Viewing era affects movie expectations..

Rating: 10/10 (25 March 2006)

What most people seem to forget is the era in which this movie was made and how close to the end of the war it was created. Some seem to state how disappointed they were when they saw the movie but I'll place money on the fact that these people compare it to the newest movies where action and collateral damage keep us awake.
The movie was not intended to explain or document the Vietnam War. It was a story about people who lived, worked, and drank together in a Russian Orthodox community where a few men were drawn into the war and how that war affected their way of life.
I was 21 years old at the time and in the Air Force when The Deer Hunter came on HBO. For the times, it was as critically acclaimed as The Exorcist was in the early seventies. But yet, people seem to gain disappointment over a movie when they see it 10, 20, or more years later. One must examine the movie for the period it was promoted and not attempt to compare it to todays movies with computer graphics and Dolby sound stages. Take it for what its worth on the surface...a movie about people during a brief moment with war involved.