The once and future action hero Sylvester Stallone delivers 9/10 of a taut, sobering, bloody thriller about the futility of trying to change people in Rambo, which opened nationwide on Friday. Director, co-writer and star Stallone has it in him to make a penetrating, multi-layered story that isn't afraid to look at the dark side of Vietnam vet turned murderous killing machine John J. Rambo. But in the end, just like Rambo, Stallone can't help being true to himself.

The fourth film based on a character originally created by novelist David Morrell in 1972, the newest edition posits that Rambo has returned to Thailand after his adventures in Afghanistan in Rambo III. Nearly 20 years have passed in real life, but in the film the time period is left unspoken. News footage refers to a breakdown in nearby Burma -- a country that officially changed its name to Myanmar in the late 1980s -- and atrocities being committed by the military against defenseless villagers. Whatever the year, Rambo has settled back into a peaceful lifestyle. He hunts snakes for a living and has lost any spiritual or political beliefs he might have once held.

When a Christian missionary relief group seeks to hire his fishing boat for a trip up river to deliver Bibles and medical supplies, he initially refuses. Michael Burnett (Paul Schulze), the group's leader, is earnest and stiff, imploring Rambo to help because they believe they can change people's lives. Rambo asks, "Did you bring weapons?" "Of course not!" Rambo replies, "Then you're not changing anything." Thus the seed is planted for a classic confrontation between good and evil.

Last week, Cinematical brought you an interview with Sylvester Stallone about his latest action extravaganza -- Rambo, the fourth film in the series. (Check out that discussion here.) This week, we have a junket report with the supporting cast. You probably know the lovely Julie Benz from her role as Dexter's girlfriend Rita on the Showtime drama Dexter. She plays Sarah in Rambo, a kidnapped missionary. Graham McTavish and Matthew Marsden play members of Rambo's ass-kickin' mercenary posse.

Julie, your hair looks so different!

Julie Benz: I know! I woke up this morning and I was a brunette, go figure! No, it's for The Punisher 2.

And in that movie you play --

JB: My character in Punisher 2 is Angela Donatelli, she's an Italian from Brooklyn, New York. My character in Rambo, Sarah, is very soft and vulnerable. Angela's got a bit more of an edge. She's a fighter, she's a mama bear, she has a child she's protecting. She's not really happy with anybody; she's in a bad mood!

As I eased into my seat to watch Sylvester Stallone crack some skulls in Rambo -- the first Rambo movie in twenty years -- I'll admit to feeling a bit giddy. A blast of 1980s excess is exactly what the slumping action genre needs right now, if you ask me. To paraphrase the old John Candy SCTV character -- I wanted to see everything get blowed up real good. So you can imagine my surprise when the film opened with a montage of real-life footage documenting atrocities in Burma. And this is serious stuff -- we're talking slaughtered women and children here. Quickly, my excitement turned to discomfort and disgust. But just as I was preparing to mount my high horse and cry "Exploitation!," I started to get excited again. Because I knew that Rambo was going to get the bastards responsible.

It's an uneasy reaction, but that's what Rambo does! Whether he's standing up to authority in First Blood, symbolically winning the Vietnam War for America in Part II, or saving Afghanistan from the Soviets (ah, how times have changed!) in Rambo III, Rambo's job is to take the action that no one else will. And it can be pretty exhilarating to watch. In interviews, Stallone (who also wrote and directed Rambo) has said he hopes the new film will force people to take note of the civil war raging in Burma. But let's be honest here -- the guy's using an immeasurably tragic situation to make his action movie more effective. And distasteful as it may be -- it works.

After the critical and commercial success of Rocky Balboa, which I adored, who can blame Sylvester Stallone for wanting to bring another of his iconic characters back to the big screen? Rocky Balboa surprised people with how heartfelt and genuinely moving it was. Rambo (and yes, it's just called Rambo now) will shock people with how serious and shockingly violent it is. Set against the very real, very disturbing situation in Burma, Rambo finds Stallone on a mission to rescue a group of missionaries from sadistic Burmese soldiers.

Do you ever imagine a world where you shot the original ending of the novel First Blood (John Rambo commits suicide), and you hadn't had Rambo with you all these years?

SYLVESTER STALLONE: Yeah, I think about that all the time. I had that debate with Quentin Tarantino, and he was vehement that I made a mistake. On an artistic level, he's probably right. But at the time, I had been spending a lot of time doing research with veterans, and it seemed like this terrible, nihilistic...they just reveled in complete despair. And at that time, we had had almost a quarter of a million Vietnam suicides. So I thought, do I want to end it on that note? Or make him more of a victim who has been created to do a job, does a job, comes home, and no longer fits in? It's like training a pit bull. You train a dog to become a killer and now what do you do? You gotta put him down. But what happens if that pit bull gets loose and you realize he's not as bad as you think, you can somehow redeem him. I thought that was more of an interesting story. As Kirk Douglas says, "Not artistic, but commercial!"

