Sly—Not Rambo—to Take on Myanmar This Time

So Stallone is following up Rambo 4 , which has cast some light on the brutal regime in Myanmar (the former Burma), with a personal commitment to agitate in the cause of anti-junta forces there, if necessary.

“With the release of ‘Rambo,’ anti-junta activists are using the film’s lines such as ‘Live for nothing, die for something’ as rallying points with hopes that the world will hear their cries and that it may spur a change of regime,” writes reporter Nathan Black.

Among other notable points made in this article:

? “A week after ‘Rambo’ made a nearly No. 1 box office debut . . . ” “Nearly No. 1” means No. 2 (and now No. 5).

? “People finally got the idea of how brutal these people are,” said Stallone, whose conversion to the Christian faith during the filming of ‘Rocky Balboa’ reportedly impacted the storyline to the latest Rambo entry.” As far as he has discussed his renewed spiritual life, Stallone has returned to the Catholic Church of his upbringing. He has not “converted” as the term is commonly understood.

? “Stallone said he will be making a fifth and final installment of ‘Rambo.’” In fact, he has come out and said just the opposite .

The brutality of the dictatorship in Myanmar is undisputed, as is the need for more attention to be brought to the Karen people and the horrors they have endured. Whether a film drenched in blood and shot like a first-person-shooter computer game is the best way to go about this is what’s doubtful. (It is interesting to note that Stallone has been talking recently of remaking Death Wish —the “classic” revenge film of the 1970s era of urban street crime nightmares. Rambo 4 plays out much like a revenge film, even if Stallone’s intentions were more high-minded.)