Deliverance
Well, this is certainly a movie that was grossly overrated at the time of its original release (Best Picture nominee? Really??), but what it really is or ever was is a solid exploitation flick with an A-cast and crew. The opening scenes are promising, particularly the legendary “Dueling Banjos” bit between Ronny Cox and the inbred boy, entertaining yet still filling the viewer with dread. The first half of the film, leading up to the infamous rape scene, is crackerjack paced, with Reynolds doing some of the best acting of his career as the he-man member of the group with no fear (or at times, common sense). The problem arises in the second half when the pacing becomes snail-like and surprisingly even the carefully-built tension seems to go out the window. Even worse, when the characters make it back to civilization, the film drags itself out for a good fifteen minutes longer than it should, having major issues wrapping up the story and moving to the end. As for the actors, Voight is actually pretty bland; even though he’s essentially the lead, we learn next to nothing about his character, so when it becomes up to him to “fight back”, the viewer can be hard-pressed to care. But then there’s Beatty, for whom there can be no doubt that he goes above and beyond the call of duty for the better of his craft here, performing in one of the most notorious scenes in a major film ever and still managing to keep his dignity (props should also go to McKinney as well, unrelenting in his twisted evil and coming off as one of the most sinister villains in screen history despite his limited screen time as the Mountain Man). Cox also does a good job as the voice of reason of the group, wanting the others to do the right thing no matter the cost. The cinematography is evocative, to say the least, and it is rather frightening that there were actually Americans like this as recently as 30 years ago. In the end, while not the “great film” some have made it out to be, a well-acted, solid b-movie with better talent involved than it probably deserved…
7/10