First Blood [Ultimate Edition]

Director: Ted Kotcheff Ted Kotcheff

Overview

"John Rambo is back for the forth time on DVD with this Ultimate Edition of First Blood from Lion's Gate Home Entertainment. What's special about this release is not just the newly added audio commentary from Stallone himself; the disc's producer's have also finally unearthed the never-before-seen alternate suicide ending -- a virtual Holy Grail of film footage long talked about, but rarely seen. Add onto that an outtake and yet another bonus flashback featuring a steamy sex scene (yes, you heard it right), and suddenly this reissue becomes worth the buy. However packed those extras might be, though, that doesn't seem to be enough for the Ultimate Edition. In probably one of the most overblown bonuses since the Blair Witch 2's ""The Secret of Esrever"" DVD feature, First Blood and both of its sequels have been graced with a ""Survival Mode"" feature that is every bit as worthless as it sounds. Using branching technology, the disc's producers have outfitted the DVD to give the viewer access to special character information, map recreations, and some rather ridiculous animations that serve no purpose other than to just be ""flashy."" The fact that they have chosen a name like ""Survival Mode"" to represent all of these features is fitting, since watching the film like this really is like a game of endurance for people with very little time on their hands. Other than the uneven group of bonus features, the 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen picture looks stunning, with deep contrasts that enhance the gloom of the film, while the 5.1 Dolby Digital audio sports a exemplary mix that pulls you into the action yet still manages to handle the outdoor setting in a natural and absorbing way. As far as the commentary goes, Stallone delivers a fun track that borders on being a little too Inside the Actors Studio at times, but which is full of insight into the scripting and especially the casting (keep your ear open for the Kirk Douglas story). The alternate ending is faulted only because it lived on as a film legend for so long, which says nothing about its quality -- though it is actually quite short. When all is said and done, the disc is worth purchasing for first-time buyers of the series and for hardcore fans who salivate at the thought of the new extras. This DVD is also available in a three-disc Collector's Set of all three Ultimate Edition discs of this blockbuster series."

Product Details

Release Date:	11/23/2004
UPC:	0012236163565
Original Release:	1982
Rating:	R
Source:	LIONSGATE - 600000-AEC LGE
Region Code:	1
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:36:00
Sales rank:	5,784

Special Features

Closed Caption;Groundbreaking military special operations features including: Survival Mode - enhance your Rambo experience with a suite of special ops playback upgrades; Early Warning System (EWS) - get advance notification of upcoming Survival Mode viewing enhancements; MetaBrief - access instant intelligence dossiers at critical moments in the film; MetaScope - scope out people, places, and events as they occur in the movie; MetaSight - acquire enemies and objectives via laser-guided targeting; MetaPoint - track action with a picture-in-picture radar sweep of topography and terrain; MetaMap - dial in a 3-D onscreen satellite positioning map; 16 x 9 widescreen version (2.35:1 aspect ratio); 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround; Sylvester Stallone commentary; Never-before-seen alternate ending

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Sylvester Stallone	Rambo
Richard Crenna	Trautman
Brian Dennehy	Teasle
Bill McKinney	Kern
Jack Starrett	Galt
Michael Talbott	Balford
Chris Mulkey	Ward
John McLiam	Orval
Alf Humphreys	Lester
David Caruso	Mitch
David L. Crowley	Shingleton(as David Crowley)
Don MacKay	Preston(as Don Mackay)
Charles A. Tamburro	Pilot(as Chuck Tamburro)
Craig Huston	Radio Operator(as Craig Wright Huston)
Patrick Stack	Lt. Clinton Morgen
Stephen E. Miller	Guardsman #1
Raimund Stamm	Guardsman #2
Robert Metcalfe	Guardsman #3
Stephen Dimopoulos	Guardsman #4
Bruce Greenwood	Guardsman #5
Earl Klein	Guardsman #6
Danny Wozna	Boy
Frank Tamburo	Actor
Donald Adams	Guard C.O
Suzee Pai	Actor

Technical Credits

G. Moonblood

Ted Kotcheff	Director
Mario Kassar	Executive Producer
Andrew G. Vajna	Executive Producer
Buzz Feitshans	Producer
G. Moonblood	Screenwriter
Herbert Nanas	Producer
Lynn Stalmaster	Casting
Toni Howard	Casting
Rob Young	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

Before John Rambo became one of the most parodied action figures in film history, known primarily for strafing deserts full of enemies with his machine gun, First Blood introduced him as a hunted dog just trying to stay alive after a wrongful arrest. In a performance mostly free from dialogue, which many agree finds Sylvester Stallone at his best, the actor makes frantic escape an engrossing experience. The film's middle portion is its best, as Rambo sprints through a dense forest, emerging bleeding but intact after many near misses, including the memorable moment when he's forced to leap from the side of a rocky crag, hoping against hope that the evergreens beneath him will provide cushion. That Rambo's survival instincts often involve killing innocent cops is rendered less offensive by the first act, in which he is imprisoned merely for looking sketchy and utterly mishandled by every station of hick cop. A film whose skewed morality is best ignored in favor of veteran action director Ted Kotcheff's finesse with crisp set pieces, First Blood was a hit whose relative subtlety was quickly overshadowed by the box-office bravura and overblown idiocy of its sequels.