Set in the jungles of Thailand, John Rambo (Stallone) is living out a nihilistic existence collecting snakes and fishing for a living.
When a band of naïve missionaries come to him looking for a boat ride to Burma to help bring medical supplies to civil war torn villagers, he reluctantly agrees.
But when the group are ambushed by the savage Burmese army and kidnapped, Rambo must lead a group of mercenaries to help save them, and try to save himself in the process.

Tackling the writing and directing duties as well as the lead role, you could be forgiven for thinking Stallone may be taking on more than he can handle.

But yet again it's a victory for nostalgia.

Although Rambo may be getting on in years compared to his earlier three outings, the body count is no less weighty.

Apparently containing 2.59 kills every minute, there are a number of massacre scenes that would give Saving Private Ryan a run for its money.

And the unabashed severity of the explicit deaths including limbs flying off, eviscerations, and a well executed bow and arrow scene (no pun intended), certainly shows that Stallone is more than able to up the ante on the action front - even if it potentially puts off some audience members.

Occasionally the story does get a little muddled with mixed messages that desperately lack subtlety.

But amidst the standardised characters, armies of faceless foes, and a predictable story that is riddled with cliché quotes, what you are left with is an old school action movie that is as savage as it is fun.

It may lack the complexity and depth of Rocky's recent resurfacing, but fans of the Rambo series should enjoy the OTT violence in this straight forward popcorn-flick.

7/10 - Grizzly, mostly mindless, but great fun!