First Blood (1982)
First Blood (also known as Rambo: First Blood) is a 1982 American action film directed by Ted Kotcheff, and co-written by Sylvester Stallone, who also stars as Vietnam War veteran John Rambo. It co-stars Richard Crenna as Rambo’s mentor Sam Trautman and Brian Dennehy as Sheriff Will Teasle. It is the first installment in the Rambo franchise, followed by Rambo: First Blood Part II. The film is based on the 1972 novel First Blood by David Morrell, which many directors and studios had unsuccessfully attempted to adapt in the 1970s. In the film, Rambo is a troubled and misunderstood Vietnam veteran who must rely on his combat and survival skills when a series of brutal events results in him having to survive a massive manhunt by police and government troops near the small town of Hope, Washington.
Plot:
Vietnam War veteran John Rambo makes his way to the outskirts of a small town called Hope, Washington, in search of an old comrade, only to learn that his friend had died the previous year of cancer, brought on by exposure to Agent Orange during the war. Entering the town, Rambo is intercepted by the local sheriff, Will Teasle, who immediately takes a disliking to Rambo due to his unkempt hair, army jacket and generally messy appearance. Teasle however, offers Rambo a lift to “make sure he is headed in the right direction”. When Rambo, now in Teasle’s car, asks for directions to a diner, Teasle tells him that there’s a diner 30 miles up the highway.
Teasle then drives Rambo to the outskirts of the town before dropping him off and telling him that Portland, where Rambo had initially said he was headed, lies straight ahead. As Teasle drives off headed back into the town, he spots Rambo trying to return. Infuriated, Teasle arrests Rambo on charges of vagrancy, resisting arrest, and possessing a concealed knife before bringing him to the police station. Led by the sadistic chief deputy Art Galt, Teasle’s officers abuse Rambo, triggering flashbacks of the torture he endured as a POW in Vietnam. When they try to dry-shave him with a straight razor, Rambo snaps.
Filming:
The film was shot in the Fraser Valley of British Columbia, Canada on a $15 million budget beginning on November 15, 1981, and continuing until April 1982. The town scenes in the movie were shot in Hope and the nearby Othello Tunnels, called Chapman Gorge in the film, while the rest of the movie was shot in Capilano Canyon, Golden Ears Provincial Park and Pitt Lake in Pitt Meadows. During the production Buzz Feitshans replaced producer Ed Carlin, who suffered a heart attack. The locations chosen for the film initially experienced unseasonably warm and sunny weather during the filming, which posed challenges since the crew had counted on an overcast setting. However, a period of heavy snowfall beginning in January 1982 delayed the production by two months.