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Bill Milner, Will Poulter, Jules Sitruk, Jessica Stevenson, Neil Dudgeon ... see more see more... , Anna Wing , Ed Westwick , Adam Godley , Adam Buxton , Eric Sykes , Charlie Thrift

As the summer sun shines down on England in the early 1980s, two boys who couldn't be more different are brought together by a mutual love of cinema and a desire to emulate their favorite action movie... read more read more... icon. Will Proudfoot (Bill Milner) is a well-mannered schoolboy being raised in an ultra-religious community that deplores such corruptive distractions as television and seeks to maintain its purity by severely limiting contact with the outside world. In order to exorcise his creative inner demons, Will has taken to sketching imaginative drawings and complex illustrations. Lee Carter (Will Poulter) is the school terror, a rampaging hellion whose overaggressive behavior has made him an endless source of frustration to the faculty, and a source of fear to his fellow classmates. As fate would have it, Will is in the school hallway avoiding exposure to the classroom television when a fed-up teacher ejects Lee from the classroom. Though at first it appears as if Lee is about to torment timid Will just as he does the rest of the student body, the two form a tight bond after Will convinces Lee to view a bootleg copy of Rambo: First Blood. When Lee informs Will that he wants to shoot a homebrewed version of the violent action film for an upcoming amateur filmmaking contest, a sudden streak of rebellion prompts his sheltered classmate to readily agree. As the summer wears on the two boys set out to create the ultimate no-budget action movie, but their grand vision hits an unexpected hitch when a busload of French exchange students arrive at the school and the leader of the pack attempts to hijack the production. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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79% liked it

61,243 ratings

Critics

73% liked it

116 critics

PG-13, 1 hr. 35 min.

Directed by: Garth Jennings

Release Date: January 22, 2007

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DVD Release Date: August 26, 2008

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Flixster Reviews (4,924)

  • ironclad1609
    March 12, 2012
    ironclad1609
    This charming British comedy tells the story of a religious boy befriending the school bully, who's shooting a film for a competition. After accidentally seeing Rambo-First Blood as the first film of his life, Will is fascinated and enthusiastic to join the project. Set in the 19... read more80s this film is full of nostalgia about that era, the love for film and the worth of friendship. The storytelling is imaginative, the plot bitter sweet and the humor wonderfully disrespectful but with its heart at the right spot. The talented kids actors make it all work and the 80s soundtrack is fun too. A very lovable, funny and sweet experience for children and adults alike.
  • Tomassgringo
    June 27, 2011
    Tomassgringo
    The movie only misses on a couple target but sure gets points for being fun. It of course gets sappy, but it is tolerable.
  • kenstachnik
    June 20, 2011
    kenstachnik
    A super adorable and beautifully shot film about film making featuring schenanigins and wacky hi-jinks.
  • YLOWBSTARDreturns
    May 7, 2011
    YLOWBSTARDreturns
    Short and sweet, with a lot of heart and a lot of laughs. SON OF RAMBOW is a robust film; can't think of another film that would have the ability to tackle a coming of age story featuring Rambo, friendship, amateur filmmaking, childhood whimsy, a religious sect, and a flamboyant ... read moreFrench exchange student, cram it all into a nimble 95 minute running time and make it all work... But it does. Needless to say there are a few weaknesses and the tone is all over the place at times, but this is a clever and effortlessly likable film that I can find few faults will.
  • RCCLBC
    September 20, 2010
    RCCLBC
    I was a bit leary of this as I not a fan of the Rambo films or the bulk of Stallone's work for that matter. I'm glad that I didn't let my dislike of Stallone deter me from giving this little gem a chance.

    While not without it's flaws, I found the film to be (for the most part... read more) a totally engaging and completly charming little journey. And the two stars to be extremely talented. I think we can expect great things from them both, particularly Will Poulter who just blew me away.

    It suffers from having too many interesting characters and sub-plots that are never really allowed to fully develope. It almost feels like it would have been better suited as a mini-series.

    I think that with a little more character development and the addition of a few more of Will's wonderfully imaginative fantasy sequences this could have been a close to perfect film.
  • bottcorecords1
    June 28, 2010
    bottcorecords1
    Quirky in a Napoleon Dynamite meets Be Kind, Rewind sort of way, Son of Rambow follows the adventures of two boys and their attempts to make an action film. Well, not just any action film, but a sequel to "First Blood". The film takes place during the early to mid 1980s (and th... read moreere are many jokes involving 80s fashion and trends) in a little english community. Will is already an odd kid looking in from the outside, his family belongs to the Plymouth Brethren (a religious order that shuns much of the outside world, including television), and he spends much of the day keeping to himself and drawing in his notebook. Things change for him considerably one day when he attracts the attention of Lee Carter, the school bully who also so happens to be making a film for "Screen Test" (an 80s UK tv show that often featured the homemade films of kids). When Lee Carter invites Will home one day (to use him as a stuntman in his movie), Will is exposed to not only tv for the first time, but also Rambo, thanks to Lee Carter's video pirating business. Flush from seeing Rambo kill hundreds of men, Will concocts a film in which he plays the... well, the son of Rambo.

