The Deer Hunter [Blu-ray]

 

 

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Director Michael Cimino made this masterpiece and it seems to have drained all his talent, as he followed it up with the legendary "Heaven's Gate". Put that aside, as this is a riveting and thorough examination of a group of small town Pennsylvania steel workers that go to Vietnam with varying end results. Michael (Robert DeNiro), Steven (John Savage) and Nick (Christopher Walken) are the best of buddies that regularly go deer hunting and bar hopping. The first hour of the film dives deeply into the personal aspects of each characters personality and make-up, including a long wedding scene that is preciously real. Suddenly the film turns from American normalcy to the horrors of the war. All three men are prisoners of war in hellish conditions, forced to take part in a cruel and devastating game of Russian roulette with their captors. The scenes of war are brief but to the point. It is pure madness and although the men 'survive', they are in differing states of change. The final act shows Michael desperate to get Steven back into the real world, but his biggest challenge is to rescue Nick, who, severely disturbed by his ordeal, has stayed back in Vietnam. The last scene with DeNiro and Walken is nerve wracking and heart-breaking. The ending is unforgettable. This is the kind of film that rarely comes along - the kind of movie that makes you feel like you are there. Trivia: The Pennsylvania mountains scenes are beautifully filmed, but it's painfully obvious it's the Cascades of Washington.

VIDEO:

This US version belongs to the Universal 100th Anniversary Edition set, and arrives at blu ray with VC-1 1080p 2.35:1 encode. This transfer is wonderful looking for a 34 year old film, with nicely saturated colours, beautiful sharpness and pleasing fine detail. The shadow detail is superb, especially in the many dark interior scenes which are quite frequent throughout the film. This is no evidence of excessive DNR (Digital Noise Reduction) applied here, which is a great relief. Universal has been known for such bad practices (e.g. Predator).

As Vilmos Zsigmond mentions in his fascinating commentary, the film utilizes quite a bit of stock footage (mostly for establishing shots), and in order to match the overly grainy look of that footage, he and Cimino found that they had to use copies of copies of prints since the Kodak film was so resilient to attempts to push contrast or exposure. This transfer looks wonderfully fluid and natural in motion, without any plastic smearing quality that would suggest too aggressive DNR. (4.5/5)

AUDIO:

The Deer Hunter features a great sounding DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix which is incredibly well detailed and immersive. Fidelity is very strong and the ambient environmental effects in both the Pennsylvania and Vietnam sequences are outstanding, offering a consistent use of the surrounds that really helps establish a convincing soundfield. The muffled dialogue is the main negative aspect of the audio. (4/5)

Fortunately, it is saved by the beautiful music score by Stanley Myers. The most memorable part of this movie for me is my favourite classical guitarist, John Williams, playing the Love Theme Of The Deerhunter (Cavatina), plus Sarabande. (Music 5/5)

AWARDS:

Winners of 1979 Academy Awards:

Best Picture:
Barry Spikings
Michael Deeley
Michael Cimino
John Peverall

Best Director:
Michael Cimino

Best Actor in a Supporting Role:
Christopher Walken

Best Film Editing:
Peter Zinner

Best Sound:
Richard Portman
William L. McCaughey
Aaron Rochin
C. Darin Knight

Nominations for Academy Award:

Best Actor in a Leading Role:
Robert De Niro

Best Actress in a Supporting Role:
Meryl Streep

Best Cinematography:
Vilmos Zsigmond

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen:
Michael Cimino (story)
Deric Washburn (screenplay/story)
Louis Garfinkle (story)
Quinn K. Redeker (story)

TRIVIA & GOOFS:

Director Michael Cimino convinced Christopher Walken to spit in Michael's face. When Walken actually did it, Robert De Niro was completely shocked, as evidenced by his reaction. In fact, De Niro was so furious about it he nearly left the set. Cimino later said of Walken, "He's got courage!"

The deer which Michael allows to get away was actually an elk - the same one often used on commercials for Hartford Insurance. The crew had a very difficult time trying to get the elk to look at them, as it was apparently used to various noises; it finally looked at them when someone in the crew yawned.

