You could argue that Stallone is one of the most recognizable stars of Hollywood in the last thirty-plus years. One of his most renowned characters, John Rambo, came from the 1982 hit First Blood. Seven years later, Stallone played another character that men could relate to and sympathize with as Frank Leone in Lock Up. In 1997, Stallone dropped the ripped look in favor of a overweight, down on his luck sheriff in Cop Land. All three movies have been previously released on Blu-ray, and it’s these very three movies that are brought together in this Collector’s Set.
Keeping with the chronological order, I’ll begin with First Blood. This is one of those classics that you can watch time and time again. It’s one of those movies that if you stumble upon it even halfway through while channel surfing, you’re likely to stop and watch. Given its age and popularity, there’s hardly reason for me to recount the story to you, but in short it’s a tale about John Rambo, a Vietnam veteran who is just passing through a small town, trying to find one of his former comrades. Turns out his friend had died, from agent orange no less, and so Rambo sullenly seeks out some sustenance and would otherwise be on his way. But, the over-zealous local sheriff of the town, played by Brian Dennehy won’t have it. Soon, Rambo finds himself under arrest for nothing, and with his Green Beret skill and physical aptitude, breaks free, spawning a huge manhunt in the neighboring forest. Few films that I have ever heard of carry with it this kind of drama, action, and war-weary sadness that First Blood does. It’s an outstanding piece that never lets you down, from one viewing to the next.
Lock Up was actually one I had not seen before receiving this set, but I’m happy I finally did. In Lock Up, Stallone is a young man who is almost finished with his minimal security jail sentence. He’s got a beautiful woman and a car mechanic business waiting for him on the other side, but one night he is suddenly and violently transferred to a maximum security cell. Turns out, the warden, played by Donald Sutherland, is determined to destroy Stallone’s life for reasons I will avoid spoiling for you. The result is an extremely trying stay in the old jail, pushing Stallone’s character to his limits as he must withstand physical and mental abuse. For anyone who appreciates stories about indomitable spirit and staying true to oneself, this is a much watch. It’s also a great prison-break movie, rife with some solid supporting actors, friendships, betrayals, and suspense.
Cop Land has one of the most star-studded casts that you will ever find: Stallone, De Niro, Keitel, Rapaport, Robert Patrick, Liotta, Janeane Garofalo — it’s quite a cast to be sure. Stallone plays the sheriff of a fictional small town of about 1200 that is just across the bridge from Manhattan. His town, normally quiet, is home to a lot of New York cops that wanted somewhere safe to basically escape the city and raise their families. They meet nightly at the 4 Aces bar, but one night an event after a bachelor party changes everything. Rapaport’s character, a nephew to Keitel’s character, mistakenly thinks he is being shot at and ends up killing two men. It was a mistake, and a big one, but also one that Keitel and his other corrupt cops intend to cover up as quickly and quietly as possible. Meanwhile, Internal Affairs man Moe Tilden, played by Robert De Niro, knows that Keitel and many of his co-workers are dirty — they’re in deep with the mob, but he just doesn’t have all of the evidence he needs. Will the sheriff keep a blind eye to the situation or will he stand up for himself and town and make a difference? You can probably guess the answer, but the amount of quality story-telling and acting within the nearly-two hour movie is very dramatic and engaging.
There’s no question these movies are all great, but what about the presentation and extra features of each? They’re exactly what they were when they were first released on Blu-ray. For each, expect a strong image quality that is head and shoulders above any SD release. None of these movies are particularly flashy or colorful, so they don’t make the best demo material per se if you’re looking for something to really blow you away. They do however all look clean and crisp, and ultimately I can’t say I’m disappointed. The audio presentation is similar, but not quite as solid throughout all three movies, with Lock Up offering the weakest presentation there.
As for extra features, there are several, here’s the breakdown:
–First Blood:
-Audio Commentary with Author/Novelist David Morrell
-Audio Commentary with Stallone
-Trivia – Cool tidbit pop-up option that plays while you watch the movie.
-Drawing First Blood (SD, 23m) – A fairly quick, but interesting making of feature.
–Lock Up:
-Making Of (SD, 7m) – Too short and too promo-feeling to be of much value.
-Stallone Profile (SD, 3m)
-Interviews (SD) – Some brief vintage snippets of interviews from Stallone, Sutherland, and John Amos. Nice, but very short.
-Trailer
–Cop Land:
-Audio Commentary with Writer/Director James Mangold, Producer Cathy Konrad, and Robert Patrick and Stallone
-Deleted Scenes (SD, 5m) Just two extra scenes here.
-Storyboard Comparison (SD, 2m)
-Cop Land: The Making of an Urban Western (SD, 14m) Explores some of the similarities between the movie and a traditional western.
At the end of the day, all three movies in this set are damn good, to be blunt. Each benefits from a great script, direction, acting — hell I even like the scores. Presentation is mostly solid, as well. As with the presentation quality, the extra features offer nothing new, but get the job done for the most part. With that, let’s get to the summary…