Did you have to go back and look at the previous Rambo movies to get back into character?

SS: The ponderousness that comes with aging, the sense of weight, knowledge, knowing too much, lack of naivete, which has happened in my life, sort of set the stage for me. I wanted Rambo to be heavier, bulkier -- that's why his first line of the movie is pretty negative, he's given up. The other Rambos had a bit too much energy, they were a little too spry. I'm not trying to run myself down, but there was much more vanity involved. It was all about body movement, rather than just the ferocity. This character, to me, is much more interesting. I like First Blood and I like this one. So it's like the first Rocky and the last -- Rocky Balboa. Everything in between is kind of trying to figure out what I should do.

Yeah, so I wasn't too into the whole John Rambo movie until I saw the trailer. Then everything changed. There's just something about a guy who is seriously, and not in a Kill Bill fashion, killing every guy in the goriest, toughest way possible. The trailer looks all sorts of campy, action-film awesome -- fresh-looking with that feel of the action-packed '80s where dudes like Sly, Jean Claude, Dolph, and a certain Chuck thrived. The only problem I have is with these damned pictures. Some are cool, but some, like the last one I blogged about, just slide into the goofy side of camp. And no, this isn't because I'm "too pink" as one commenter amusingly suggested.

When I see a picture, I just want to get amped about the film, not find myself giggling -- especially when it's a bloody action movie. The still with Sly and the snake -- it had some humor. The picture to the right, this one amused me even more. Courtesy of MTV, this puppy has Rambo taking aim with his bow while sporting his furrowed brow and pursed lips. Unfortunately, it looks like one of those times where you try to make the real serious face and it just tries to come off as a fake attempt. Stallone looks half tough here, and half pouty, like he's about to just thrown down his bow and complain. Or, that a guy behind the camera is telling Sly not to laugh, and he's trying so very hard to keep himself serious.

But that's okay. The actual action looks all sorts of awesome, and I'm ready to see him save Julie Benz. How about you?

The first teaser poster for the new Rambo movie has debuted over at IGN, and with it comes another interesting development. Is that a new title we see on the poster? Is the sequel now simply titled Rambo? The last thing we heard was that Sylvester Stallone was going with Harry Knowles' suggestion to hang on to the working title, John Rambo, after internet criticism of "Rambo to Hell and Back" made the actor-director rethink that one. Of course, this poster would have had to have been designed before all that, so it's more likely that they went with "Rambo" because it's the most easily associated name to use for a tease campaign. It's like making a poster that just says "Indiana Jones". You don't need a full title to get people pumped.

As for the rest of the poster design, I'm into it. The black and white with rain thing makes me think of Sin City, and I'm always supportive of a minimal design with stark contrast. It is a little weird, however, that the background is white on one side and black on the other, only because the black background parts aren't as noticeable. If they're going for a representation of Rambo's internal conflict, they've allowed for the good (white) to be the focus. Of course, that could be the point. But then they shouldn't bother having Stallone facing his back towards us. Besides the fact that the pose is being overused in poster design this year (see this, and this, and this, and this, and this, and this, and this, and this, and this), the closed-off image makes us think about Rambo having some heavy issues. Then again, his head is turned toward the -- wait a second; I just realized I'm analyzing a Rambo poster. Sorry. Umm. Hey, look at that cool machete. This movie is going to rock!

As you may have heard, there's another Rambo sequel coming January 25th, starring and co-written/directed by Sylvester Stallone. IMDb lists a variety of considered titles for the movie, including Rambo IV: End of Peace (eh), Rambo IV: Holy War (it rhymes), and Rambo IV: Pearl of the Cobra (hilarious). Most recently it was called Rambo IV: In the Serpent's Eye -- obviously the greatest title in action movie history -- but maybe that sounded a bit too direct-to-DVD. So they changed it again. Following the success of Rocky Balboa (which I absolutely loved), the title switched to John Rambo. I'm all about that simple name title -- it brings a touch of restraint and class to a movie I'm fairly certain will have neither. "This January...spend Martin Luther King Day with an old friend...John Rambo." Perfect. Done. But no. They've scrapped the title yet again!

