# Rambo: most violent mainstream movie ever made? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 24, 2008, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505 "2008-05-24T23:30:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/1 "2008-05-24T23:30:55Z")
I can’t think of another movie marketed to a mainstream audience that’s anywhere near as graphically violent. Or am I wrong? ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/2 "2008-05-24T23:42:21Z")
[QUOTE=lissener] I can’t think of another movie marketed to a mainstream audience that’s anywhere near as graphically violent. Or am I wrong? [/QUOTE] What are you talking about? Rambo doesn’t even feature any deaths! And its gore factor pales in comparison to most modern films. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/3 "2008-05-24T23:45:26Z")
Which Rambo are you talking about? There was like 4 of them. ---
**Author:** ![HubZilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ccd318/32.png) [@HubZilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HubZilla)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2008, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/4 "2008-05-24T23:56:18Z")
Saving Private Ryan? Starship Troopers? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/5 "2008-05-25T00:04:42Z")
According to [Movie Body Counts](http://www.moviebodycounts.com/) the most violent movie is _The Return of the King_ in which 836 people were killed on screen. Assuming you accept various non-human races like orcs as people - if you only count humans, its bodycount drops to 147. But that still beats _Rambo III_ - the most violent of the Rambo movies with 127 dead. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/6 "2008-05-25T00:21:16Z")
Again, I used the word \*graphically \*on purpose. None of the movies mentioned even approach \*Rambo \*for the graphic exploding gore that distinguishes each and every onscreen death. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/7 "2008-05-25T00:38:48Z")
[QUOTE=Revtim] Which Rambo are you talking about? There was like 4 of them. [/QUOTE] He must mean the most recent one, release internationally as John Rambo. It was called “Rambo” in America, the first one in the series to bear that name. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/8 "2008-05-25T00:56:41Z")
The newest one really is pretty graphic. Surprisingly so for a mainstream action flick. I don’t know about the _most_ graphic, though. I guess it depends on whether you consider something like _Kill Bill_ or the _Hostel_ films to be “mainstream.” ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/9 "2008-05-25T01:07:24Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] The newest one really is pretty graphic. Surprisingly so for a mainstream action flick. I don’t know about the _most_ graphic, though. I guess it depends on whether you consider something like _Kill Bill_ or the _Hostel_ films to be “mainstream.” [/QUOTE] Yeah. I’d go with mainstream for _KB_, but I still think \*Rambo \*out-graphics it; KB was pretty cartoonish, while \*Rambo \*is pretty, um, gritty. And no, films marketed strictly as torture porn I’m not considering as mainstream. In other words, if its only _raison d’etre_ is gore for gore’s sake, then no. But as a non-horror film, I can’t think of any other action, or war, or what genre you have, that’s anywhere near as graphically violent as _Rambo_. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_and\_a\_Half\_Inches\_of\_Fun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ea666f/32.png) [@Two\_and\_a\_Half\_Inches\_of\_Fun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_and_a_Half_Inches_of_Fun)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/10 "2008-05-25T01:28:08Z")
How about the _Saw_ films? You might not think they are mainstream, but they opened wide and all of them have made over $50 million dollars in the US alone. _Saw_ - $55 million, 2,467 theaters _Saw II_ - $87 million, 2,949 theaters _Saw III_ - $80 million, 3,167 theaters _Saw IV_ - $63 million, 3,183 theaters ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/11 "2008-05-25T01:34:11Z")
[QUOTE=Two and a Half Inches of Fun] How about the _Saw_ films? You might not think they are mainstream, but they opened wide and all of them have made over $50 million dollars in the US alone. _Saw_ - $55 million, 2,467 theaters _Saw II_ - $87 million, 2,949 theaters _Saw III_ - $80 million, 3,167 theaters _Saw IV_ - $63 million, 3,183 theaters [/QUOTE] Well again, see my post directly above yours. If the entire and only point of the movie is torture/gore porn, I’m not including that under the “mainstream” rubric. Obviously if you include movies made specifically to out-gore each other, no action or war movie that makes any attempt at realism is gonna come close. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_and\_a\_Half\_Inches\_of\_Fun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ea666f/32.png) [@Two\_and\_a\_Half\_Inches\_of\_Fun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_and_a_Half_Inches_of_Fun)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/12 "2008-05-25T01:38:20Z")
