History YMMV / FirstBlood

* NightmareFuel: Rambo just seems like a tired, broken and sad veteran of a war that put him through hell. Then Teasle's boys set off his PTSD with their PoliceBrutality so hard that he ''snaps'', waging a one-man war that cripples several of them as an unnerving and frankly terrifying individual that none of them can hope to stop. Were it not for being a TechnicalPacifist (and the one death he causes being accidental), he could've killed them all with next to no effort, and they wouldn't have seen it coming. A horrific display of a shattered soldier's mindset versus any ordinary individuals.

* VindicatedByHistory: The film received mixed reviews in 1982, but critical opinion of it has grown more favorable over the years when compared to its more actionized and less thematically-complex sequels. The ValuesResonance of the unusually sympathetic and accurate portrayal of PTSD helps as well.

** The part when the asshole deputy Art Galt dies has a bit of Fridge Humor: He's falling in slow motion but screaming at regular speed. So, does that mean he was squealing like a chipmunk on the way down? His screams also made it into ''Golden Axe'', by the way.

* JerkassWoobie: In the DVD's director's commentary, Teasle is said to be this due to him having served in the Korean War, which has been forgotten and harbours prejudice and jealousy towards Rambo due to the Vietnam War being a hot topic at the time this film was set and the fact he was highly decorated more than Teasle himself (Rambo was awarded the Medal of Honor, while Teasle was awarded a Silver Star, Purple Heart and ADSC, which Teasle is implied to consider them inferior to the more well-regarded Medal of Honor). Even though he is genuinely grief-stricken at his so-called best friend Galt's death and wants to avenge him, he is completely oblivious that his friendship with him is absolutely one-sided due to Galt's despicable nature and even purposely ignoring Teasle at the time of his death (it's also implied that Galt may have manipulated Teasle to be friends when in reality they weren't just for Teasle get Galt a job that lets him continue committing heinous crimes with no consequence). Also, despite being a somewhat loathsome antagonist, he's not really an evil villain, just a broken, misguided, angry soul and is rounded up as human and fallible. Teasle proved that [[EvenEvilHasStandards he had the basic decency to be able to acknowledge that he may have been in the wrong]], and was more misguided and overzealous than actively malicious until Galt's death whereupon he was emotionally compromised and was clearly acting irrationally. Although his actions are clearly in the wrong, he committed them out of a misguided sense of being right and in an emotionally compromised state. It's made more explicit in the novel with Teasle's Woobie status up to eleven, as novel reveals his wife had divorced him, worsening his angst, while it is also revealed that Teasle's father was killed in a hunting trip.

* IdiotPlot: The whole movie (and quite possibly the entire franchise) could've been avoided if a) Teasle didn't bother Rambo at all or b) Rambo just left the town at numerous points in the film. [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools The escalation of their pointless and extremely petty feud is one of the reasons the relationship between the two characters works so well.]]

* JerkassWoobie: In the DVD's director's commentary, Teasle is said to be this due to him having served in the Korean War, which has been forgotten and harbours prejudice and jealousy towards Rambo due to the Vietnam War being a hot topic at the time this film was set and the fact he was highly decorated more than Teasle himself (Rambo was awarded the Medal of Honor, while Teasle was awarded a Silver Star, Purple Heart and ADSC, which Teasle is implied to consider them inferior to the more well-regarded Medal of Honor). Even though he is genuinely grief-stricken at his so-called best friend Galt's death and wants to avenge him, he is completely oblivious that his friendship with him is absolutely one-sided due to Galt's despicable nature and even purposely ignoring Teasle at the time of his death (it's also implied that Galt may have manipulated Teasle to be friends when in reality they weren't just for Teasle get Galt a job that lets him continue committing heinous crimes with no consequence). Also, despite being a somewhat loathsome antagonist, he's not really an evil villain, just a broken, misguided, angry soul and is rounded up as human and fallible. Teasle proved that [[EvenEvilHasStandards he had the basic decency to be able to acknowledge that he may have been in the wrong]], and was more misguided and overzealous than actively malicious until Galt's death whereupon he was emotionally compromised and was clearly acting irrationally. Although his actions are clearly in the wrong, he committed them out of a misguided sense of being right and in an emotionally compromised state. It's made more explicit in the novel with Teasle's Woobie status UpToEleven, as novel reveals his wife had divorced him, worsening his angst, while it is also revealed that Teasle's father was killed in a hunting trip.

* AwardSnub: Creator/SylvesterStallone, Creator/BrianDennehy and Richard Crenna all deserved UsefulNotes/AcademyAward or UsefulNotes/GoldenGlobe nods for their excellent performances. Music/JerryGoldsmith's brilliant score also deserved the same recognition.

* SceneryDissonance: Filmed in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with sweeping Mountain vistas. All while a traumatized Vietnam Veteran is being pursued by a sadistic cop.

** Rambo telling Teasle to [[WesternAnimation/{{Frozen}} "Let it go, let it go"]] at the end of his threat.

* HilariousInHindsight: There’s a number of fans who jokingly say [[Creator/DavidCaruso Mitch]] changed his name to [[Series/CSIMiami Horatio Caine]] and got a transfer to Miami.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: Teasle would have been an interesting complex JerkassWoobie character like in the novel the film is based on and the most unique antagonist in the ''Franchise/{{Rambo}}'' films, but he's instead reduced to a little characterized BigBad as shown in the final cut. There's also the fact that he never appears again, despite implicitly surviving this film's events. Also, [[AuthorExistenceFailure Dennehy's real-life passing also destroys any chance for the character to reappear again if given]].

