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The Deer Hunter (1978)

The Deer Hunter
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Synopsis
One of several 1978 films dealing with the Vietnam War (including Hal Ashby's Oscar-winning Coming Home), Michael Cimino's epic second feature The Deer Hunter was both renowned for its tough portrayal of the war's effect on American working class steel workers and notorious for its ahistorical use of Russian roulette in the Vietnam sequences. Structured in five sections contrasting home and war, the film opens in Clairton, PA, as Mike (Robert De Niro), Nick (Christopher Walken), and Stan (John Cazale, in his last film) celebrate the wedding of their friend Steve (John Savage) and go on a final deer hunt before the men leave for Vietnam. Mike treats hunting as a test of skill, lecturing Stan about the value of "one shot" deer slaying and brushing off Nick's urgings to appreciate nature's beauty. As Mike ruminates post-hunt, the film cuts to the horror of Vietnam, where the men are captured by Vietcong soldiers who force Mike and Nick to play Russian roulette for the V.C.'s amusement. Mike turns the game to his advantage so they can escape captivity, but the men are permanently scarred by the episode. Steve loses his legs; Nick vanishes in the Saigon Russian roulette parlors. Mike returns alone to Clairton a changed man, as he rejects the killing of the deer hunt and finds solace with Nick's old girlfriend Linda (Meryl Streep). Disgusted by the antics of his male cohorts at home, Mike decides to bring Steve back from a veterans' hospital, and he returns to Saigon to find Nick. As Saigon falls, Mike discovers how far gone Nick is; the survivors gather in Clairton for a funeral breakfast, singing an impromptu rendition of "God Bless America." ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide

Cast

Rutanya Alda Angela
Chuck Aspergren Axel
John Cazale Stan
Robert De Niro Michael
George Dzundza John
Mady Kaplan Axel's Girl
John Savage Steven
Pierre Segui Julien
Shirley Stoler Steven's Mother
Meryl Streep Linda
Christopher Walken Nick

Production Crew

Kim Edgar Swados Art Director
Joann Carelli Associate Producer
Marion Rosenberg Associate Producer
Fred Schuler Camera Operator
Nick McLean Camera Operator
Vilmos Zsigmond Cinematographer
Stanley Myers Composer (Music Score)
Joann Carelli Consultant/advisor
Eric Seelig Costume Designer
Michael Cimino Director
Peter Zinner Editor
Charles Okun First Assistant Director
Del Acevedo Makeup
Ed Butterworth Makeup
Barry Spikings Producer
John Peverall Producer
Michael Cimino Producer
Michael Deeley Producer
Louis Garfinkle Screen Story
Michael Cimino Screen Story
Quinn K. Redeker Screen Story
Deric Washburn Screenwriter
Louis Garfinkle Screenwriter
Michael Cimino Screenwriter
June Samson Script Supervisor
Alan Hicks Set Designer
Alan Hicks Set Designer
Dick Goddard Set Designer
Richard C. Goddard Set Designer
Darin Knight Sound/Sound Designer
Fred Cramer Special Effects
Year: 1978
Runtime: 183
Country: USA
MPAA Rating: R
Category: Feature

Genre
Drama

Sound
Dolby

Produced by
EMI Film Productions
Universal

Awards
1978 - Best Film - New York Film Critics Circle
1978 - Best Picture - Academy
1978 - Best Picture - Drama - Golden Globe
1978 - Best Screenplay - Golden Globe
1978 - Best Picture - New York Film Critics Circle
1978 - Best Picture - Academy
1978 - Best Picture - Academy
1978 - Best Picture - Academy
1978 - Best Picture - Academy
1978 - Best Picture - Drama - Golden Globe
1978 - Best Screenplay - Golden Globe
1978 - Best Picture - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie
1978 - Best Picture - New York Film Critics Circle
1978 - Best Picture - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie
1978 - Best Picture - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie
1978 - Best Picture - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie
1979 - Best Film - British Academy Awards
1979 - Best Film - British Academy Awards
1979 - Best Picture - British Academy of Film and Television
1996 - U.S. National Film Registry - Library of Congress
1998 - 100 Greatest American Movies - American Film Institute
1998 - 100 Greatest American Movies - American Film Institute