Long but Worth It

Rating: 7/10 (14 December 2013)

I went into The Deer Hunter expecting it to be another war movie but left very shocked. The Deer Hunter starts off very slowly in America and follows the three main characters Mike, Steve and Nick. A large portion of the movie is spent outside of Vietnam and is used to develop the three characters which the audience soon grows attached to. The majority of said development takes place during Steve's wedding and a hunting expedition. A major part of the development of their characters is used to point out their character flaws. Steve's flaw is the most obvious and can be seen during the wedding sequence. Steve marries a pregnant woman and admits to his friends that the child is not his. While it may not appear like much, in the context of The Deer Hunter, Steve's naiveté will prove to be a weakness during war. Nick's also exhibits his character flaw during the wedding when he proposes to his girlfriend. By showing the audience Nick's compassion, it is implied that he will have other things on his mind which could get him killed. Mike appears to be the only character without a major flaw. He is independent, which can be seen in his interactions with his friends during the deer hunt. He appears to hold enough responsibility which foreshadows his success in Vietnam. Due to their traits one can assume that Steve and Nick will suffer from some sort of physical or emotional pain during the movie. Unfortunately, this foreshadowing proves to be true. Steve suffers from a crippling injury which leaves him restricted to a wheelchair. Nick suffers from a psychological injury which is a result of playing Russian roulette in a POW camp. It is clear that it troubles Mike to see his best friends suffer and the director does a good job of making the audience feel the same way. The long and tedious opening scenes initially appear redundant but it is not until the end of the film that the audience appreciates the strong development of the three characters that occurs during this time. If The Deer Hunter had not spent as much time on the character development, Nick's death would not have shocked me as much as it did.