Overrated, unreal, Pulp Trash...

Rating: Null/10 (20 September 2001)

The best thing about "The Deer Hunter" was the fact that Christopher Walken had a starring role, alongside Robert DeNero. If this film had anything, it had star power. What it did not have however, was a good script. It was billed as a "War Movie" and might be mistaken for such by some. What it is, is a study of human change, affected by War. It was a character study on the effects of Vietnam on it's veterans.
This film revolves around a group of friends who enjoy deer hunting(hence the title). This is seen as a test if skill more than anything else, the phrase "one shot", shows their point. The first 50 minutes of the film take place back in the states, providing a background for the characters. It moves to Nam' for a horribly short sequence involving a "traumatic" experience for them as P.O.W.s. This provides the "boost" to Walken's nervous breakdown. This part of the film closes as we leave Nam' and Walken is left behind. The rest of the film deals with a series of "sentemental" encounters leading up to an unconvincing finale. Overall "The Deer Hunter" is over-dramatized, overacted and poorly written. A far far better film lies in "Apocolypse Now" starring Martin Sheen. On a side not AN also includes a section on the effects of war on the soldier's and manages to pull it off without all the relative hokeyness of "The Deer Hunter". Watch it instead.