office, and grossed only $32 million. Poltergeist, although more successful in total sales, brought in similar numbers at the box office.
Critical reception
First Blood received generally favorable reviews, and is considered by many to be one of the best films of 1982. Stallone, in particular, received much praise for his performance. In his 1982 review, Roger EbertRoger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
wrote that he did not like the film's ending, but that it was "a very good movie, well-paced, and well-acted not only by Stallone...but also by Crenna and Brian Dennehy". He even went as far as to say, "although almost all of First Blood is implausible, because it's Stallone on the screen, we'll buy it". In 2000, BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
film critic Almar Haflidason noted that Stallone’s training in survival skills and hand-to-hand combat gave the film, "a raw and authentic edge that excited the audiences of the time". James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli is an American online film critic.-Personal life:Berardinelli was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey and spent his early childhood in Morristown, New Jersey. At the age of nine years, he relocated to the township of Cherry Hill, New Jersey...
of ReelViews called the film "a tense and effective piece of filmmaking". He noted that film's darker tone, somber subtext, and non-exploitative violence allowed the viewer to enjoy the film not only as an action/thriller but as something with a degree of intelligence and substance. On Stallone's performance, he wrote "it seems impossible to imagine anyone other than Stallone in the part, and his capabilities as an actor should not be dismissed".
David Nusair of Reel Film Views praised the film stating that "First Blood is an engaging piece of work that ultimately doesn't have a whole lot in common with its increasingly cartoonish follow-ups and is anchored by Stallone's effective, surprisingly low-key performance". Film critic Eric D. Snider described the film as "a dark drama about war and the exorcising of demons, and an unforgettable one at that" and that "it's a shame this film became a prototype of sorts for shoot-'em-up, one-man-against-the-world action flicks, because it's so much better than that". He also praised Stallone's "haunting performance which showcased great range from the actor, and provided the film with its resonating depth and thought-provoking morality". Alex Sandell of Juicy Cerebellum called the film "a thriller that's actually thrilling".
The film has not escaped criticism. Although Bill Chambers of Film Freak Central praised Stallone's performance, stating that he "hits his climactic breakdown monologue out of the park” with a performance that was “sweet and moving,” he gave the film two stars out of four. He stated "devotees of Joseph Campbell embrace First Blood because it has clear mythological roots, but recognizable art isn't always valid art". Brian Webster of the Apollo film site called First Blood, "an embarrassingly sloppy production,” with a weak script. Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin is an American film and animated film critic and historian, author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives.-Personal life:...
gave the film one-and a half stars out of four, saying that it "throws all creditability to the winds about the time [Rambo] gets off with only a bad cut after jumping from a mountain into some jagged rocks."
First Bloods portrayal of a Vietnam veteran also sparked some controversy. Bill Chambers argued the film "reflect[ed] a new compassion towards traumatized veterans of the Vietnam conflict".
Legacy
In 2008, First Blood was named the 253rd greatest film ever by EmpireEmpire (magazine)
Empire is a British film magazine published monthly by Bauer Consumer Media. From the first issue in July 1989, the magazine was edited by Barry McIlheney and published by Emap. Bauer purchased Emap Consumer Media in early 2008...
magazine on their 2008 list of The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time. The character of John Rambo was considered a possible candidate for the American Film Institute
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...
's list 100 Years…100 Heroes and Villains. The film itself was also a candidate for AFI's 100 Years…100 Thrills, a list of America's most heart-pounding movies.
First Bloods release on DVD sparked a series of contemporary reviews, earning it an 86% "Fresh" rating from Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
and a score of 62 ("generally favorable") from Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
.
In a 2011 article for Blade Magazine
Blade (magazine)
Blade is a long-running consumer magazine about knife collecting.First published in 1973 under the title American Blade by Southern House Publishing Co. with Blackie Collins as the editor, the magazine's title was changed to Blade in 1982 after its purchase by Jim Parker and Bruce Voyles...
, by Mike Carter, credit is given to Morrell and the Rambo franchise for revitalizing the cutlery industry in the 1980s; due to the presence of the Jimmy Lile
Jimmy Lile
James Buel Lile, known as Jimmy Lile or The Arkansas Knifesmith , was a knifemaker from Russellville in Pope County, Arkansas, who made the Rambo Knife for the films First Blood and Rambo: First Blood Part II...
and Gil Hibben
Gil Hibben
Gil Hibben is a custom knifemaker from Wyoming who is based in La Grange, Kentucky. Hibben designed the first line of Browning hunting knives in 1968, the American Kenpo Knife for Ed Parker, and the Rambo Knife for the films Rambo III and Rambo...
knives used in the films. In 2003, Blade Magazine gave Morrell an industry achievement award for having helped to make it possible.
Distribution
Author David Morrell recorded an audio commentary track for the First Blood Special Edition DVD released in 2002. Actor Sylvester Stallone recorded an audio commentary track for the First Blood Ultimate Edition DVD released in 2004. This edition also includes a "never-before-seen" alternate ending in which Rambo commits suicide (a brief snippet of which appears in a flashback in the fourth film) and a "humorous" ending tacked on afterwards. Lionsgate also released this version on Blu-rayBlu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
. Both commentary tracks are on the Blu-ray release.
Momentum Pictures
Momentum Pictures
Momentum Pictures , an Alliance Films company, is one of the leading independent motion picture distributors in the UK and Ireland and releases approximately 20 theatrical films a year, with several stv releases....
released an HD DVD
HD DVD
HD DVD is a discontinued high-density optical disc format for storing data and high-definition video.Supported principally by Toshiba, HD DVD was envisioned to be the successor to the standard DVD format...
version of First Blood in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in April 2007. Lionsgate also released First Blood as a double feature on February 13, 2007, along with the 2004's The Punisher
The Punisher (2004 film)
The Punisher is a 2004 American comic book action film, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name, starring Thomas Jane as the antihero Frank Castle / The Punisher and John Travolta as the villain Howard Saint, a money launderer who orders the death of Castle's entire family...
.
The film was re-released as part of a 6-disc box set, which contains all 4 films in the series, on May 27, 2008. However the box set is missing the David Morrell commentary, even though the packaging clearly states it is included. In anticipation of the release, the film was shown back in theaters for one night, May 15, 2008, through Fathom Events.