Deliverance (HD-DVD)
Picture:
B- Sound: C+ Extras: B Film: B
British
director John Boorman made a huge impact in 1967 with his remarkable film Point Blank (see our soundtrack review
elsewhere on this site) and as it often does for great directors, started a
remarkable trilogy of films that established him artistically as one of the
most capable filmmakers around. Though
there were other productions in between that first film and the later two, he
proved more than capable of competing against the best filmmakers in the U.S.
& Europe. Hell In The Pacific and Leo
The Last were smart ambitious films, but neither could have prepared anyone
in the industry or public for Deliverance.
A huge
surprise hit in 1972, the film continued the run of luck Jon Voight was on,
established a profound respect ever since for Ned Beatty’s bold performance,
showed Ronny Cox as a very capable and enduring actor and finally established
longtime playboy actor Burt Reynolds as a formidable acting force before also
launching him as one of the biggest box office stars ever to date.
The four
play best friends who decide to go and take a weekend trip in the middle of
nowhere in the Georgia’s Cahulawassee River rafting. Thinking it will break them away from their
usual boring domestic lives, they get more when the bargain for when the raft
trip goes wrong, they are stranded, they cannot reach anyone and are stuck
fending for themselves isolated. When
they finally are discovered, it is by the worst possible people.
Much has
been rightly made about its connection to the then-raging events in Vietnam,
which only propelled its relevance, but it is a great film without that context
thanks to that rare chemistry of great acting and casting. Relevant all over again as this disc arrives
during the Iraq fiasco, it reminds us that you can have smart serious films
about something that are not selling toys, are not sequels or remakes, are not
stupid popcorn films, can be highly profitable and that the audience is smarter
than they are given credit for when given a chance.
The
sexual assault scene involving the predators and Beatty has been made into a
sick joke by many, most of whom have never seen the film and by many who may
actually be trying to trivialize the film for political reasons. The biggest reason is to divorce the film for
Vietnam Syndrome for Right Wing rollback reasons. However, once you watch the film, especially
in this format, you’ll see what you and everyone else has been missing: an
enduring classic.
The 1080p 2.35
X 1 digital High Definition image is better than DVD could deliver, yet this HD
master has issues since the film materials used are not optimal. Though Boorman and his master Director of
Photography Vilmos Zsigmond went for a desaturated look similar to what
Zsigmond had pulled off (with some variance) with Robert Altman on 1971’s McCabe & Mrs. Miller (reviewed
elsewhere on this site) resulting in a new kind of naturalism not seen on film
before. Besides flaws with the print
used, the color is not totally accurate as the original release prints were
issued in 70mm blow-ups (which always have superior color) and 35mm prints were
shot in real anamorphic Panavision and printed in three-strip dye-transfer
Technicolor. That is the same exact way
the same year the john Wayne hit The
Cowboys was issued and Warner just issued that in HD-DVD (which you can
read about elsewhere on this site) and Blu-ray.
Though not as disappointing or problematic as another such film also on
HD-DVD and Blu-ray, Mel Brooks’ Blazing
Saddles, it gives one the impression Deliverance needs some restoration with
Warner and Boorman needing to find a solid three-strip print for the upgrade.
As for the sound, 35mm prints were monophonic, while the
70mm blow-ups had 6-track magnetic stereo sound. This would include five speakers in the back
of the screen. Unfortunately, the Dolby
Digital Plus 5.1 mix here sounds more like boosted mono than showing any sign
of the kind of travelling dialogue or sound effects those 70mm tracks would
have. Where is the 70mm
soundmaster? This is still better than Dolby Plus 1.0 Mono
as demonstrated by such a French track also included. For the remix that is here, it shows the age
of the elements present and makes one wonder if this is always first-generation
material. The combination is good, but
not what it should be or that this format can deliver.
Extras include the original theatrical trailer, vintage
featurette The Dangerous World Of Deliverance, a 4-part 35th
anniversary look at the film and yet another terrific feature length audio
commentary by Boorman more than worthy of the great tracks he created for Zardoz (on a fine DVD from Fox highly
recommended) and Tailor Of Panama
(see my Blu-ray elsewhere on this site) that are musts for all serious film
fans. After making the underrated Zardoz with the clout from this film
and Exorcist II – The Heretic did
not work out, Boorman became the premiere filmmaker of serious Fantasy genre
films (Excalibur, The Emerald Forest) before a serious
critical comeback with Hope & Glory
and indie favorite The General. Zsigmond continued his reign as an architect
of scope cinematography with The Long
Goodbye, Scarecrow, Cinderella Liberty, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, The Deer Hunter, Heaven’s Gate, Blow Out
and Real Genius.
And it all goes back to the success of this film.
- Nicholas Sheffo
