Deliverance (1972)
Average Rating: 8.5/10
Reviews Counted: 52
Fresh: 49 | Rotten: 3
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: 6/10
Critic Reviews: 6
Fresh: 3 | Rotten: 3
No consensus yet.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.6/5
User Ratings: 46,881
My Rating
Movie Info
Adapted from James Dickey's popular novel, John Boorman's 1972 movie recounts the grueling psychological and physical journey taken by four city slickers down a river in the backwoods of Georgia. At the behest of Iron John-esque Lewis (Burt Reynolds), the less adventuresome Ed (Jon Voight), Bobby (Ned Beatty), and Drew (Ronny Cox) agree to canoe down an uncharted section of the river before a dam project ruins the region. After warnings from the grimy, impoverished locals, and Drew's tuneful yet
Jul 21, 1972 Wide
Jun 1, 2004
Warner Bros.
Watch It Now
Cast
-
Jon Voight
Ed Gentry -
Burt Reynolds
Lewis Medlock -
Ned Beatty
Bobby Trippe -
Ronny Cox
Drew Ballinger -
Bill McKinney
Mountain Man -
James Dickey
Sheriff -
Belinda Beatty
Martha Gentry -
Charley Boorman
Ed's Boy -
Herbert Coward
Toothless Man -
Lewis Crone
First Deputy -
Randall Deal
Second Griner -
John Fowler
Doctor -
Seamon Glass
First Griner -
Ken Keener
Second Deputy -
Macon McCalman
Deputy Queen -
Ed O'Neill
Highway Patrolman (uncr... -
Johnny Popwell Sr.
Ambulance Driver -
Ed Ramey
Old Man -
Billy Redden
Lonny the Banjo Player
ADVERTISEMENT
Deliverance Trailer & Photos
All Critics (52) | Top Critics (6) | Fresh (57) | Rotten (3) | DVD (27)
Each of the four lead performances is exceptional, none more so than Burt Reynolds' beefy, supercilious Lewis.
Top CriticJohn Boorman's 1972 film of the James Dickey novel has a beautiful visual style that balances the film's machismo message.
It's the stuff of which slapdash oaters and crime programmers are made but the obvious ambitions of Deliverance are supposed to be on a higher plane.
It's a haunting, nightmarish vision.
A fantasy about violence, not a realistic consideration of it.
So many of Dickey's lumpy narrative ideas remain in his screenplay that John Boorman's screen version becomes a lot less interesting than it has any right to be.
This powerful adaptation of James Dickey's best-selling novel finds director John Boorman establishing a sense of menace almost from the start, and the "squeal like a pig" sequence continues to haunt viewers even decades after the fact.
Boorman's interpretation of the material resulted in an American cinematic classic built not only on shock and awe, but emotional subtlety. [Blu-ray]
Deliverance is the kind of classic where the subtext is the text: unspeakable horror derived from the same energies exerted to keep it suppressed.
A sad, brilliant reminder that sometimes people are the most threatening monsters of all.
This is the most shocking and disturbing mainstream American horror film of the 1970s.
As coffin nails for the sixties go, this negation of all ideological idealism is a pretty final one.
No movie in the history of American cinema has struck fear in the hearts of men as Deliverance.
John Boorman's harrowing adaptation of James Dickey's novel is as bracing and haunting now as it was when it first shook up audiences 35 years ago.
Morose, shockingly violent yet strangely beautiful.
In HD, it looks and sounds better than ever, although because of the source material it doesn't reach the videophile level of many other films. (Blu-ray Book edition)
This ultra-violent powerful adventure, which deals with serious, metaphysical issues of survival and civilization vs. wilderness, boasts eerie images and awesome sounds.
Still one of the most shockingly beautiful adventures about surviving the wilderness, the 35th anniversary DVD includes commentary by director Boorman, discussion of the book's screen adaptation, and revisit to the original locales where the film was shot
Audience Reviews for Deliverance
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
-
- Bobby Trippe: Weeeeeeeeeee! Weeeeeeeeeeee!
-
- Drew Ballinger: Is he alive?
- Lewis Medlock: Not now.
-
- Toothless Man: He got a real pretty mouth ain't he?
-
- Drew Ballinger: Goddamn, you play a mean banjo!
