Ultimate Rambo Collection review

Ultimate Rambo Collection spans a quarter of a century of testosterone-fuelled mayhem. The recent Rambo sees the rebirth of Sylvester Stallone’s second most popular character (after Rocky), an ex-Vietnam veteran with a chip on his shoulder the size of Texas. In the latest movie he’s taking on the wicked Burmese militia and putting paid to their slaughter fest of local villagers. In his debut adventure, First Blood, he single-handedly turns the tables on a town of rednecks, in Rambo: First Blood Part II (co-written by James Cameron) he rescues some American POWs from behind communist lines, while in Rambo III our eponymous hero repels the might of the Soviet Army in Afghanistan. It’s all high-octane chills and spills, even if the second and third films are pretty awful.

Richard W Holliss: Starting at the end, the picture quality on Rambo is superb.This hi-def transfer offers a level of detail that you’d be hard pressed to find in your local multiplex. In comparison, First Blood, while a decent widescreen transfer, is rather murky in places.
That said, it’s only fair to point out that the entire movie is shot in a mist-shrouded location. The second and third instalments look just dandy in high-def (all four movies have an aspect ratio of 2.35:1).

Steve May: Despite their vintage, the first three flicks movies all come with a DTS-HD Master Audio sound mix. However, the sound design is firmly routed in the ‘80s. First Blood’s syrupy score is locked centre-stage, alongside most of the dialogue. Foley effects are thin and brittle, there’s no significant LFE and sound steerage is restricted. Rambo: First Blood Part II follows a similar path. Rambo III easily has the best balance of the originals. The dialogue is richer and more naturalistic, and there’s plenty of wraparound.
Predictably, the brand-new Rambo has the most impressive soundmix – a fulsome and exciting Dolby TrueHD experience. When Rambo takes out his first victim with an arrow, it flies from back-right to centre with satisfying accuracy. However, the disc is audibly inferior to Lionsgate’s US release, which offers a superior 7.1 DTS-HD MA track. The aforementioned arrow-pan is much more clearly defined, and better imaging generally means a more visceral experience.

Anton van Beek: The extras are hit and miss. The only thing accompanying each of the first three films is an identical interview with Stallone. It’s pretty uninteresting and padded out with endless clips, and, considering the commentaries and featurettes on Lionsgate’s region-free US BD boxset, a bit galling. Rambo, however, enjoys all of the extras from the DVD (in HD) and an exclusive BonusView commentary that drops out of the film at key points with behind-the-scenes footage, interviews and more.

Optimum Releasing, Region B Blu-ray, £70
HCC VERDICT: 3/5