Rambo III (1988)

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
John Rambo	Sylvester Stallone
Col. Trautman	Richard Crenna	½
Col. Zaysen	Marc de Jonge	½
Griggs	Kurtwood Smith	½

Review

At this point, the filmmakers don't even bother to justify or give motivation to the character of John Rambo. He simply has to fly the flag and clean up the mess made by any which one, by chance, this time the Russians in Afghanistan. Naturally, he does it all single-handedly, unexhaustingly, and completely without inspiration. Seen in retrospect, the notion of Americans making good deeds in Afghanistan, rescuing the people from the "evils" of others, makes the film, at its best, simple republican propaganda. However, one has to be largely dimwitted to accept the terms this film presents. The characters of the 'bad guys' are among the flattest in the history of cinema. Even for the period of the cold war this is pushing it. And when Stallone sets a new record of body count, with that grim look on his face, he's displaying a clearly tormented form of narcissism. Rambo III is nothing but a document of how much Stallone has sunk during the past twelve years.