THE RAMBO REPORT

Can love and laughter triumph over blood and guts? Is the skateboard mightier than the biceps?

It’s a neck-to-neck ticket battle between “Back to the Future” and “Rambo: First Blood Part II.” Universal Pictures distribution pres Bill Soady believes “Back” will take the lead, making it the year’s biggest box-office success so far. According to Daily Variety, as of last weekend, the Steven Spielberg picture sold $145 million in tickets after 75 days in release; “Rambo” had $147.6 million after 117 days. But “Back” has lately been selling about $4 million in tickets each week, while “Rambo” has tapered to about $800,000.