John Boorman’s, “Deliverance”, is a survival horror thriller that succeeded in riveting me to my seat with its high tension and beautiful cinematography, while at the same time being an exploitative insult to my intelligence. It is one of those films that satisfies the emotions while disrespecting its intended audience.
The movie follows a group of white middle-class men from the city who have decided to go on a canoe nature trip down a fictive Cahulawassee River in Georgia because of said river’s challenging rapids and due to an upcoming government dam project, that will eventually flood the valley and destroy the river. One of them men is the macho survivalist Lewis (Burt Reynolds in one of his only two good performances, the other being for Boogie Nights). Lewis is the instigator of the trip on which he takes along his best friend Ed (the always excellent John Voight), and John’s two friends, Drew (Ronny Cox), and Bobby (Ned Beatty). All four main actors are uniformly excellent, which only serves to emphasize how much the ridiculous screenplay betrays them.
In the middle of their trip, the four come across two demented homicidal and gay hillbillies, whose attack on the group serves as the catalyst to the survival and horror elements of the story. It is one thing to have to survive an ordeal created by a realistic circumstance, but when it is based on something that makes absolutely no sense, it becomes insulting cinematic hyperbole. Unfortunately, Boorman, along with his screenwriter James Dickey (whom the movie is based on his novel of the same name), are trying to take their material seriously and make some sort of philosophical statement out of it.
Sam Peckinpah’s, “Straw Dogs”, is an example of turning disturbing material into a statement on the inner violence of man. “Deliverance” tries to do the same thing but fails miserably. First, the movie’s depiction of the rural people from the Appalachian wilderness is not only insulting and demeaning, but also completely unrealistic. If you believed this movie, the hillbillies are inbred deformities that express their sexual frustrations through violence. I can’t even imagine what the reaction would have been if this type of depiction was made about any other ethnic group.
The lack of sense in the movie does not rest only on the exploitive nature of these hillbillies. The four men are also made to act in a completely unbelievable fashion. From showing the two novices of the group being able to expertly navigate a canoe through dangerous rapids, to Eds’ ability to climb a steep sheer vertical cliff with his bare hands while carrying a bulky bow and arrow, the implausible nature of the plot was hard to take. This takes a turn for the worse in the decision the four protagonists make after defending themselves from the hillbillies. Their actions are idiotic, to say the least. At least when watching a B grade slasher horror film like, “Friday the 13th”, there are preordained expectations that the characters will act stupidly, as that is part of the Genre. However, “Deliverance” is a movie that tries to take itself seriously, making the decisions, actions, and consequences of our four protagonists that much more idiotic.
The movie’s screenplay betrays an otherwise first-rate crew. Boorman instills incredible tension and has a good feeling for suspense and atmosphere. The infamous rape scene is very powerful, making it hard to watch, but in a good way. The cinematography was done by the great Vilmos Zsigmond and he gives a surreal beauty to the Georgian wilderness and river rapid scenes. Then there are the superb performances made by the entire cast. Such a wasted use of talent!
At the beginning of the movie, Drew, carrying an acoustic guitar, comes across a mentally handicapped hillbilly boy with a banjo and together they play the iconic and unforgettable, “Dueling Banjoes”. This scene almost makes up for the rest of the movie. It is a beautiful piece of music, and the scene gives a hint that maybe the ensuing movie will have something to say about how music and art coincide with the brutality of man and that both elements are in all of us. Unfortunately, that is not the case, as Deliverance is nothing more than a well-made and polished exploitation film.
1001 Movies before you die 