The Deer Hunter
Universal Pictures | Release Date: December 8, 1978 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
86
METASCORE
Universal acclaim based on 18 Critic Reviews
Positive:
16
Mixed:
2
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Time OutStaff (Not Credited)
Ideally, though, it should prove as gruelling a test of its audience's moral and political conscience as it seems to have been for its makers. Read full review
100
The Hollywood ReporterArthur Knight
For me, The Deer Hunter is THE great American film of 1978. I realize that we still have a few major releases yet to come, like Superman, but I can't imagine anything more timely, more important, more uncompromising than this Universal-EMI production. Read full review
100
CineVueD.W. Mault
Cimino’s drama does far more than simply function; it’s an awkward, uneasy paean to a dying class that will soon be destroyed by the oncoming march of globalisation Read full review
100
The TelegraphMark Lee
Any movie that lasts three hours should have a damn good reason for lingering so long. At 182 minutes, Michael Cimino's Vietnam War epic is timed to perfection. Read full review
100
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Andrew Ryan
Stark and haunting, and still unbearable to watch at times, The Deer Hunter remains a powerful movie experience. Unlike the broad strokes of Apocalypse Now and Full Metal Jacket, the 1979 best-picture Oscar-winner provides a more personal take on the human casualties of the Vietnam War. Read full review
100
Chicago TribuneGene Siskel
What distinguishes The Deer Hunter most is its many rich characters and the size of its vision. This is a big film, dealing with big issues, made on a grand scale. Much of it, including some casting decisions, suggest inspiration by "The Godfather." [9 Mar 1979]
100
TV Guide MagazineStaff (Not Credited)
Brutally memorable, The Deer Hunter is an emotionally draining production that draws a vivid portrait of its characters and their milieu--and succeeds in showing the devastating effect of the war on their lives, as well as their brave attempts at renewal. Unfortunately, the film falters when it comes to the larger questions of America's involvement in Vietnam. Read full review
100
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
It is not an anti-war film. It is not a pro-war film. It is one of the most emotionally shattering films ever made. Read full review
100
EmpireColin Kennedy
A simultaneuosly touching and harrowing experience that puts the audience directly in the shoes of one man's experience of Vietnam. Read full review
100
The GuardianPeter Bradshaw
The idea of sacrifice permeates everything, along with the cruelty and horror. This is Cimino's masterpiece. Read full review
100
New York Daily NewsKathleen Carroll
In ferociously intense, chillingly brutal scenes, this bravely innovative, kingsized movie (one should be warned that it runs over three hours) enables one to fully understand why this particular war not only destroyed the hopes and dreams of America’s young men, but why it left so many of them permanently shattered and alienated from society. Read full review
90
The Observer (UK)Philip French
The Deer Hunter is a rich and powerful picture that without a trace of patronisation or the slightest touch of cultural superiority, speaks eloquently for the inarticulate. Read full review
90
The New York TimesVincent Canby
A big, awkward, crazily ambitious, sometimes breathtaking motion picture that comes as close to being a popular epic as any movie about this country since "The Godfather." Read full review
90
VarietyStaff (Not Credited)
Among the considerable achievements of Michael Cimino's The Deer Hunter is the fact that the film remains intense, powerful and fascinating for more than three hours. Read full review
80
TimeFrank Rich
This excruciatingly violent, three-hour Viet Nam saga demolishes the moral and ideological cliches of an era: it shoves the audience into hell and leaves it stranded without a map. Read full review
70
Dallas ObserverLuke Y. Thompson
Overlong, but with moments of greatness.
50
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
While the results are far from unprofessional--the cast is uniformly good, including a characteristically slapped-around Meryl Streep...The male self-pity is so overwhelming that you'll probably stagger out of this mumbling something about Tolstoy (as many critics did when the film first came out in 1978) if you aren't as nauseated as I was. Read full review
50
The New YorkerPauline Kael
A romantic adolescent boy’s view of friendship.
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