MovieChat Forums > First Blood (1982) Discussion > Who was more a fault, Teasle or Rambo?

Who was more a fault, Teasle or Rambo?

posted 4 years ago by TMC-4 (20121)
57 replies | jump to latest

All of this probably wouldn't had started in the first place had Teasle just let Rambo (who was minding his own business) go on his way and not give him a hassle over being a Vietnam War veteran. Why should it be a big deal for Teasle concerning where Rambo could or couldn't go around town? It isn't like Rambo is a registered sex offender or a high profile past nuisance.

On the other end, Rambo wasn't being cooperative when he's in police custody. Of course, Teasle's fellow officers couldn't have known that he was suffering from a severe case of PTSD. But still, Rambo decided right then and there, that it wasn't worth the trouble to be formally arraigned and decided to start a fight.

[–] janX9 (446) 4 years ago

They drew first blood, not Rambo. They fucked up.

[–] moviechatterer (15583) a year ago

did they though?

The nice cop was giving Rambo a lovely shave ... no blood drawn .
Then Rambo freaks out, beats the crap out of them drawing plenty of blood.

[–] Bateman (600) a year ago

[deleted]

[–] Kj1oceanlust (1456) 3 years ago

Any of you blaming Rambo at all are joking right? Because it was entirely Teasle's fault. Perhaps the only mistake he made by Rambo was to not slit Teasle's throat when he had the chance. Or perhaps he should have overpowered the sheriff when Teasle made it clear he was going to arrest him, and beaten him up good right then and there. The sheriff clearly was looking for trouble and Rambo just gave him what he wanted.

[–] Interlepos (1807) 2 years ago

Teasle was at fault, and it escalated from there.

[–] JosephQCat (706) 2 years ago

I have found that over the years my opinion has shifted back and forth on this. At present I feel Teasle was right in that the town had crime going on with vagrants hanging around. He saw the knife and felt a need to protect the locals. Rambo should know that dealing with cops is not much different than dealing with military authority. There is really no pushing allowed. Let it go to appearing in court and with good conduct and presentation Rambo could have been on his way with just a warning. But the beauty of the movie is misunderstandings can happen with for the most part reasonable people.

[–] BOandBarbecue (2264) 2 years ago

i am surprise so many peoples side with teasle.

when rambo and teastle first meet, rambo is walking into town for sandwhich. then teasle offer lift and drive him to middle of nowhere.

rambo have every right to walk where he want. teasle took it too far.

[–] JosephQCat (706) a year ago

Teasle is sworn to uphold the law. As pertaining to Rambo there most likely was a law concerning the hunting knife and its conspicuous location. True Story.....freshman year of college many years ago there was a guy who enrolled to take classes who was a mountain man type. He carried a knife (smaller than Rambo's) in a sheath on his belt and wore it all into the college building. The instructor told him it was against campus code and the guy got indignant. The instructor motioned the guy to go out into the hall with him. The solution was to have the guy leave his knife with campus security and pick it up at the end of the day presumably on his way home. The guy lived about an hour away in a remote area near the NY/PA state line. When asked later in the semester the guy indicated he still had the knife but left it in his pickup truck while on campus. Let me ask you if you would have been OK with the guy carrying his knife on him while on campus or not?

[–] moviechatterer (15583) a year ago

Campus rules versus state law. different things.
also
The guy has no reason to have a knife with him on campus.
Rambo has a need to carry it as he is travelling and cant leave it at home , or in his truck.

also , I doubt there was a law "concerning the hunting knife and its conspicuous location." (even though Teasle threw in a "concealed weapon" charge)

[–] JosephQCat (706) a year ago

Campus rules versus state law? Both are codes that the people who live in the affected areas are expected to comply with. If there was no express law or rule concerning knives and guns you would see far more people carrying them into places such as grocery stores and lumberyards.

As far as the guy carrying the knife in the story it is about where you came from. NY Southern Tier/ PA Northern Tier is notorious for having a frontier mentality when dealing with other people and the law. I knew more than one NYS Trooper who would not go out to a call at a location in the Southern Tier without backup. That people would shoot at law enforcement and otherwise. That area has more than its share of gun incidents even if there are no casualties. I dated one girl who carried a gun and she was from that area (and she was hot).

You could argue Rambo came from a similar background where the rules of the woods or hills or whatever prevailed. But Rambo served in the military as a long as he was not in the field and among civilians he should know weapons are expected to be checked at the door of a store or restaurant. If he was not so bullheaded he should have seen what concerned Teasle and offered to let Teasle hold the knife while he got something to eat. Then agree that it would be returned to Rambo once Rambo was on his way.

[–] moviechatterer (15583) a year ago

All i meant by "Campus rules versus state law" is that the campus rules dont apply to Rambo who is not on campus.
And the state laws Do Apply.
Given that your hot girl can carry a gun , surely Rambo can carry a knife?

If he was not so bullheaded he should have seen what concerned Teasle and offered to let Teasle hold the knife while he got something to eat
The knife was not what was concerning Teasle - he'd already kicked him out of town before he discovered the knife.
And Rambo never got to the restaurant so we dont know if he would have "checked it at the door" , or if the restaurant had such a policy.

[–] overseas7 (4236) 2 years ago

At the beginning was Teasle's fault.

[–] MrAnonymous (152) 6 months ago

I'd say 99% Teasle. The law is supposed to protect the peace, and sometimes that means being willing to reason with people and de-escalate. In that regard, Teasle was 100% wrong. You cannot just run someone out of town just because their look says they 'might' cause trouble.

As for Rambo, he was morally justified, but this comes down to an issue of 'pick your battles'. Sure he was offended and he was right to be offended since teasle was being a jerk. Still, while most cops I've dealt with were great people, there will always be one or to jerks with a badge. Given that Rambo was heading somewhere else anyway and just wanted to get something to eat, he could have said "Hey, I'm not planning on sticking around your town, I'm going to Portland. Still, I'm hungry and I'd love to get some food. If you let me get a bite to eat here I'll be on my way and you'll never see me again". Let me be clear, he should not have to say this as he had every right to be there, but given that he had a destination beyond that town anyway, he may as well have saved himself some trouble. Granted, I'm not a veteran, so I cannot relate to that aspect of his frustration, so my answer is just speculation.