I have no idea when this last occurred, but Hollywood once had a thing for trying to breathe some new life into sequels -- or at least their titles -- by adding "Son of" to the beginning of whatever popular flick was at hand. Not surprisingly, this worked best when the titular element was a character's name. Thus, while there obviously never was a "Son of Gone With the Wind," a plethora of such titled pics that ended in "Frankenstein," "Dracula," "Dr. Jekyll, "Godzilla," "Kong" and yes, even "Lassie" have come down the pike.
The ploy was usually a desperate one, trying to make a few secondhand bucks of a popular name, so it's surprising that it's been a while between all of those films and "Son of Rambow." Granted, we just had "Rambo" earlier this year that followed a long gap since the last of the initial three Sylvester Stallone films graced -- uh -- ran roughshod over the theaters back in '88.
Apparently Sly's character met an Afghani woman after saving Richard Crenna and had a boy who's now grown up and prepared to kick some major... What's that? Oh, you're right, the spelling is a bit different, and the 11-year-old kid they chose for the main part doesn't exactly pull off playing a 20-year-old in the most convincing fashion.
Then again, he really isn't supposed to, as this film has far more in common with this year's earlier "Be Kind Rewind" than with any of Stallone's military flicks. That is, except that it's clearly better made and comes off as something more than Michel Gondry's endlessly repeated one-note scenario and forced quirkiness that undermined its efforts.
Here, the aforementioned Bill Milner plays a milquetoast brought up in a strict, religious household. When he meets the young troublemaker played by Will Poulter, his life is forever changed, especially once he's introduced to the real Rambo courtesy of Lee Carter's pirated version (back when video cameras and, apparently, cigarettes were allowed in movie houses, at least in Britain). Like any normal kid, Will Proudfoot instantly imitates that which has titillated him, but he takes that obsession even further by wanting to make his own movie of the same and does so with his highly unlikely new friend.
The result is a pic that, like "BKR" is something of an homage to the love of film and filmmaking, but takes that even further by layering in the elements of childhood friendship, home life that clearly isn't of the "Leave it to Beaver" or "Father Knows Best" sitcom mold, and fun little touches (including Jules Sitruk as a French transfer student who looks, acts and is treated like a rock star by his new classmates who've turned into subservient, drooling fans).
While it never really turns into anything remotely spectacular, moving or completely engaging, the pic is entertaining enough to hold one's interest, and writer/director Garth Jennings nicely balances all of the above elements. He also gets solid performances from his two young leads who do a good job playing the sort of kids who'd normally never travel in the same circles but, as happenstance would have it, strike up a friendship.
That said, the film works best -- at least for yours truly -- when it's at its most subversive. Not that any of it's terribly radical, but Poulter's bad boy antics, coupled with an easy quirkiness and Joby Talbot's fun and contagious score make such moments the pic's most winning. The rest works decently, but I would have preferred more of the former to permeate more of the proceedings.
Pretty much instantly forgettable afterwards but enjoyable enough while it unfolds, "Son of Rambow" might now have huge pecs and biceps or even bigger explosions, but it also isn't Sly about what it wants to achieve. The pic rates as a 6 out of 10.
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