Deerhunter on the big screen

deer
Originally uploaded by recyclingfan.

I just saw Deer Hunter on the big screen, at regent sq theater in pittsburgh. Amazing. I could see the whole scene as the director wanted - huge screen. Regent sq is an old theater, with the big screen, not the small screens those muliplex theaters have. The colors were so vibrant. And I could hear the dialogue better than ever. For a film criticized so much (poor editing, poor dialogue etc) it was nominated for many award, won 5 academy awards, Michael Cimino won every director's award there was that year. Oddly enough, this is only one of two Cimino films that were ever considered good and it still has its critics. The wedding party scene was great on the wide screen. I finally connected the choir at church wedding with the choir singing when Michael goes deer hunting the first time. In church, he mocks stan when stan makes the sign of the cross. Then when they are hunting the first time, the choir starts to sing as Michael stalks the deer: the woods are Michael's church! He worships the deer, the hunt, the "one shot" code. The second time he hunts, he purposely misses the deer, and yells, "OKAYYYY?!" up in the air, as if speaking to heaven - does he now believe in God? Meryl Streep was soooo beautiful - her hair is so many shades of blonde. the scene where she sleeps next to michael in her towel...no dialogue, none needed. And when michael waits for her outside the Eagle market, she gets in car, says, "Did you even think our lives would turn out like this?" Michael of course is silent (De Niro didnt have many long lines in the movie). Finally figured out what the viet cong guy is yelling during the russian roulette scenes: "Di di Mau! Mau!" It means hurry up in Vietnamese. The GI's in nam started using it as a phrase, as in, "Lieutenant, it looks like an entire NVA battalion is about to over whelm us, I suggest we Di Di Mau!!!" like lets get the hell out of here quick. Its an expression vietnam vets would recognize. The movie was perfect, although they cut the sound off too soon for the speaker after the film - that song is so beautiful at the end, you have to let it play out. The funeral at the end, in that run down cemetary next to the church where stevie and angela were married, the sound of a train and factory in background, these are not affluent people, this is not a rich mans cemetary, and then the breakfast scene afterward, Linda fumbling with the silver war, no one really functioning, speaking, and then finally the song God Bless America - absolutley heart breaking...I mean you know these people and actually care about them. I have seen this film about 30 times, I still cried all the way through it, starting at the wedding party, going right through to the end.
ihave some Vietnam links elsewhere on the blog here and here. Christopher Walken for President!