Rambo (2008)

"Rambo" is only like one of two action movies that I can say I truly love. I'm typically not a fan of the action genre as it always feels to me like they're holding back on the violence and blood for the sake of marketing to younger audiences - replacing it with the over-utilization of cartoonish cliches. So then after 10 years since the last movie, Stallone takes the directorial reins for the fourth installment in the Rambo/First Blood series - orchestrating what is basically the "Braindead" of action films.

John Rambo is living relatively quietly in Columbia as a snake capturer when he's approached by some missionaries who want to hire him to transport them - via rickety boat - to a village in Burma to do some bullshit peace work. He reluctantly does and the village is eventually pillaged by the sadistic Burmese military who capture them for sex slavery and pig food. Rambo is then called upon again to join up with some mercenaries to rescue them...

Stallone closed out the franchise with an insanely gritty, no-holds-barred bloodbath without any  bullshit. It takes itself very seriously (which I like...) and has some very chaotic, grim and unpleasant depictions of genocide, involving up-close dismemberment, exploding bodies and even children being torched alive. Nothing is candy-coated, which makes for a satisfying conclusion which has Rambo blasting a guy at point-blank range with a .50 cal before essentially making hamburger meat out of an entire army. Guts and limbs are flying fast and furious and it's fucking epic. No snappy one-liners or romantic sub-plot to draw in the female audience. No implied violence or punches pulled. Everything is pretty much done perfectly and makes for some fast-paced, wall-to-wall carnage that will surly keep you satisfied. If you haven't seen it then you're definitely missing out.