8 Awesome 80’s Thrillers That Still Hold Up Today

3. First Blood (1982)

Director: Ted Kotcheff Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Brian Dennehey First Blood deals with a shameful period in American history, a time when the United States received its returning war veterans as burden on society. Many of those that opposed the war took it out of the men who fought it, a wrong that€™s never been adequately righted, except perhaps in movies like this one. Johnny Rambo is a Vietnam War veteran passing through a small Oregon town, presided over by a police chief played by character actor Brian Dennehey. Dennehey is the small town sheriff you love to hate, and though a stereotypical character, Dennehey plays him with just the right amount of arrogance, ignorance and prejudice. Ultimately Johnny is pushed to his limit, and strikes back. Bullets fly and we€™ve got ourselves a Stallone action picture. We acknowledge that categorizing First Blood as a thriller will be a stretch for many, but bear with us. A thriller is first and foremost defined by the mood it elicits from the audience, or the tone it projects. First Blood is a film that should be taken out of context with its sequels. In Hitchcockian style, First Blood takes an average man and thrusts him into extraordinary circumstances, the suspense the result of the character€™s journey to free himself of the oppression of the local police. Johnny Rambo is at his most sympathetic in this film. The audience sees the injustice in Johnny€™s treatment by the police, and suspense builds as we realize that a confrontation is inevitable. First Blood is the best of the Rambo films. The story matters, and the character of Johnny Rambo is played here as a victim of prejudice fighting the system as opposed to an action hero on a mission. It€™s a remarkable distinction, and Stallone pulls it off very well. Costar Richard Crenna provides just the right tone as Johnny€™s former commanding officer. He sympathizes with Johnny€™s plight but urges him to do the right thing and surrender.