Michael Cirino's "The Deer Hunter" is a cinematic masterpiece. One of the most well known war movies of all time this film depicts the physical and emotional struggles of soldiers in Vietnam during and after the war. The movie begins with a group of friends who work in a steel mill in Pittsburgh. We first see the men as they finish a day at work, leaving to go to their best friends wedding that evening. Nick, Michael, and Steven are portrayed as the three main characters. Nick the tall charismatic one, Steven is the smallest of the three and is about to be married, and Michael is the cold, calculating leader of the pack. After Steven is married Nick, Michael, and two of their other buddies head up into the woods to go on one final deer hunt before the three men depart for their service in the military.
We first see Michael's rough side when he repeatedly refuses to lend his extra pair of boots to one of his friends who forgot to bring his along on the hunt. Again we see the dark side of Michael as the movie cuts to a scene in Vietnam. He is laying on the ground, the rest of his platoon dead. He is patiently waiting and watching while a troop of Viet Cong soldiers finds a small group of survivors in a shelter. The soldiers throw a grenade in the bunker and murder the civilians and Michael jumps up and blast the soldiers with a flame thrower. We really see the pain and anguish in Michael's face as he stands and inspects the seen. The war has already ravaged his mind. Nick and Steven show up to rescue Michael and his is so entranced by the scene in front of him that he does not even recognize his best friends. The three are captured and their torture begins. We next see them as they are sitting in the water beneath a Viet Cong hut, the likes of which is being used for a deadly game of POW Russian roulette. Two men are selected and forced to play against each other. When Michael and Steven are selected to play one another we see the strength of Michael and the bond between the men. Steven is absolutely scared to death and can barely hold the gun to his head. Michael sits across from him and constantly assures him that everything will be alright. This is a very powerful message. These two men are in a dire situation, on that will most likely end in death, but their friendship holds strong between the two. The love of a close friend keeps them going. We see the mental anguish abuse that the enemy inflicts.
All three men make it through the war alive. Stan has been sent to a hospital to recover, Michael returns home, and Steven is in a hospital after having both legs amputated. We dont see Nick and Steven for a good portion of the remainder of the film, but we follow Michaels struggles as he tries to readjust to life at home. He comes home a warm welcome from friends, but does not attend the party because he can not escape the memories of the friends that he left behind. His former love comes by but we can see that things are not the same. He has lost a part of himself, the human part in the war. He is distant. He goes on another deer hunt but it is not the same. He cannot escape to the place where he once could, he cannot clear his mind and take the perfect shot to kill the deer.
He decides to find Nick who stayed oversees. He travels to Asia yet again and finds that Nick has been participating in underground Russian Roulette games. Michael finds Nick and plays a game against him to try and convince him to come home. This is where their friendship is shattered. Nick's gun goes off, killing him, and Michael loses it. He cries for his dear friend, one that he should have never left after they had gone through so much together. We see the innocence of their once normal lives shattered. Not only is Nick dead but all the memories of their great hunts and lives together are now just images left in Michael's head. There will be no more hunts. This is the true sorrow of the Vietnam War, all of the new memories that will never be made.
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All three men make it through the war alive. Stan has been sent to a hospital to recover, Michael returns home, and Steven is in a hospital after having both legs amputated. We dont see Nick and Steven for a good portion of the remainder of the film, but we follow Michaels struggles as he tries to readjust to life at home. He comes home a warm welcome from friends, but does not attend the party because he can not escape the memories of the friends that he left behind. Nicks former love comes by band tries to seduce Michael but he will have none of it. He has lost a part of himself, the human part in the war. He is distant. He goes on another deer hunt but it is not the same. He cannot escape to the place where he once could, he cannot clear his mind and take the perfect shot to kill the deer.
ReplyDeleteMichael goes to visit Steven at home and finds that he is living in a hospital and his wife has gone mute. Her lack of the ability to speak may stem from the idea that she has nothing to say. her whole life was flipped upside down because of the war, yet cant find the words to express her feelings.
He decides to find Nick who stayed oversees. He travels to Asia yet again and finds that Nick has been participating in underground Russian Roulette games. Michael finds Nick and plays a game against him to try and convince him to come home. This is where their friendship is shattered. Nick's gun goes off, killing him, and Michael loses it. He cries for his dear friend, one that he should have never left after they had gone through so much together. We see the innocence of their once normal lives shattered. Not only is Nick dead but all the memories of their great hunts and lives together are now just images left in Michael's head. There will be no more hunts. This is the true sorrow of the Vietnam War, all of the new memories that will never be made.