The Movie
Michael Cimino's three-hour The Deer Hunter is a brilliant, frank depiction of blue-collar America and the extraordinary challenges faced during a turbulent time. Released in 1978 but set several years earlier, late in the Vietnam War, the story follows three best friends who proudly answer the call to serve their country. Led by the tightly-wound Michael (Robert DeNiro), the trio is shipping out immediately following the wedding of Steven (John Savage), and one last deer-hunting trip with Nick (Christopher Walken in his Oscar-winning role).
Despite the meager rewards of hard work at a dangerous job in a poor little Pennsylvania town, Nick loves his life, and so asks Michael to promise to bring him back home from Vietnam, no matter what, a vow that will have serious consequences. Their experiences are nightmarish in ways that they--like movie audiences of the day--could not have imagined, and the three men are forever changed by their time overseas, each in a different way.
The Picture
The Deer Hunter is delivered in high-bitrate VC-1 format (mid-to-high 20s megabits per second), suffering like many movies from the '70s from a fair amount of film grain, compounded by video noise. Blacks are sufficiently nuanced and the range of fleshtones is natural, and the 2.35:1 image curiously integrates bits of stock footage fairly seamlessly with Cimino's scenes. The quality here is not exceptional but surely an improvement over DVD.
The Sound
Reproduced with the proper volume, the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack adequately conveys the oppressive din of the steel mill where the men toil, although this is a case where I would have appreciated even more noise. The fidelity of voices seems strained unfortunately, to the point of illegible dialogue, and the frequent drone of the factory in the background doesn't help matters, although it does enhance the realism. The choir voices admirably fill the enormous church, and the music and throng at the wedding nicely fill out the soundstage, but don't expect Apocalypse Now-caliber sonic thrills from the Vietnam scenes.
The Extras
Unusual for a Universal Studios Blu-ray, the disc bypasses the usual menus and takes us straight into the movie... well, that is after a few online trailers pushed via BD-Live. No worries, we can summon the pop-up menu at any point, to access what else Deer Hunter has to offer.
There are really only two bonuses, both ported from the 2005 "Legacy Series" DVD. Cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond joins film journalist Bob Fisher for an extremely interesting commentary track, while the 17 minutes of unchaptered deleted and extended scenes are presented in standard definition. The pocket BLU app is also supported, for enhanced playback control via a handheld device and portable access to the extra scenes.
A DVD of the movie with the commentary is also included in the set. This second disc appears to be identical to the main platter from that previously released Legacy Series edition.
Final Thoughts
Pensive but not plodding, and resonant with a subtle, unglamorous human drama sadly lacking in most modern movies, The Deer Hunter remains a profound statement about America, but one that is only minimally upgraded for this Blu-ray debut.
Product Details
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