Deliverance

Pure Apocalypse or how a borderline situation in the wilderness does not make us noble and heroic beings, but rather frightened and sly creatures without morality. Originally a romantic pose, it degenerates into final images of total destruction - scenes from the vanishing city are a chilling commentary on the moral decline of the heroes. A film that is extremely physical and intellectually urgent in every respect - it breaks the traditional dichotomy of good and evil and makes the struggle for survival an ethical problem. It's great how Boorman uses the "prejudiced" resistance of the viewer to the backward mountaineers and thus actually puts him in the role of an accomplice, and how in the character of Burt Reynolds he challenges the archetype of a self-confident boy hero. It has aged only in a few technical respects, and it is otherwise a brilliant example of filmmaking with content and a harrowing atmosphere (the banjo duel is a typical sequence for textbooks). (17/03/2012)

Oh yeah, it’s great to be in redneck territory. They make you feel good and welcome, they show you some picturesque nooks and crannies, play something catchy on the banjo and pour you some moonshine to wet your whistle on. But aren’t they a bit strange? Ooh, don’t come here with your prejudices... But John Boorman seems to have a different opinion. Good for him, because this result of his xenophobic paranoia is the best “river raft ride" movie ever to be seen. Despite all that’s going for this movie, the climax occurs somewhere around the seventh minute. Which doesn’t mean at all that the hell we see in the second half isn’t darn powerful. It is and all the more so because it is so chillingly believable. (18/05/2008)

Boorman masterfully ratchets up the tension and fear. Already during the dueling banjos at the beginning I had a strange feeling, without any rational justification, that something was wrong. That feeling grew over time and then suddenly it came, like a punch in the face. The rape scene is impressive and vile, and I've rarely wished death on someone like I did on those two loathsome hillbillies. It's the premature climax of the film, the rest doesn't have that much power. (11/05/2003)

A well-written (especially the dialogues about crime and its consequences), clearly and imaginatively directed (the voyeuristic camera, the oppressive atmosphere of a "survival thriller"), and well-acted adventure for men. It lacks a faster pace in spots but overall is a strongly impressive affair, in which the absence of music (except for the guitar-banjo part) and one unbelievable rape are also noteworthy. An excellent film, after which a trip to the forest will never be the same again. (18/10/2006)

At first glance, it's a kind of seventies macho flick; at second, third, and fourth glance, it's a very cunning and psychological matter, which is about a great deal more than just someone getting revenge for something someone else did to them. The tension gets more and more intense, the four adventurers gradually take on different shades, the viewer has to ask himself how he would act in their place... Thanks to John Boorman and his rapid dives you will be transported directly to the scene of the action, and thanks to the impeccable cast led by Burt Reynolds and Jon Voight, you will live through it all and maybe even survive. (28/07/2020)