Later, years after the war has ended, he continues to place a revolver to his temples, dead behind the eyes and carrying deep emotional scars. Be warned, they still have the potential to shock but also give Christopher Walken the chance to seriously impress audiences.
The Vietnam scenes don’t take place until an hour into the movie but as the most devastating and impactful, with the ‘Russian Roulette’ gun scenes giving The Deer Hunter continued notoriety. The men shoot pool and get drunk, the women fret about their hair and make-up, Streep is beaten by her drunken, abusive father, mothers moan about their sons and soon-to-be sons-in-law, people fret about the lack of respect from the young and how traditions and orthodox religious beliefs are being forgotten by them (the town is populated by mostly Russian emigres).
The wedding (of Jon Savage’s character to Rutanya Alda) takes a full 36 minutes of the film’s duration, form when we first see the Bridesmaids to the point where a pissed De Niro goes for a naked dash through town.Ĭimino covers the diaspora of all working class life in scenes that would have impressed Lucino Visconti, another director who liked to linger on a moment.
Unlike the deer that he slays with one crack shot, Mikey keeps missing Streep with his other weapon, decidedly half cocked.Ĭimino’s style is grand, stately and leisurely in this opening act. Is Streep, presented as the epitome of feminine grace, rarefied and rather obviously a cut above the other girls in town, a deer to be hunted as well? De Niro certainly takes his time pursuing her, having appreciated her from afar for many years, patiently stalking her like the deer in the mountain, likewise a thing of beauty that captivates him and his friends. This is beautifully portrayed by Meryl Streep in one of her earliest film performances and the one that scooped her the first of her unprecedented 21 Oscar nominations (she has, of course, won three times, twice as Best Actress). The women are very much outsiders in this film, either old crones wrapped in fur coats and working boots, pregnant newly-weds or willow blonde girls, but they are important catalysts for the men’s emotional sides. It is a fulcrum of early life, albeit one completely devoid of females, with an uncomfortable head emanating off the screen, sparks flying and molten metal spewing in rivers. The opening is almost primordial, with the hell-fire and brimstone of the factory. This film is his magnum opus and commands your respect. The blame fell largely on Cimino’s shoulders and he paid the price with his career (he would only directed another four films before his death in 2016). The catastrophic box office failure of his next epic, the mighty western Heaven’s Gate (1980), virtually destroyed United Artists as a production concern. On a critical and commercial high after his first stint wielding the megaphone ( Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, 1974), he developed and directed The Deer Hunter, less of a war movie and more an examination of the effects of trauma and torture on your average, working class Joe, with the Vietnam War as part of the back drop (most of the film actually takes place in a working class borough of Pennsylvania, dominated by a huge steel works.Īfter this, like Orson Welles with his Citizen Kane more than 30 years before him, it was all downhill. Review, by Jason Dayįor gifted writer-director Michael Cimino, the light that burned twice as bright burnt out twice as fast. Returning home, Mikey (Robert De Niro) has to adjust to a home that has changed in this eyes and tries to connect with Linda (Meryl Streep) who is his friend’s fiancee. Plenty of booze and a lads-only deer hunt in the mountains.Īll of them survive the war, but are left with deep psychological scars after the torture they underwent at the hands of a psychotic group of Viet Cong soldiers. SynopsisĪ group of Pennsylvanian steel factory workers say goodbye to their innocence in the months preceding the Vietnam War draft and celebrate one of them getting married in big style. Use the search function on the left of the screen to look for other reviews and updates. To like this post, comment on it or to follow this blog, please scroll to the bottom. Starring Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken and Meryl Streep. Film review by Jason Day of director Michael Cimino’s movie about a group of steel mill workers who enlist to fight in the Vietnam war and find their lives irrevocably changed by it.