Entertainment Today and Beyond

Never Met a Zombi I Didn’t Like…

RAMBO 5 now a reality

RAMBO-POSTERVariety is reporting that Nu Image/Millennium Films has greenlit a fifth installment in the long running Rambo franchise with Sylvester Stallone returning to star, direct, and possibly write. Production is set to begin in the spring after Stallone wraps up his newest actioner, The Expendables. According to the trade Stallone’s Rambo will be fighting to rescue a young girl who is abducted by human traffickers and drug dealers near the U.S./Mexico border.

It’s almost hard to believe that the Rambo franchise goes back to 1982 when the character was introduced in First Blood. Other actor’s who were considered for the role at one time or another included Clint Eastwood, Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Paul Newman, Steve McQueen, Nick Nolte, and Michael Douglas.

First Blood was followed by the blockbuster sequel Rambo: First Blood Part II in 1985 and then Rambo III which disappointed at the box-office in 1988. I still remember its opening weekend box-office upset when Crocodile Dundee 2 was the dominant player that weekend.

While Rambo II (love it) and Rambo III (like it very much) took the character into comic book territory, last year’s Rambo, the fourth entry in the franchise, returned the character to his very gritty hard core roots. This pleased most of the fan-base and made a profit to boot.

I’m glad to see Stallone keep the character going. While the last chapter in the Rocky franchise is now closed with that character going out in style, I have no problem seeing the Rambo character going on another mission. Considering how grueling these films are it’s almost stunning that the soon to be 64 year action star is still doing this (HGH certainly helps).

Actually Charles Bronson was 72 years old when he made his last Death Wish film (Death Wish V: The Face of Death) in 1994, although his Paul Kersey character wasn’t nearly as physical. One has to wonder if Arnold Schwarzenegger will be tempted to go back into the action arena when he’s done serving as the Governor of California. It has to be easier than his current gig.

September 1, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | , | Leave a Comment

Stallone to revisit RAMBO again, FRIDAY the 13th just around the corner and Please watch FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS

rambo5Rambo- In a recent interview with TV’s Extra, Sylvester Stallone gave the heads up on a 5th Rambo installment. Yeah, “We are doing another Rambo but the conflict is whether to do it in America or a foreign country”. As a big fan of the entire series I’m glad to hear this news. This time I would like to see Sly set the film in the States and come up with a Die Hard type scenario for the character to take down terrorists on our soil. It’s amazing that the guy can make this character believable at his age but he can. Having said that, while I have no problem with him revisiting Rambo, it would be a travesty if he dusted off the boxing gloves for another Rocky. The last installment, Rocky Balboa, was a beautiful ending to that immortal franchise.

Friday the 13th- I have a strong feeling there will be more than a few curiosity seekers for this re-imagined version of the 1980 classic slasher film. The film should have a sizable opening in the 30 million dollar range. Paramount will release repackaged DVD versions of the original ten Jason films next week in anticipation of a short term bounce in the popularity of the long running horror character. While no one is going to mistake these films for high art they are pretty effective in the genre and a fun watch. I‘m looking forward to the new spin on things when it hits theaters Feb 13.

Friday Night Lights- Easily the best show on television that very few people are watching. Writers of this program continue to churn out one terrific episode after another. This is a show that always feels real. It never has contrived resolutions to story threads and is very well acted and involving. As far as I’m concerned the show is even better than the movie – which I thought was great. It’s currently pulling in around 5 million viewers on NBC, Friday nights, after airing first on Direct TV in 2008 as part of a deal worked out between the two broadcast companies. I’m hoping it survives to see a season 3. In terms of quality it’s a no-brainer.

January 31, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | , , | 1 Comment

   

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