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James Cameron wrote the first draft forRambo : First blood line Part IIbefore Sylvester Stallone made some major changes to the script . James Cameron worked onRambo : First Blood Part IIprior to the release ofThe TerminatorandAliens , the latter of which he wrote at the same time as theFirst Bloodsequel . Cameron and Stallone are both credit as screenwriters onRambo : First Blood Part II , but the franchise ’s leading man had final say on what made the cut . Sylvester Stallone rewrote or removed much of James Cameron ’s work , resulting in aRambomovie very unlike from Cameron ’s original vision .
Sylvester Stallone first portrayed Vietnam War veteran soldier John J. Rambo in 1982’sFirst Blood , based on David Morrell ’s 1972 novel of the same name . The movie was a major financial success , spawning a flock of continuation beginning with 1985’sRambo : First Blood Part II . James Cameron , a relative unknown at the time , was hired to publish a first draft for the sequel based on a Kevin Jarre history discourse that see Rambo returning to Vietnam to deliver prisoners of warfare . TitledFirst Blood II : The Mission , Cameron ’s screenplay adopted the same canonic social organisation of the first movie with the added violence that the natural action - heavy story demanded .
have-to doe with : Rambo Movie Timeline Explained
James Cameron’s Rambo Would Have Been Hospitalized
The psychological effect of state of war was more prominent in original writer James Cameron ’s screenplay , which begin with Colonel Trautman encounter John Rambo in the neuropsychiatry wing of a veteran ’s infirmary . Sylvester Stallone instead has Trautman visiting Rambo in a prison lying-in camp . Throughout the series , it is understood that the state of war had an effect on Rambo , but the juridic organization apparently found him of sound enough mind to not require mental health discourse . The changes paint Rambo as less a victim of his experience and more a product of his actions . Cameron would later revisit his approximation to begin a sequel with the lead character hospitalize inTerminator 2 : Judgement Day .
begin with John Rambo hospitalized in a neuropsychiatry offstage would bring into question his enlisting for the rescue mission . In the motion picture , Colonel Trautman tells Rambo , " Your name was dug out by the electronic computer as one of three most capable to complete the mission . " Despite the obvious combat skills and wartime experience Rambo has accumulated through the class , it is extremely unlikely the military would choose someone who has been hospitalize for a covert commission . One of the other names that the computing equipment dug up would be a better fit , given Rambo ’s psychological state .
Related : What Happened To Trautman After Rambo 3 ( & His Cut Role In Rambo 4 )
Cameron’s Rambo Would Have Had A Comedic Sidekick
The producers ofRambo : First rakehell Part IIwanted a sidekick to go with Rambo on his delivery charge and allegedly intended for John Travolta to play the part . Travolta and various otheractors almost played RamboinFirst Bloodbefore the role hold up to Sylvester Stallone . Cameron ’s first draft includes a sidekick who , in addition to assisting the main character with technical expertness , provides comedic ministration . Ultimately , Stallone ’s script remove this approximation . It did , however , provide Rambo with some supporter via Vietnamese resistance fighter Co Phuong Bao , played by Julia Nickson .
Co Phuong Bao adds an emotional stratum toRambo : First rakehell Part IIthat would have been absent hadJohn Travolta starred inRambo 2as a comedy sidekick . Co Phuong Bao receive Rambo to spread up about his yesteryear , and the two finally commence a romance together . After Lieutenant Tay of the North Vietnamese army kill Co Bao , Rambo quest for his mission with renewed vigor as he seeks retaliation for her death . Rambo ’s story becomes more tragical after his good chance at a normal life is abruptly taken from him .
James Cameron Gave the Prisoners of War Detailed Backstories
The prisoner of war are at the center ofRambo : First Blood Part II ’s storey , and under James Cameron ’s original plan , they would have been more developed theatrical role . Cameron pen elaborate backstories for each prisoner to be give away throughout the course of instruction of the story . Stallone cut most of this material , make for a loaded , simpler tale focused on Rambo rather than the men he is rescue .
Delving into detailed backstories would have increased the movie ’s runtime and changed the pacing of the action . Sylvester Stallone’sRambo : First Blood Part IIscreenplay gets to the activity quicker and does not vary from its chief storyline . In some cases , Stallone also edited the fundamental interaction between Rambo and the prisoner to further cut down on runtime and keep the dialogue more streamlined .
Stallone’s Final Script Had More Extreme Violence
James Cameron ’s script for the Rambo sequel was , by nature , more fierce than the first motion-picture show since it had Rambo embarking on a dangerous deputation behind foe line of credit . However , Cameron attempted to take the air the same fine line asFirst Blood , which effectively portrayed Rambo as a highly skilled killer whale despite having him kill only one person . Instead , Rambo trust on his cunning and ingenuity to rase the forces opposing him .
Sylvester Stallone ’s rewrites for the subsequence have Rambo killing more promiscuously , and plausibly more often , than what James Cameron designate . In the climax , for good example , Rambo makes no try at a surreptitious saving . He flies into summer camp on a helicopter raze everything in his course with a barrage of bullets and missile before continue on substructure and spraying the country with machine gun for hire fire .
touch : Tarantino Thinks Stallone ’s First Blood Misunderstood Rambo ( & He ’s correct )
Stallone’s Rewrites Were More Political
sure lines of dialogue inRambo : First pedigree Part II , like the John Rambo language to Colonel Sam Trautman in theRambo 2ending , can come across as political in nature . James Cameron ’s script distanced itself from these elements of the sequel , with the original draft presenting a somewhat realistic story of a haunted Vietnam War warhorse without the politics . Despite some of the dialogue Stallone apply Rambo , the principal has publicly said that Rambo was never supposed to make a political statement .
Stallone clarified Rambo ’s scene ( viaTHR ) , saying , " Rambo is entirely neutral . He does n’t even live on in this country . He feels reject by it . " This sentiment comes across in the final spoken language ofRambo : First Blood Part II , in which Rambo reveals that all he and every other guy who fought in Vietnam need is " for our country to love us as much as we love it . " Had James Cameron ’s less politically - charged script forRambo First roue : Part IIremained in shoes , however , he may not have needed to point out this distinction .
Sources : THR