[QUOTE=lissener] Well again, see my post directly above yours. If the entire and only point of the movie is torture/gore porn, I’m not including that under the “mainstream” rubric. Obviously if you include movies made specifically to out-gore each other, no action or war movie that makes any attempt at realism is gonna come close. [/QUOTE] You cannot just define torture porn out of the mainstream. It is a part of the mainstream. Putting the issue the way you are is like asking: what is the funniest mainstream movie excluding comedies? ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/13 "2008-05-25T02:12:36Z")
That’s an interesting discussion; maybe someone will start a thread on it. Meanwhile, my question remains: Is \*Rambo _the most graphically violent mainstream_ movie ever? \*For definition of _mainstream_, see upthread; no point in retyping it all here. Unless someone wants a recap? ETA: If it will help you answer the question I’m sure you can get the sense that I’m asking, please supply your own word in place of “mainstream.” ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/14 "2008-05-25T03:09:35Z")
I didn’t see the film, but I did see a trailer for it which features a scene in which Rambo _punches a man’s head off_, and then uses a big machine gun to blow another man into giblets. All this is shown quite plainly in the trailer. If that’s what they have in the TRAILER, the movie must be unbelievable. So I’m going to guess it probably is the most graphically violent mainstream movie ever. The trailer was disgusting. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/15 "2008-05-25T03:20:50Z")
[QUOTE=lissener] I can’t think of another movie marketed to a mainstream audience that’s anywhere near as graphically violent. Or am I wrong? [/QUOTE] The aforementioned **Starship Troopers** (which I’d think you’d think of) is definitely more graphic than Rambo. I’d say **A History of Violence** (which was nominated for 2 Oscars) was too. Crossing over into horror movies, the **Dawn of the Dead** remake and the **Final Destination** movies (especially number 2) make Rambo look tame. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/16 "2008-05-25T03:24:41Z")
Hmm. He doesn’t punch a man’s head off in the movie–(who’da thunk it, a dishonest trailer?)–but he does slowly, almost lovingly remove a man’s throat with his bare hand. And then–my favorite–he stabs a guy, makes good solid eye contact with him, then yanks the knife out sideways. Then as the rolls down the hill, his top half’s rolling and his bottom half’s rolling are not quite synced. Subtle, but effective. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/17 "2008-05-25T03:52:01Z")
[QUOTE=Justin\_Bailey] The aforementioned **Starship Troopers** (which I’d think you’d think of) is definitely more graphic than Rambo. I’d say **A History of Violence** (which was nominated for 2 Oscars) was too. [/QUOTE] Wow, I disagree strongly; neither one is even in the same ballpark, IMO. What is it about those two movies that makes you think of them as more violent? You’ve seen _Rambo_, right? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/18 "2008-05-25T04:51:05Z")
You do seem to be setting up a “no true Scotsman” argument. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/19 "2008-05-25T04:59:34Z")
[QUOTE=Little Nemo] You do seem to be setting up a “no true Scotsman” argument. [/QUOTE] Can you start another thread for the hijack? I feel like I’ve been pretty clear, clear enough that there is not, in fact, any Scotsman in this thread at all. But I’d be \*thrilled \*to participate in a thread discussing the meaning of the word “mainstream” in this context. ---
**Author:** ![jormundgondir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/dfb087/32.png) [@jormundgondir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jormundgondir)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2008, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505/20 "2008-05-25T05:17:05Z")
Speaking of Scotsmen, I just watched Braveheart again recently, and there are a couple of wonderfully brutal battle scenes. Passion of the Christ was also cringe-inducing. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rambo-most-violent-mainstream-movie-ever-made/450505.md?page=2)