    For a kid-focused movie, it has a lot of realistic blood mixed in with the cartoon violence, almost as if the violent actions only have consequences when it becomes necessary to further the plot. The bully kid isn't very sympathetic, at least at first. He's actually kind of a miscreant, and it seems totally reasonable that the other kids don't want to have anything to do with him. What the film lacks in the laugh out loud humor department, it more than makes up for with personality. In spite of its flaws, I enjoyed it a great deal.
  • SirPant
    April 29, 2010
    SirPant
    A great little film with two very promising young stars. I thought they got the typical 80's comprehensive down quite well, the 6th Form common room scene was piratically funny (rubber sniffing and the great popping candy/Cola experiment). So good that I almost forgive Garth Jenn... read moreings for the atrocity that was The hitchhikers guide to the galaxy. Almost. Actually, no, I'll never forgive him for that but this is a great film all the same.
  • CrookedlittleB33
    July 25, 2009
    CrookedlittleB33
    I really, and truly adored this flick...there was just something about it that really captivated me. Kinda like Bridge to Terabithia quality, I suppose. And I PROMISE I shall review this with the next little while. Honest.

    [review TBC]
  • MissMorganLeee
    July 5, 2009
    MissMorganLeee
    this really is a fun movie! you can tell that this part might have been arriginated for someone like Freddy Highmore but...
    Ed Westwick is really really gorgeous!
    pretty decent movie!
  • FiLmCrAzY
    May 26, 2009
    FiLmCrAzY
    Brilliant
    i didnt think it would be my sort of movie to be honest but i was pleasently surprised!
    This film is a bit like Bugsey malone meets the boys version of st trinians put them together it produces this movie and its funny and if you liked those movies then you'll love th... read moreis movie!
    Its mainly a kid cast so like bugsey malone and this kid has no father figure and loves rambo and sort of likes the thought of seeing rambo as his father figure and stars in his friends movie as there making a short movie so they can enter it for a quiz!
    Friendships grow and even more friendships burst into place and brothers regindle there love for each other as well!
    The youg actors are great and the movie is hilarious well worth a watch!!

View All Son of Rambow Reviews

Critic Reviews

Jonathan F. Richards
May 30, 2008
Jonathan F. Richards, Film.com

Jennings is clearly having a wonderful time recreating the fantasies of his youth, but sometimes his perspective get a little too inbred, and the picture suffers for it. Full Review

Desson Thomson
May 16, 2008
Desson Thomson, Washington Post

We cringe and laugh at -- and are ultimately moved by -- their clumsiness and innocence. And it endears us to the Rambo films in ways we never could have anticipated. Full Review

Joe Leydon
May 16, 2008
Joe Leydon, Houston Chronicle

Son of Rambow is an inventive and amusing coming-of-age movie that deftly entwines elements of farce and fantasy, rebelliousness and sentiment, while paying seriously funny tribute to the transcendent... Full Review

Tom Long
May 16, 2008
Tom Long, Detroit News

These two boys have, along with writer-director Garth Jennings, turned a coming-of-age story into a treatise on both the fragility of artistic vision and the danger of popular opinion. Full Review

Roger Ebert
May 16, 2008
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

After the movie, I imagined its writer-director, Garth Jennings (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) being more than a little like Will, and the movie uncannily similar to one of Will's comic epics. Full Review

Roger Moore
May 14, 2008
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

Sweet and sentimental, a bit racy to be a kids' film, a bit tame as grown-up entertainment, Son of Rambow is still a magical romp about childhood discovery and the birth of a lifelong love of the movies. Full Review

Eric D. Snider
May 13, 2008
Eric D. Snider, Film.com

Son of Rambow is filled with small surprises and treasures, a veritable bounty of delight. Full Review

Peter Howell
May 9, 2008
Peter Howell, Toronto Star

The rapport between the two rogue cineastes is enough to carry both films: the one they're making and the one Jennings is trying to make. Full Review

Mick LaSalle
May 9, 2008
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

Plenty happens, but little of it advances the action, until the finale, which is lovely, but would have been a lot lovelier after 35 minutes, not 90. Full Review

Colin Covert
May 9, 2008
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune

A joyous, touching story of friendship, mischief and imagination. Full Review

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    • Lee Carter: This has been my best day of all time.
    • Didier: I will be star of your movie.
    • Will Proudfoot: I'm not supposed to be your friend.
    • Lee Carter: What? What's wrong with me?
    • Mary Proudfoot: Promise me you'll put these things out of your mind, William.
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  • In the movie Son of Rambow, how does Will add water to the fishbowl in the classroom?   Answer »
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