John Cazale was very weak when filming began, and for this reason, his scenes were filmed first. Michael Cimino knew from the start that Cazale was dying from cancer, but the studio did not. When they found out, they wanted to replace Cazale. When Meryl Streep learned of their intentions, she threatened to quit if they did. Cazale died shortly after filming was completed.

During some of the Russian Roulette scenes, a live round was put into the gun to heighten the actors' tension. This was Robert De Niro's suggestion. It was checked, however, to make sure the bullet was not in the chamber before the trigger was pulled.

The wedding sequences were filmed in the summer, but were set in the fall. To accomplish a look of fall, leaves were removed from trees and painted orange. They were then reattached to the trees.

The deer hunting scene was actually shot in the Cascade Mountains of Washington State. The mountain shown in the background is Mount Baker.

Cavatina was first written for a film called The Walking Stick. Stanley Myers then wrote the whole piece and much later it was used as the theme to the movie The Deer Hunter. And the rest is history.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

The Deer Hunter is a classic war film that chronicles with unflinching realism the horrors of battle and the mental and physical toll combat exacts on both the soldiers who fight and the loved ones they leave behind. This US blu ray version is superior to the UK version, and definitely much better than the previous DVD release. To listen to John Williams (not the Star Wars guy) playing the haunting and beautiful Cavatina is worth the price of admission. Highly recommended.

Finally, I do not understand why Amazon.ca would put the "old" reviews for the DVD version of the movie in the blu ray section. This is very confusing for all the readers. So, look at the date of the review before you read further, so that you do not waste your valuable time. I hope this point and the above review are helpful to you.

I have seen a lot of movies but this movie is the best - young Christopher Walken and a yummy Robert Deniro, Meryl Streep is young and beautiful. My favourite movie of all time!!

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3.0 out of 5 stars Dark and Depressing
Look this is a great film, and I can see why it got the praise it did at the time it came out. However, it is one of those intensely depressing films, not that the subject matter... Read more

Published on Jun 23 2009 by Neil Olsen

5.0 out of 5 stars Some part of the film might seem like fillers but it gives great intensity
A good number of viewers believe that "The Deer Hunter" is overlong and a bit overrated, probably due to a handful of scenes, but beside that its an important film that was the... Read more

Published on Aug 16 2007 by Jenny J.J.I.

5.0 out of 5 stars Loyalty
I was struck by the scene at the end where everyone gathers at the coffee shop. There is no disgust at the result of the war that one could expect, but a more communal sense of... Read more

Published on Jun 3 2006 by Teabags

1.0 out of 5 stars too slow
This movie is just too slow and makes you bored.Except of some scenes (in vietnam)i can`t find something to keep my interest.Classic but.......

Published on July 17 2004 by bill

4.0 out of 5 stars russian roulette
this movie is about 4 buddies who get shipped to nam and really showcases the horrors of war.this is not for children.even big kids could get messed up with this one. Read more

Published on July 10 2004 by abe

2.0 out of 5 stars This movie is zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...
I'll get right to the point: The Deer Hunter is incredibly boring. It's the story of three friends who are sent off to Vietnam, and the aftereffect it has on them and their... Read more

Published on July 6 2004 by Jim Warnke

5.0 out of 5 stars Long wait for one shot, but worth it.
The Deerhunter is ranked among the best movies ever made about Vietnam and deservedly so. There are almost no war scenes, only scenes about the friendship of 5 mine, three of them... Read more

Published on July 6 2004 by M. Buisman

5.0 out of 5 stars A CONSERVATIVE HOLLYWOOD REFLECTION
"The Deer Hunter" (1978) starred Robert DeNiro. The film breaks numerous rules in terms of length of time and attention to detail. It can truly be called art. Read more

Published on Jun 6 2004 by Steven R. Travers

1.0 out of 5 stars The movie that sparked the downfall of The Academy Awards
This movie is very boring and downright silly. I have seen many movies based on the war in Vietnam and this was absolutely the worst one, not to mention the most stereotyoical... Read more

Published on May 31 2004 by John Candy

5.0 out of 5 stars humanity, frailty, etc...
This movie is about man and his inherant condition of weakness not rat-a-tat watch the GI's bleeed war. If you liked born on the 4th then you will probably like this.. Read more

Published on May 22 2004 by Gilman Gunn

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