From ShakaFury@aol.com Mon Jan 3 19:35:32 2000 Hello I'm a college student at the University of Kentucky, I had to write a report about The Deerhunter movie for my Russian Lititure class. My report is still unfinished but I still think you will find it interesting. Basicly I compared the movie to Russian epics and as you will see they are very similer. The Russian epics can be found in a book called "Russian Folk Epics" translated by James Bailey and Tatyana Ivanova. Paul Kelley RAE 370 Don't Lose Your Head I threw in the video, hit the play button and waited to see another anti-Vietnam, political, and gore filled movie. I was obviously wrong. What I saw instead was a movie more about people than war. It wasn't a story about big government making wrong decisions, it was about the choices of one man and his friends. Where most movies focus on an ambiguous character, one we can all identify with, this story focused on an American culture much different from ours. Whether the director planned it or not, the story not only dealt with Slavic-Americans but was also told like an old Russian Epic. It especially has a strong resemblance to the epic Dobrynya and the Dragon. The Deerhunter doesn't revolve around a fight against legendary creatures, but it does have all the key elements of an epic: the tragically flawed hero and his companions, the lurking evil, and most importantly a structure that is nearly identical to Dobrynya and the Dragon. The Deerhunter is more than just a disturbing movie. It's a disturbing movie that mimics traditional Russian Epic story style. While it deals with a primarily Eastern Slavic community it still serves as an epic to America. To begin I will discuss similarities in structure between The Deerhunter and Dobrynya and the Dragon. While Dobrynya and the Dragon starts off with a warning The Deerhunter progresses almost an hour before any official warning. Dobrynya's warning comes from his mother, Michael's warning comes from a Green Beret returning from the Vietnam War. Despite the warning both continue on their way. An epic is not complete without a villain, Dobryna has his dragon but Michael's villain is subtler. Michael's villain is a form of Russian roulette between to people where bets are made on the survivor (from now own I will refer to this as the Game). Dobrynya carelessly wanders off and is confronted with the Dragon, where Michael is captured and confronted with the game. The first time our heroes are confronted they are both unprepared making the situation seemingly hopeless. Dobrynya stumbles upon to the hat of the Greek, allowing him to subdue the Dragon. Michael has a last minute plan that miraculously works. The heroes survive owing more to luck than skill. They then return to home. While it should have been a time of celebration there was something terrible amiss. Dobrynya returns home to find that Vladimir's niece has been kidnapped ruining the King's spirit of celebration, then Vladimir places the responsibility of rescuing the niece on Dobrynya's shoulders, ruining Dobrynya's celebration. Michael had two problems when he returned home. First he was dealing with post-war shock, secondly his friend Nick had not returned home. Dobrynya (being threatened with death) had no choice but to confront the Dragon, where Michael could of chosen to stay home. Earlier in The Deerhunter Michael had promised not to leave Nick behind in Vietnam and Nick's fiancée, Linda (whom Michael coveted), waited for news of his arrival or death of Nick (making her temporarily unavailable). Once Michael finds evidence of Nicks survival he returns to Vietnam. This time the heroes prepare for their upcoming battle. Both dress well and arm themselves. Dobrynya retrieves his father's and grandfather's steed allowing for him to travel back to the Dragon. Michael brings a good sum of money allowing him to "get around" (bribing money). At this point I should mention that Nick has been consumed by the Game making him a captive of the Game. When the heroes reach their respective monsters they first resort to reason and dialogue hoping to settle things without violence. Both enemies, however, would not release their captives without a fight. Dobrynya defeats the Dragon and saves the niece. Michael survives the Game, yet loses his friend. Dobrynya goes on to live a happy life which is not the case with Michael. In one aspect Michael has won by surviving the Game, but he has also been defeated in a sense because he lost Nick, but by losing Nick he has won because Lynda is now available, giving The Deerhunter a sick yet hopeful ending. The Deerhunter isn't just limited to Dobrynya and the Dragon, it also contains features found in other Russian Epics. While Michael goes off to fight a war against the Vietnamese his real battle is against one particular aspect of this war, the Game. In Ilya Muromets and Nightingale the Robber Ilya Muromets is travailing to Kiev, on his way he is confronted with a "Great army" (which he defeats in only four lines) but his real advisory is Nightingale. And like Michael and Dobrynya, Ilya Muromets must also face his enemy twice. Another Russian Epic similarity is The Deerhunter's use of Michael as the leader of a small group. For this comparison I will compare The Deerhunter to Svyatogor. Svyatogor is set apart from others because of his quick growth and maturity (growing by the hour instead of days) and the fact that he is a giant. Michael is set apart because of his cryptic sayings; early in the movie Nick points out that it would take a doctor to figure out what Michael is talking about. Svyatogor also gathers a large group of druzhina (or henchmen/sidekicks) while Michael gathers a small group of friends who end up aiding him in his fight. The function of an epic is to reinforce the nations current beliefs and help the nation's society deal with current issues. Throughout The Deerhunter American beliefs of friendship are portrayed. The Deerhunter starts off focusing on a group of friends and their bond between them. After being separated in Vietnam Michael, Nick, and Steven, magically get reconnected with each other. Once they are together they support one another as they try to survive their capture (which only the three do). There is also a emphasis on staying calm and being brave. The characters that lost thier composure ended up endangering the group and themselves. Steven who "freaked out" during capture ended up losing both of his legs after escaping their capture. Michael lost it during the second camping trip and almost shot one of his own friends. Related to America's belief of bravery is the idea of not being afraid. People "freaked out" only after being afraid. Nick eventually ended up dead after letting his fear consume him. The Deerhunter also helps us deal with the issue of the Vietnam war. It was a controversial war, many died, many lost, and many feel it wasn't worth the effort (especially after we lost). The movie helps the general public by giving us insight to what happened to those in Vietnam. It helps us deal with those who have been changed by the war. The Deerhunter is obviously an American epic. It happened to humans, within human time; it was a miracle that the character's survived; and while the story is fictional it is based on what we as a society believe went on in Vietnam. While it is an epic it is not a true American epic. It's fits the description perfectly but there's to much of a difference between tradition Americans and the deer hunters. The deer hunters live in a cultural bubble doing things differently than the rest of America. It's hard to imagine someone you know or even yourself as a character in the movie, making it hard to relate to them. While the characters seem distant the point of the movie still get across.