The 1001 Movie Club is a conglomerate of film bloggers inspired by the phenomenal book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, the title of which is fairly self explanatory. A tome of cinematic information and recommendation, it is a bible for movie buffs, and the 1001 Movie Club is made up of people dedicated to watching and reviewing the acclaimed films that can be found within its pages. Be sure to visit the club’s site where the reviews will be collected and an aggregate score bestowed, and if you are so inclined, feel free to join in on the fun.DELIVERANCE (1972)
Genre: Drama
Director: John Boorman
Starring: Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, Ronny Cox
Running Time: 109 minutes
"Insurance? I never been insured in my life. There's no risk"
John Boorman’s infamous film Deliverance tells the story of four white collar workers who find themselves fighting for their lives about being attack on a caning trip by a couple of vicious hillbillies. It’s a frightening film, but it’s not a horror movie. It’s a tense film, but it’s not really a thriller either. It even has elements of unpleasant humour, but it is most certainly not a comedy. I've classified it above as a drama, but even that broad term somehow fails to do it justice. A tale of violence, cowardice and compromise, Deliverance is almost impossible to summarize; the best I can do is to call it a brutally human story about evil and mans reaction when faced with it.I thought Deliverance was a very good film, despite the fact that it often seemed rather dated. The acting isn’t all that great and the sound quality (at least on my copy of the film) was very poor. But it is the actions of the characters in the film that make it so engrossing. We watch as these normal men do things they would never normally do; as they compromise their morals in order to cope with their horrific situation, we find ourselves wondering if we would do the same. One complaint I do have of the film is that it’s not long enough; we see them make these choices, but I would have liked to see the lasting effect their guilt has on them, something that is only hinted at in the movies haunting final scene.
The other terrific thing about the film is a mood it is able to maintain, something that I credit to two major aspects of the production. First we have the setting. The gorgeous yet isolated Georgian woods seem fraught with peril even when there is none; as the unsuspecting travelers made their way down the river, I was reminded of many a Vietnam War films, and could sense the danger lurking in the tree. The other thing that one must mention when discussing the film is the music; the use of banjo, particularly in the iconic main theme, is both farcical and terrifying; sometimes laconic and other times frenzied, a tense and creepy yet incredibly catchy set of chords that can signify violence, fear or any number of other emotions. For such a minimalistic score, it is bizarre how effective it is.I am always fascinated by Lord of the Flies style story; about the depths that men will sink to when cut off from society. I mentioned how Deliverance reminded me of Vietnam War films; personally, I think it would make an excellent double feature with Michael Cimino’s The Deer Hunter, as both films lay bare a brutal and terrifying side of human behavior. Cimino’s movie definitely benefits from far better performances; the expression of fear on DeNiro’s face is far more palpable that on Voight’s. Even so, Deliverance is a film that should be sought out. I do want to clarify; I’ve talked about the compromising of morals a lot of this review. Just to be clear, the actions of the hillbillies are obviously horrific. But personally, I had far more questions of the victims than I did of the perpetrators by the time the end credits roled.
Score
8/10
So does it deserve to be in the book?
Yes. Honestly, it's not like any film I've ever really seen. From a production standpoint it's far from perfect, but the question it raises for me make me suspect that I will be pondering it for a very long time.
Check out what the rest of the club thinks of Deliverance here.
