The Deer Hunter, directed by Michael Cimino (1978)
"The Deer Hunter" came out in 1978 and along with "Coming Home", "The Boys In Company C", and "Go Tell The Spartans", was the first of the Vietnam films that would later become a genre onto itself with most of the major directors taking their hand at dramatizing this troubled period in American history.
Some of the best known of the Vietnam films that would come later include: Apocalypse Now, Platoon, Gardens Of Stone, Casualties Of War, Full Metal Jacket, and Born On The Fourth Of July. Directed by Michael Cimino with cinematography by Vilmos Zsigmond, a screenplay by Daric Washburn, and a stellar cast including: Robert DeNiro, Christopher Walken, Meryl Streep, John Savage and John Cazale, The Deer Hunter exploded onto the screen and into people’s consciousness in 1978 with little warning and with major impact. People wept openly at the end, traumatized by the violence and madness and spectacle. This was true Greek tragedy that evoked pity, terror and catharsis. The weight of the story was carried by the three young men, Michael (De Niro), Nick (Walken), and Stevie (Savage) who are about to leave for duty in Vietnam. Through an articulate three-act structure the film chronicles their mental, moral, spiritual and physical destruction. At the end, when the survivors gather after Nick’s funeral and sing "God Bless America" while toasting their lost friend, the audience has been through an emotional and visual holocaust that transcends an atypical movie going experience. Many must of thought that this film could actually put a stop to war as they stumbled out of the theatre. Emotionally exhausted, raging at the violent absurdity, and swept away by the imagery, the sound, and the powerful acting and characterization, The Deer Hunter, started the ball rolling on addressing a war that changed America forever. Looking back at it now we focus on the last scene and the final words spoken, “Here’s to Nick,” in order to remember what made us so naively hopeful, and what it was about that final shot that made us cry.
Act One. The time is 1965; the place is a small steel town in the mountains of Pennsylvania. An oil tanker roars through the early dawn, like a menacing bullet it penetrates the steel gray air and signals the beginning of the story about Nick Chevotarevich and his immediate friends. We meet Nick in his environment, at the night shift of molten metal, flame and sparks, faces protected behind fireproof masks. This could be the industrial revolution or a vision of a hellish future where men in silver suits confront the inferno. Nick is one of the boys getting off work. Farm boy handsome, slightly nervous, kind of deer like, he’s happy to be alive and surrounded by his friends. His best friend, Michael, instructs them on the meaning of the ‘Sun Dogs’ as they exit the factory and meet the morning light. The Native Indian hunting omen seems to disquiet them, the intrusion of a world outside their experience. The crowd grows into a river of working men as the night shift pours into morning. They talk of their friend Stevie’s marriage and a final hunting trip while racing a tanker truck in their big finned sedan. On other fronts, a nervous bride examines her impending pregnancy in the mirror, the Russian Orthodox church is introduced, the American Legion comes into view, and Nick’s girl, Linda (Streep), is beaten by her drunken father. Meanwhile, Nick, Michael, Stevie, and the rest drink and play pool at their favourite bar. They sing and sway to the music as another shift has ended and the weekend has begun. Amidst the real camaraderie and spontaneity there is another feeling, that like a Greek chorus serenading the tragic hero, other worlds are coming into view. But in the meantime, Here’s to Nick, a classic working class American boy in 1965.
The characters gather for the wedding. A lone man drinks on the street as the priest prepares for religious ceremony. The choir sings angelically amidst the stained glass and rented tuxedos. Nick smiles and dances and jumps over the beer. He tells Michael, “I like the way the trees are.” He’s a child, a dreamer, and a dancer. He talks about the exciting adventure of going to Vietnam. Michael talks about how a deer has to be taken with “one shot.” The rich pageant of life continues as the wedding unfolds. A Green Beret shows up. Another world is introduced. “Fuck it”, is all he can say. Nick and his friends try and laugh it off but there’s something dark and ominous in his demeanor. The Green Beret throws back shots like bullets as the dancing continues. A man punches his wife. Wine spills on the bride’s dress. Rice is thrown at the newlyweds as the revelers spill onto the street and Michael strips off his clothes and runs under the bullet gray sky. Nick finds him and they lie on a basketball court where he has Michael promise him that he won’t ever leave him behind in Vietnam. Morning comes and we cross a bridge into the mountains and the deer hunting trip. The natural world where they piss on the side of the road, leave people behind, dip Twinkies and bologna in mustard, and fight over boots. A hunting cabin in the fog as Michael and Nick climb up to the glacier. A set of antlers appears, Michael takes his one shot and Nick watches the buck quiver and shake as it dies. The deer is strapped to the hood of the car as they drive back to the bar to celebrate. The piano plays and the mood becomes more somber. Nick is wired, furtive, acting even more like a deer, as his world continues to change. Here’s to Nick whose next stop is Vietnam.
