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 Director
:John Boorman
Starring
: Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, Ronny Cox
Picture
1.85:1 anamorphic and 4:3 full screen, DD 5.1, Single-Layer,
Dual-sided, Snap Case
Running
Time : 109 Minutes
The
story:
Four
men ride a wild river. A weekend turns into a nightmare.
Four
ordinary friends set off in two canoes down the Cahulawassee
river to experience the real American Wilderness before
it is destroyed by a local development project. What they
encounter in this backwater territory is both harrowing
and horrific in a world that they thought they understood.
The
summary:
This
film is one of the all time masters of its genre and caused
a major fuss on its release during the early seventies.
Dealing with issues of racism, destruction, killing and
sodomy it broke boundaries that had previously been taboo.
Made on a shoestring independent budget (They could not
even afford insurance for the actors, who had to perform
most of their own stunts!) the picture is superbly directed
by John Boorman and adapted from the novel by James Dickey.
Tension is most certainly the name of the game with this
film as the group of ordinary men are pushed to their gritty
limits under extraordinary circumstances. Brilliantly portraying
the leader of the group is Burt Reynolds, who for me offers
the best role of his career & his strength is one of
the keys to the film. It shows the true valour that each
man must have to fight for himself and bring out the true
metal of their spirit. For me this is very much a rites
of passage movie in which each of the group have to learn
not only about the harsh country but also about themselves
and how far they will go before they start to lose control.
Full
of realism and good stunts for the age of the film it is
a true classic and the Region 1 DVD is a must for your collection
with its good transfer and extra's. Try to steer clear of
the Region 2 version which has none of the supplemental
material.
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