Sly knows not to bite the hand that feeds him

Rambo IV

From Stallonezone, "After speaking to some contacts at Nu Image this past weekend production may begin soon as Sly is currently set to finish editing Rocky Balboa by the middle to end of June. At the Cannes film festival this past weekend producers from Nu Image were looking at possible distributors to carry the film. As things stand now they have been in serious talks with Warner Brothers since they had some success with the Nu Image film 16 Blocks starring Bruce Willis. They also plan to use many ff the international distributors which distributed the film. After seeing the script for the film distributors have show much interest although Warner Brothers still was pushing for a large scale action director to take helm of the film. Despite initially being turned down by Ridley Scott and Richard Donner Nu Image may attempt to go the extra mile in dollars and give Donner the chance to direct. Although Stallone signed on to star and write the script he has an option in his current contract to direct unless another director is found before two months of filming. In the coming days expect some major news on Donner if he accepts the position. In other news Ted Kotcheff has signed on as an Technical Consultant to the film where he will work on a part time basis with the film and assist Stallone in directing such a large action film.

In some casting news I was contacted by the agent of Mike Vogel who told me that as of now he has not signed on to play Patrick Merchant. Although my contact at Nu Image tells me it is imminent he as of now has not signed on. I did though speak to a representative of Jenna Boyd and she did tell me that she was in final negotiations as is Bruno Campos for roles. James Brolin, Kim Dickens, Avery Brooks, Linden Ashby, Ken Kercheval and Randee Heller have all signed on. Tony Burton and Larry Wilcox will not be appearing in the film as previously reported.

A friend of mine at Nu Image has sent me part of the script and I must say that I was out of breath while reading. Although I only got the first forty seven pages it is by far the best scripted Rambo film of the bunch. The first script written by Kevin Lund and T.J. Scott dealt with Rambo and his wife (also from the military) on the hunt for the kidnappers of his daughter. Although it was an ok script from what I heard it was very action oriented and had little character analysis. The script begins with the character of Patrick Merchant visiting the wife (Carrie Southworth on board to play her) of his former buddy who was killed in action. Following this he goes to an small diner located in an rural town of Colorado. Dressed in rags and wearing a military badge he is treated badly as his food is spit in by the owner. This scene in reflection of society showed a country which in some parts is not in favor of military men. Merchant attacks the owner and is sent to a small jail cell in the town while he await to be arraigned. Merchant has flashbacks of the death of his friend while in prison and the war crimes which he was wrongfully accused of. The first scenes of the film are almost identical to that of First Blood except these deal with the character of Merchant. We see Merchant as a quiet character who like Rambo in the original films was held accountable for a countries mistake (if you think like that). One scene during the prison sequence shows Merchant being victimized and beaten by fellow guards as Rambo was in the first film. The next day before arraignment Vogel is bailed out by the town Mayor when he found out that a military man was being held. In the biggest surprise of the script the Mayor is a character who was already in one of the Rambo films and played Rambo’s largest nemesis. This man now understands and respects military soldiers and lets Merchant out. Merchant says to the man “at least someone respects what I do” and he responds “well at one point I didn’t but a man a while back showed me how”. Immediately after these words the script goes right to a scene at Rambo’s new boat shop where he builds boats with his wife who is in charge of the finances of the company. Rambo now is much more subdued and has accepted and strived in his new life. He is a family man who has drifted away from the man that he was. His house features no military objects and there is no mention of his military background. In the scenes following this (I was told I could not spoil the whole script) Rambo has the ones things in his life that now mattered taken away from him. His daughter becomes kidnapped from a brutal cult military group which had already served time in the military. The main villain in the film (played by Bruno Campos) is a stronger villain then any other Rambo film. The way in which the stories of Rambo and Merchant connect is fascinating and truly great writing by Stallone and Jeb Stuart. Both of these men are fighting the same fight, one attempting to save his daughters life while one attempting to clear his name. The character of Colonel Keating is an ok written character but was a bit overused in the parts of the script which I read. Although we know he is after Merchant for military crimes he has about one hundredth of the brain intelligence as Truatman did and is overall a boring character. Unlike other Rambo films do not expect a headband and machine guns. This is a very different story. Although the script will have to be shortened (it would not be over two and a half hours) it was a strong piece of work which is by far the best Rambo film to date.

In some other news Nu Image has put “The Kitchen Boys” into pre-production and the film will hopefully begin shooting in January since Poe will be pushed back until next summer due to Robert Downey’s shooting schedule this fall. Stallone has also signed to appear in the final four episodes of “Brotherhood” a new Showtime series which begins airing this summer. He will play an Italian mobster in a war against the Irish mob."