First Blood
Orion Pictures Corporation | Release Date: October 22, 1982 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
61
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 15 Critic Reviews
Positive:
9
Mixed:
5
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
EmpireAdam Smith
There's the fact that First Blood is a first-rate, taught action thriller. Read full review
80
IGNEric Frederiksen
First Blood is not the Rambo movie we initially think of when the character is mentioned. No, it’s much better than that. Read full review
80
Washington PostRita Kempley
Stallone is feral this film, physically powerful; he's muddy and bloody, but he's still pretty even in a tarpaulin. He's the wild child coming home. First Blood is good to the last drop, if you like that sort of thing. [22 Oct 1982, p.17]
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Until the last twenty or thirty minutes, however, First Blood is a very good movie, well-paced, and well-acted not only by Stallone (who invests an unlikely character with great authority) but also by Crenna and Brian Dennehy, as the police chief. Read full review
75
TV Guide MagazineStaff (Not Credited)
Boasting some of the best use of rugged landscape since the westerns of Anthony Mann, First Blood is an effective, if outlandish, picture that exists merely for its big-screen thrills. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
The darker tone, somber subtext, and generally non-exploitative violence allow viewers to enjoy the film not only as an action/thriller but as something with a degree of intelligence and substance. Read full review
75
The Associated PressStaff (Not Credited)
For most of the film, the non-stop action is totally involving, and Stallone gives a dynamic performance that could break him out of the Rocky groove. [11 Oct 1982]
70
Chicago ReaderDave Kehr
The director, Ted Kotcheff, does a good job with the violence and suspense, working well with the wide-screen format, and he seems fully aware of the dark, subversive implications of the material, even if the screenplay doesn't allow him to resolve them successfully. Read full review
70
The New York TimesJanet Maslin
It's a film with a number of strengths, not the least of them its fierce, agile, hollow-eyed hero. Read full review
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