13 Movies That Contradict Their Own Message

9. Rambo

The Intended Message: War is hell.

The Real Message: War is entertainment.

Though the first Rambo movie, First Blood, was a damning indictment of war's toll with a terrific central performance by Sylvester Stallone, the second and third movie became increasingly inane shoot 'em up sequels.

Then 2008's Rambo came along, promising a more cerebral, visceral story closer in tone to the original, and while it's certainly far less insulting than the prior sequels, it still suffers from an overall mixed message.

The horrors of war are depicted with an unflinching sobriety for the movie's first two acts, but the final reel is an orgy of violence so excessive it basically verges on comical.

As Rambo rips guts out, knocks heads off and explodes an entire truck full of soldiers with a mounted .50 cal (complete with their guts sliding down the front of the mounted gun), audiences are clearly supposed to pump their fists and cheer on the "hero" during his latest mental illness-induced killing spree.

Nobody's saying Rambo should be a pacifist, but the movie's tone takes a significant shift in the final stretch, transforming from a surprisingly thoughtful horrors-of-war movie into a relentless homage of cathartic, over-the-top gore.

A little more restraint here probably would've been a good thing. After all, First Blood wasn't exactly a gore-fest.