Why Sylvester Stallone should not make Rambo V

By Lindsay Johns for the Daily Mail

Published: 15:18 GMT, 2 May 2012 | Updated: 07:06 GMT, 3 May 2012

www.inulpoker.com | Agen Poker Terpercaya | Poker dan Domino Online Indonesia Terpercaya | Poker dan Domino Terbaik |

Sequel: It has been reported that Sylvester Stallone is planning to make Rambo V

Today my heart is genuinely heavy. It was reported in today’s newspapers that Sylvester Stallone is planning to make Rambo V, in which he will bring back the most famous one man army in the Western popular consciousness - legendary Vietnam vet, hardened former Green Beret and human war machine John J. Rambo, to fight the scourge of the Mexican drug cartels. Stallone’s purported aim in so doing is to enable his aged hero to “go out in a blaze of glory” and thereby fully embrace his heroic destiny.

I confess that this announcement makes me very sad. You see, I am a massive Rambo fan. Erroneously perceived as being a monosyllabic, bloodthirsty psychopath, Stallone's character is constantly derided and dismissed as a regressive Neanderthal (often by those who have never even seen the films), when actually nothing could be further from the truth.

I believe Rambo to be not only one of the most iconic celluloid protagonists of the late twentieth century, but on many levels, an existential hero for our troubled times. On closer examination, Rambo for me is actually one kind of positive role model (albeit an unusual one), replete with ontological authenticity and, despite appearances to the contrary, a fully functioning moral compass. Embodying the finest human virtues, such as valour, loyalty and stoic endurance, he is the quintessence of both the intelligent warrior spirit and the pugilist-penseur. There is not a single ounce of physical or moral flabbiness on him. In fact, he possesses admirable character traits of immense value to contemporary society which should in fact be extolled, not despised.

Sylvester Stallone as 'Rambo': An existential hero for our troubled times

The positively Homeric homecoming scene at the end of Rambo (IV) when he finally comes "full circle" and returns to the USA and to his rural home in Bowie, Arizona after a life of martial peregrinations, having at last conquered his inner demons, is hugely poignant. Truth to tell, it moved me to tears. Proof, if it were needed, that Rambo is a subtle, nuanced and elegiac character, not the uber-macho, one dimensional, testosterone-fuelled brute his detractors like to make out.

Risk: The Rambo films have an artistic integrity which can only be diminished - or ruined - if Rambo V is made

So why, you may ask, as an ardent Rambo fan, am I so disturbed by the prospect of a sequel? Surely this would be another glorious chance to see Rambo in action, doing what only he does best? Why am I not positively beside myself with joy?

I am upset because there is already, in my opinion, a genuine aesthetic purity and artistic integrity about the narrative arc of the canon of Rambo films which can only at best be diminished and at worst ruined by tacking on a gratuitous sequel to a consummately finished work of art. Some things are quite simply best left alone. Anything more would be superfluity.

The story of ex-US Army Special Forces hero John Rambo has already been beautifully told and realized by Stallone, in four very moving, very thought-provoking and, needless to say, very violent films. Rambo has already completed his existential quest, complete with great dignity, valour and moral stature. His heroism is already beyond doubt and his life’s purpose has been wholly affirmed. He does not need to go out again, in Tennyson’s immortal words, “to strive, to seek, to find and not to yield.” There must the tale of this man's mortal journey end.

var rcShoutCache = '{}'; window._taboola = window._taboola || []; _taboola.push({flush:true}); DM.later('bundle', function(){ if (window.ArticlePage) { new ArticlePage(); } });

www.inulpoker.com | Agen Poker Terpercaya | Poker dan Domino Online Indonesia Terpercaya | Poker dan Domino Terbaik |