* AwardSnub: Creator/SylvesterStallone, Creator/BrianDennehy and Richard Crenna all deserved Oscar or Golden Globe nods for their excellent performances. Music/JerryGoldsmith's brilliant score also deserved the same recognition.

* DarknessInducedAudienceApathy: The original ending [[spoiler:where Rambo dies]] did not test well with audiences because of this trope thanks to Rambo's [[AdaptationalHeroism more sympathetic portrayal]], so it was {{revised|Ending}} to prevent this [[spoiler:by having Rambo live]]. With the film as bleak as it is, it's hard to blame them.

* AwardSnub: Stallone, Dennehy, and Crenna all deserved Oscar or Golden Globe nods for their excellent performances. Jerry Goldsmith's brilliant score also deserved the same recognition.

* HarsherInHindsight: Brian Dennehy as Teasle and his hatred against Vietnam vets can be hard to swallow to some, considering Dennehy in real-life had [[PhonyVeteran lied about serving in Vietnam while in the military]] and later apologized for the fraud.
* SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct: This is commonly regarded as one of Creator/SylvesterStallone's best performances, particularly the ending breakdown.

* SignatureScene: Rambo's emotional breakdown.
* SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped: Whatever you feel about war in general, antagonizing people who have gone through traumatizing experiences, e.g. a soldier who has lived through a war, not only is a horrible thing to do, but also can have disastrous consequences.

* CommonKnowledge: Rambo only kills one person in this movie, and it's accidental...well, unless you count the police car he blows up while someone is driving it; while the fate of the driver isn't shown, people don't usually survive their car exploding into a fireball.

* SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped: Whatever you feel about war in general, antagonizing people who have gone through traumatizing experiences, e.g. a soldier who has lived through a war, can have disastrous consequences.

* VindicatedByHistory: The film received mixed reviews in 1982, but critical opinion of it has grown more favorable over the years when compared to its more actionized and less thematically-complex sequels.

* CatharsisFactor:
** Despite being somewhat [[PlayedForDrama Played For Drama]], [[spoiler:watching Art Galt fall to his death was in a way satisfying, especially after watching him sadistically torment Rambo and try to kill him. To top it all off, he’s the only confirmed character to die in the movie.]]

* SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct: This is one of Creator/SylvesterStallone's best performances, particularly the ending breakdown.

** Sobbing Johnny Rambo recounts his traumatic [[UsefulNotes/TheVietnamWar 'Nam]] experience, (making even hardass Richard Crenna's lip tremble) is this if it's not a TearJerker; the enunciation leaves something to be desired, even if the circumstances [[note]]Rambo detailing how one of his best friends was blown apart by a bomb carried by a child and trying to find his legs[[/note]] can excuse it.
** There's also David Caruso's screams of pain when he gets stabbed in the leg. This was immortalised in ''VideoGame/GoldenAxe''.

* HarsherInHindsight:
** Brian Dennehy as Teasle and his hatred against Vietnam vets can be hard to swallow to some, considering Dennehy in real-life had [[PhonyVeteran lied about serving in Vietnam while in the military]] and later apologized for the fraud.
** Creator/KirkDouglas (the initial actor for Colonel Trautman before Crenna replaced him) and Dennehy had both passed away in the year 2020. Plus, the fact Dennehy passed away at age 81 is ironically also the number of the year when shooting for this film took place and when the film is supposed to be set. Teasle scoffing "[[AnyoneCanDie Everybody dies]]" towards Trautman just before his final showdown with Rambo has also becomes poignant in light of his actor's passing.

* HilariousInHindsight:
** Rambo's line of "In town, you're the law. Out here, it's me." In other words, [[Film/JudgeDredd he is the law]].
** According to the [[AllThereInTheManual DVD's Survival Mode easter egg trivia]], Teasle's resume in his profile included being a [[FriendToAllChildren little league coach]], which is funny as Teasle's actor Brian Dennehy would later voice baseball legend Creator/BabeRuth (who in the climax gets told that it wasn't the Little League when letting the KidHero play in the World Series) in the animated children's film ''WesternAnimation/EveryonesHero''. Also, Dennehy would play a baseball coach in the 2001 sports comedy ''Summer Catch''.
** Other than Teasle, turns out the other obstacle that Rambo faces in the movie are [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes rats]]. Interestingly, both Teasle's actor Brian Dennehy and the subject of rats would later being involved in the Creator/{{Disney}} Creator/{{Pixar}} animated movie ''WesternAnimation/{{Ratatouille}}'' with Dennehy voicing the rat pack leader Django.
** Brian Dennehy and Chris Mulkey both act in this film together as {{Dirty Cop}}s, which is interesting considering both actors would separately work with James [=DeMonaco=] and Creator/EthanHawke on thriller movies for Creator/{{Universal}} as fittingly antagonists who revealed themselves to be each a BitchInSheepsClothing (Dennehy would appear in ''Film/AssaultOnPrecinct132005'' as a DirtyCop {{mole}}, while Mulkey would play a BitchInSheepsClothing neighbor in ''Film/ThePurge'').

* IdiotPlot: The whole movie (and quite possibly the entire franchise) could've been avoided if a) Teasle didn't bother Rambo at all or b) Rambo just left the town at numerous points in the film. [[TropesAreTools The escalation of their pointless and extremely petty feud is one of the reasons the relationship between the two characters works so well.]]

* SpiritualAdaptation: Website/{{Cracked}} claimed in [[https://www.cracked.com/article_28857_8-classic-movies-that-unintentionally-remade-other-ones.html its article]] that the film adaptation of ''First Blood'' was an adaptation of the 1962 film ''Film/LonelyAreTheBrave'', which was itself an adaptation of the 1956 novel ''The Brave Cowboy''.