REVIEW - 'The Deer Hunter' (1978)

Fitting that it was a John Ford film that gave us the line, “When a fact becomes legend, print the legend.” Ford films often sought to tell no less the story of America, and his influence looms heavy over those filmmakers who followed his lead in tackling themes of heroism, masculinity, and war. Michael Cimino’s “The Deer Hunter” was lauded and criticized in equal measure for its depiction of the same themes, all in the context of the Vietnam War. Many alleged he took extreme liberties to depict Vietnam soldiers as barbaric and cruel, relative to American counterparts. Protests ensued; so did huge Box Office returns and Oscar wins. Watching “The Deer Hunter” recently stirred up conflicting emotions: admiration for an artist’s decision to “print the legend,” frustration with its half-baked character development, and nostalgia for a time when a film could inspire such heated protests.

Cimino made some audacious decisions in bringing this story to the screen. Even before considering the infamous Russian Roulette sequences, the film’s structure is less like a John Ford Western and more like a Luchino Visconti costume melodrama. It’s a Vietnam film that takes more than an hour to get to Vietnam. Much of the first third takes place at Steven and Angela’s wedding; the merry atmosphere is dimmed by the fact that Steven (John Savage), Michael (Robert De Niro), and Nick (Christopher Walken) are heading to Vietnam.

Solid Casting Choices, and a Film that Escalates in Violence

Nick wants to go “where the bullets fly,” but the group’s enthusiasm for representing their country never feels genuine. There’s little background on what motivated them to enlist, and only a passing mention as to why the whole gang isn’t heading over to fight. After a melancholy trip to the mountains to hunt deer, Cimino quickly pivots from quaint to chaos, from Steeltown USA to Vietnam, where De Niro kills a Vietnam soldier — who just executed a civilian family with a grenade — with a flame-thrower.

For such a long movie, it’s a letdown that most of the supporting characters are downgraded.

The violence escalates from there, and it doesn’t peak until the final game of Russian Roulette between Michael and Nick. That the film can maintain an unbearable level of tension for its three hours is a testament to Cimino’s skill; but it’s also a testament to the quality of the performances. De Niro’s casting made the film bankable; but “The Deer Hunter” was also boosted by breakout performances for Walken (who won an Oscar) and Meryl Streep (nominated for this film, and would win her first Oscar in her next role, “Kramer vs. Kramer”). The great John Cazale, appearing in his final film — and fifth consecutive to be nominated for ‘Best Picture’ — is an understated and underdeveloped character, whose presence we’re aware of, but that’s about it.

Robert De Niro in “The Deer Hunter.” (Photo credit: Universal Pictures).

Some Events — and Characters — Suffer from Underdevelopment

For such a long movie, it’s a letdown that most of the supporting characters (even Streep) are downgraded. In the case of both Cazale and Streep (who were dating in real life), Cimino uses a lazy conceit of physical abuse to introduce each of them. Cazale hits his wife, and Streep suffers abuse from her father; but aside from that it’s hard to determine what Cimino wants to reveal in those instances. We can only speculate why Cazale didn’t go to Vietnam with his pals (he wants to stay home and get “more ass than a toilet seat”), and Streep’s father disappears from the film after he hurts her.

Character undevelopment and violence against women weren’t the reasons for the boycotts and protests, though. Jane Fonda, who never saw the film, called it a “racist Pentagon version of the war.” At the Berlin Film Festival, Russian jury members joined fellow jury member Julie Christie in staging a walkout during a screening. At the 1979 Oscars, the Los Angeles chapter of Vietnam Veterans Against the War waved “No Oscars for racism” placards. Still, “The Deer Hunter” thrived in spite of and thanks to the controversy; it won five Oscars including ‘Best Picture,’ grossing nearly $50 million at the Box Office.

I don’t read ‘The Deer Hunter’ as having a staunchly anti or pro stance on the war…”

Perhaps it’s true that, as Francois Truffaut said, there’s no such thing as an anti-war film; and the controversy aimed at “The Deer Hunter” seems predicated on the idea it was a pro-Vietnam War film. Many of the Asian characters are one-note antagonists. Their behavior is, however, largely a reaction to the war, and the horrible circumstances they find themselves in. The torture tactics, especially Russian Roulette, represented the inhumanity and senselessness of war. It was all a spectator sport, and everyone was involved: soldiers, civilians, and the American prisoners.

The infamous ‘Russian Roulette’ scene remains powerful and disturbing. (Photo credit: Universal Pictures).

Neither a Pro or Anti Warm Film; the Intricacies of ‘The Deer Hunter’

I don’t read “The Deer Hunter” as having a staunchly anti or pro stance on the war; I think it smartly deflects when there’s a chance to come down hard on either side. This is a story about people; and that’s why it’s a disappointment that after three hours, there’s still too much mystery about all of them. Michael is the one we should know the best, but all we get is the big moments with him. Not just the heroic, legend-making scenes in Vietnam (he kills a dozen plus Vietnamese soldiers, and returns to rescue Nick), but those heavily symbolic trips up the mountain to shoot (and miss) deer.

[‘The Deer Hunter’] is a war film that depicts days in the lives of real people…”

Still, for all its flaws, “The Deer Hunter” is an ambitious, nearly-great film; it’s well worth pushing to the top of the queue this Memorial Day weekend. It’s a war film that depicts days in the lives of real people, before, during and after the actual war. For them, the war never really ended, and that’s the key to understanding these people and the film. As the group sings “God Bless America” and the credits roll, the complicated mix of emotions from defenders and critics of the film reaches a fever pitch. Importantly, “The Deer Hunter” doesn’t end with a bang. It ends with an elegiac ceremony not just for the departed, but for the whole town—and that legend of the flawless and heroic American soldier.