- Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Letterboxed, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC, Import
- Language: English
- Subtitles: English, Spanish, French
- Region: (US and Canada This DVD will probably NOT be viewable in other countries. Read more about DVD formats.)
- Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
- Number of discs: 1
- MPAA Rating:
- Studio: Mca (Universal)
- Release Date: Jan 2 2002
- Run Time: 182 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (198 customer reviews)
- ASIN: 0783225997
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Product Description
Amazon.com Essential Video
Winner of five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, The Deer Hunter is simultaneously an audacious directorial conceit and one of the greatest films ever made about friendship and the personal impact of war. Like Apocalypse Now, it's hardly a conventional battle film--the soldier's experience was handled with greater authenticity in Platoon--but its depiction of war on an intimate scale packs a devastatingly dramatic punch. Director Michael Cimino may be manipulating our emotions with masterful skill, but he does it in a way that stirs the soul and pinches our collective nerves with graphic, high-intensity scenes of men under life-threatening duress. Although Russian-roulette gambling games were not a common occurrence during the Vietnam war, they're used here as a metaphor for the futility of the war itself. To the viewer, they become unforgettably intense rites of passage for the best friends--Pennsylvania steelworkers played by Robert De Niro, John Savage, and Oscar winner Christopher Walken--who may survive or perish during their tour through a tropical landscape of hell. Back home, their loved ones must cope with the war's domestic impact, and in doing so they allow The Deer Hunter to achieve a rare combination of epic storytelling and intimate, heart-rending drama. --Jeff Shannon
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Most helpful customer reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sometimes You Can Never Go Home,
By Martin A Hogan "Marty From SF" (San Francisco, CA. (Hercules)) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: The Deer Hunter (Widescreen) (DVD)
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.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Some part of the film might seem like fillers but it gives great intensity,
By
This review is from: The Deer Hunter (Legacy Series) (DVD)
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 first commentary on the topic of Vietnam. It wouldn't have worked nearly as powerfully if the first hour been trimmed down a bit. It wasn't the director's attention because he meant to focus on "character development," base on the lives of three all-American friends, Niko (Christopher Walken), Michael (Robert DeNiro) and Steven (John Savage) through the affects of the war.
We have to sense the careless and frat-boy-like immaturity of these young men. That's why the scenes all revolve around frivolity and seemingly senseless boyish behavior; it creates such a stark contrast to the devastated characters of the three who went to war (and the relatively unaffected personalities of those who stayed behind, like Stanley). Although both De Niro and Walken have made a lot of great films after this movie, I have to say that this is one of their best movies in their career. They both give powerful performances and are the ones who were the best things about this movie. Both actors are at the top of their careers and were wonderful together. Director-write Michael Cimino doesn't try to turn this into one of the goriest movies ever made. It's quite the opposite. Although there were a few bloody scenes throughout the movie (which I didn't mind), all of those scenes were done in a realistic portrayal of the war (or any of the other bloody scenes, such as the Russian Roulette scene at the end of the movie). Because of this, the movie doesn't become a disturbing war film, yet respectable. "The Deer Hunter" is important film that wasn't done for nothing because it carries a strong message about life, death and love. It is a movie that should be experienced by everyone at least once, and if you like movies dealing with the Vietnam war several of them, like "Full Metal Jacket", "Platoon", and "Apocalypse Now," should also interest you.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A stunning accomplishment in modern American cinema,
By Derek Lipman (Toronto, Canada) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Deer Hunter (Widescreen) (DVD)
The Deer Hunter is a poignant, stunning achievement. It contains some of the most memorable performances in recent history. The story centers around a group of working class steelworkers and their girlfriends during the time of the Vietnam War. Three of the men leave for Vietnam, while their tightly knit group of friends stay home. The first act of the film chronicles the events leading up to the departure of De Niro (Michael), Nicky (Christopher Walken) and Steve (John Savage). There is a scene in the local bar where the pals gleefully sing Frankie Valli's Can't take my Eyes off you" in their excited anticipation of combat and their friend's wedding. The actual Vietnam scenes are brief, yet there is one harrowing, controversial scene where a group of Viet-Cong supporters use captive American and South Vietnamese soldiers as sacrificial lambs in a game of Russian Roulette. This scene exhibits perhaps the best acting of De Niro's career. He and Walken are at the bring of death. This scene is so intense, so calculated you actually feel you are sitting in the ramshackle hut on the Mekong Delta. The film also exhibits the beauty of Meryl Streep, who at the time of the film was a relatively new name in Hollywood. Her acting is subtle and brilliant. The supporting cast including the portly George Dzundza is perfect in this film. Unfortunately, Camino made the dreadful Heaven's Gate after The Deer Hunter, and the former's reputation damaged the acclaim of the latter. The Deer Hunter is a great movie, perhaps one of the best in recent history.
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