Deer Hunter Response #4

Rating: 6/10 (12 December 2013)

Mike, Nick, and Steve are three best friends who share a lot in common. They all work together in the mines, they love to go hunting together and they also love spending their free time together, going on trips, going to parties, etc. When they find out they've been drafted to serve in Vietnam, emotions run high and there friendship foreshadows a change. The last night before the war, the men all attend Steve's wedding as a final goodbye. The men consume much alcohol and enjoy themselves while they still can. The following morning, they plan to go hunting together for the last time before the war. It is here in the film when the men express affection they have towards one another. Nick, being the sensitive one, opens up to his boys. He explains how much he loves his average life and his average income. Additionally, he states his love towards his friends and towards the life he lives. He loves working with his friends, hunting with his friends and so on. He then asks Mike to make a promise to him. The promise is that no matter what, he will not leave Nick in Vietnam. Mike accepts. Once Steve leaves the war on injury and Mike gets shot in order to return home, Nick is stranded in Vietnam playing Russian Roulette for money. He doesn't do this consciously however. Nick is doped up on, what we assume to be, heroin. With his mental disability and PTSD, he is able to calming play the violent game and make a mass amount of cash. Being a good friend, Mike keeps his promise and returns to the abandoned city in South Vietnam to retrieve Nick. When he finds Nick, he does what he can, but Nick's memory is altered. Mike desperately tries to bring Nick back home and to the right mindset but fails. The two friends end up playing Russian Roulette against one another and it is here where Nick starts to regain focus and his memory of Mike. Unfortunately it is too late, and with one pull of the trigger, Nick kills himself while Mike watches in tears.