deer hunter journal entry

Rating: 10/10 (22 December 2006)

#3. What's the deal with the French character who introduces Nicky to the Russian Roulette den in Saigon? What is this character suppose to symbolize?
France was in ruins after World War II. Its citizens had been abused by the German occupiers, its landscape blasted apart by bombs, and its finances drained by the early war effort. To return to normal it needed to rebuild, to rebuild it needed to refinance, and to refinance it needed its colony of Indochina. So, the French pumped Indochina for resources, but this was not well received by its inhabitants. In the 1950's the French suddenly found themselves facing an organized rebel army intent on revolution. After several years of fighting, the French found that this new war was costing them more than they could ever hope to gain from the colony, and so, facing massive defeat and a larger debt, the French packed up and got out. The French character in the film represents this France, cynical, exploitative, and unsentimental. Much as the Frenchman drags Nicky into the dangerous underground game of Russian roulette, France dragged the United States into Vietnam. Using the United State's fear of communism, the French used us for industrial and financial support in their war. Of course this is only after they exploited the Vietnamese as best as they could, before having the docile servants turn into a National Liberation Front that is. The French guy does the same thing. Once he sees that Nicky could be useful to him in his Russian roulette gambling, the Frenchman eagerly milks him for all that he's worth, emphasizing the French desire for revenue as well as their unscrupulous attitude towards obtaining it. In the end of the Deer Hunter, as Saigon is falling down around them, the Frenchman is still exploiting Nicky for all that he's worth. The end scene is where the symbolism is truly harped upon, as the Frenchman is getting ready to flee the losing battle, the Americans, Nicky and Mike, are still as entrenched as ever. In the raw sense, this is what happened at the start of American involvement in Vietnam as well. As the French backed out, they left a clear path for Americans to walk straight into hell, and as they do, they feign ignorance over the knowledge that the war is a quagmire. This is symbolized by the characters charade of speaking only French, when in fact he's fluent in English as well. With so many obvious parallels, the French character is, without a doubt, the embodiment of French influence in Vietnam: snooty, dishonest, and immoral. It doesn't sound like all that much has changed. Les petites salopes.