Now the movie is called Rambo to Hell and Back. I agree with Josh over at Cinema Blend that the title doesn't really work without a colon. Rambo to Hell and Back just isn't a complete thought. Titles like Ernest to Camp or Ernest to Jail don't make sense, you have to put a verb in there somewhere. I guess they're not using the word "Goes" (as in Rambo Goes to Hell and Back) because it would be to close to Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday (which, it is worth pointing out, was not the final Friday). But how about something like Rambo Rocks It to Hell and Back? Or Rambo Blows Dudes' Heads Up All the Way to Hell and Back? Too long? Not to worry, it easily abbreviates to RBDHUATWTHAB. Oh well. Never mind that Stallone looks like a 'roided up Liza Minnelli in the movie. No matter what they call it, all the Serpents, Cobras, and Holy Wars in the world couldn't keep me from seeing this film. I'd...to hell and back in order to see the thing.

UPDATE: Sly Stallone says he's staying with John Rambo after folks bashed this new title. Read all about it over on AICN.

The man known in most circles as Sly Stallone surprised the heck out of people last winter with Rocky Balboa -- the sixth and final installment in Stallone's 31 year-old boxing franchise. It was a slow film, sure, but it reflected Sly's age, as well as the physical and mental spot Rocky was in. Now, however, Stallone is going in a completely different direction with John Rambo -- the fourth and final installment in Stallone's 25 year-old action franchise. Co-written and directed by Stallone (first time he's helming a Rambo flick), the couple of teasers we've been shown so far clearly reveal that Sly is still a lean, mean fighting machine -- and for those who thought he might be holding back due to age or whatever, you'll need to check out this latest trailer (if you can call it that -- it's more like a montage of clips) in which John Rambo is violent as all hell.

And I love the way the film looks too -- there seems to be none of this Hollywood-style hiding of the blood; John Rambo makes no doubt about the fact that it will be a high-octane, balls-to-the-wall, R-rated action flick ... and I don't know about you, but we need one of those. In the film, Rambo is placed in charge of rescuing a group of Christian human rights missionaries after a group of brutal Burmese army men take them hostage. Aiding Rambo on his mission are five young mercenaries -- although I have a feeling our man won't need their help much. Also starring in the film are Julie Benz, Matthew Marsden and newcomer Maung Maung Khim, as the villainous Major Pa Tee Tint. John Rambo is due out this December.

If you're pushing 40 when you make the first film in a popular action franchise, it's obviously going to be pretty tough to return to the character years later -- at least, if you're keeping the same theme and not making it a geriatric action flick. In the beginning, Rambo was a tough-looking man with muscles and guns. These days, Sylvester Stallone obviously isn't as buff as he was in the 80's, so showing the sweaty, dirty muscles are out. What has remained, however, is the straggly hair and sweatband. Now, I know this is Rambo, free from a reimagining, but couldn't fans believe that he might change his look from the 80's 'do at some point over the last 20 years?

The point of all this -- we've got new pictures to check out from the upcoming John Rambo flick, which has Stallone taking on the role again at the ripe age of 62. In one, it looks like he's decided that tough guys fish with a bow and arrow, and in the other, he's wrasslin' a snake. He's doing so in what looks like sweats, a t-shirt and the sweat-catching bandana. My problem with this -- it looks a lot more like he's just been swiped from a pigsty of a house while burping on beer and remembering the good ol' days. True, the movie says he has secluded himself in Bangkok, but still -- if the 60-something man is going to become the action hero once again, you should do everything to make him look cool and tough, not mulleted and bedraggled. As it stands, he looks like a caricature of the past. That being said, Stallone does look damn good for an almost-senior citizen.

Well, it had to happen: with almost every ancient action franchise having been resuscitated, it was inevitable that Sylvester Stallone would -- after inflicting the adventures of Rocky Balboa on us -- be back with John Rambo. And, with the film nearly a year away from its projected May, 2008 release date, some pictures from John Rambo (directed by Stallone himself, you know) have leaked out to the net to whet our appetites, along with this early trailer. You can find the four shots -- of Stallone looking bedraggled, bruised and bloody -- right here.

I'm by-and-large unimpressed with this idea -- Rambo, to me, seems like Forrest Gump or Dick Clark's non-retirement: one of those regrettable, semi-toxic lingering, cultural remnants of Reaganism. At the same time, John Rambo includes, among its many writers, Jeb Stuart -- the man who wrote the first Die Hard film -- so there's a dim chance it might have some action-flick goodness. And, frankly, while I think there's nothing worse than making unkind comments about an actor's physical appearance, I cannot deny that in some of these shots, Stallone looks, well, like a crumpled up scrap of red leather that's been found at the back of the Ikea storehouse. What say you, audiences -- is John Rambo going to be something you're looking forward to -- or just an expensive vanity project to be laughed at? And bear in mind before you answer – when John Rambo hits the big screens, it will have been nearly 26 years since the actually-not-that-bad First Blood lit up theater screens...