Eric Lichtenfeld, Automatons: Hard-bodies and World Pacification

(In Action Speaks Louder)

Lichtenfeld moves into the 1980s, and some of my primary texts, particularly the Rambo and Terminator franchises. He discusses at length the dichotomy found in many action hero narratives, where the hero is both an indestructible superhuman killing machine, but also somehow an underdog - incoherent, but it underpins many of these films, especially First Blood.

I hadn't considered this point before, but it seems like the nature of John Rambo's power is changed over the course of the franchise... where in First Blood and Rambo: First Blood Part II he is a machine created by Col. Trautman and the ravages of 'Nam, and his violent abilities are sort of an unwanted gift, in the latter films it becomes an inevitability, as if Trautman had simply uncovered what was already there - an inherent predisposition towards incredible acts of violent power. This extends to the newest Rambo, which treats it as a mythical power which Rambo cannot escape and must embrace in order to find any kind of solace.

The machine-ness of Rambo of course becomes literal with The Terminator, a robot from the future. Lichtenfeld discusses how weapons and hardware come to signify the hero - such as the helicopters piloted by Rambo - but in the Terminator franchise, the hero is hardware.

I noted the highly stylized nature of the most recent Rambo movie, and Lichtenfeld makes similar comments when addressing Cobra, an earlier post-First Blood Part II Stallone film that emphasizes style above all else. This hyperstylization can be seen as part of the myth-making of the genre. Lichtenfeld also suggests the importance of ritual (often through montage) in articulating the mythology of Action films, as evidenced by scenes of preparation and equipping.