-
- Mountain Man: Squeal like a pig!
- Bobby Trippe: [squeals like a pig]
-
- Mountain Man: I bet you can squeal like a pig.
Discussion Forum
There are no discussion threads for Deliverance yet.
Latest News on Deliverance
March 9, 2012:
Five Favorite Films with Ewan McGregorIn addition to being immeasurably charming, the rather talented Ewan McGregor has been a mainstay of...
December 6, 2010:
The Many Movie Posters of Bill GoldIf you've gone to the movies in the last 70 years, chances are you've enjoyed the work of graphic...
December 30, 2008:
Terminator Joins National Film Registry"The Asphalt Jungle," "Sergeant York," "In Cold Blood," "Deliverance" and "The Terminator" are among...
What's Hot On RT
The Last Stand, Side Effects
Trailer for new Coen Bros movie
Fast & Furious cars gallery
Blockbusters ranked!
Featured on RT
- Comic Book Movies You Can Watch Online 1
- In Pictures: The Cars of Fast & Furious 0
- Digital Multiplex: Warm Bodies and Aftershock 6
- Discover the Best-Reviewed Films in Summer Movie Scorecard 2013 0
- RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: The Last Stand and Side Effects 17
- Box Office Guru Wrapup: Star Trek Softer Than Expected at #1 87
- Weekly Ketchup: Will Smith to Star in Wild Bunch Remake? 39
Top Headlines
-
Vin Diesel Says Fast & Furious 7 Will Take Place in L.A.
0
-
10 Things You (Probably) Don't Know About the Hangover Movies
1
-
Zack Snyder, Christopher Nolan, and David S. Goyer Talk Man of Steel
0
-
New Transporter Trilogy in the Works
0
-
Richard Linklater Plans "Spiritual Sequel" to Dazed and Confused
0
-
King of Kong Filmmaker Seeks Funding for Lost Limb Documentary
0
-
Which Film Franchise Has Been the Best for Female Characters?
6
Fresh Links
Featured
Star Trek Movies Ranked
HitFix offers their own take on the worst-to-best of the Enterprise crew's cinematic adventures.
Top 10 Star Trek Villains
Rolling Stone unveils the Enterprise's most irksome adversaries.
Celebrity Yearkbook Flashback
We'll bet you never realized how many stars were cheerleaders and high school athletes!
50 Most Classic Movie Moms
In celebration of Mother's Day, TimeOut offers up 50 iconic matriarchs from the big screen.
Weirdest Movie Siblings
From Twins to The Royal Tenenbaums, Moviefone explores cinema's oddest siblings.
Promos
Follow RT on Twitter!
Spice up your feed with hourly Tomatometer updates!
Foreign Titles
- Beim Sterben ist jeder der Erste (DE)
- Délivrance (FR)
Intent on seeing the Cahulawassee River before it's turned into one huge lake, outdoor fanatic Lewis Medlock takes his friends on a river-rafting trip they'll never forget into the dangerous American back-country.
REVIEW
One of the most famous works made by John Boorman, Deliverance is also one of the most momentous movies shot in the seventies. Its reputation comes from the fact that the director chose to take the opposite view of how nature was commonly perceived in American cinema. Indeed, many films showed a positive view of it and showcased it as a happy refuge where man could find relief and strength from a stressful civilization. In a way, this is the goal that the four main protagonists in Boorman's film indirectly try to reach. They decide to go down the river in a canoe to go back to their roots and to take advantage of a rural place that is bound to be swallowed up by a dam. At first, Boorman seems to be on their side. The film depicts numerous shots of a gorgeous river and imposing landscapes. Details reinforced by a slow, contemplative rhythm and a discreet editing. Moreover, Drew (Ronny Cox) tries to communicate with a muted peasant through music.
But little by little, Boorman reveals to the audience that elements of these beautiful landscapes make nature dangerous and hostile to the four adventurers. One can note down that before the apparition of the two silly peasants, Lewis (Burt Reynolds) had animal instincts in him. After the killing of one of the two men, he chooses to bury the corpse and not to call the police. From this watershed onwards, Boorman manages to create an intense tension that won't subside. On the contrary, it will increase with the other misadventures endured by the four men. None of them will be spared and all of them will keep physical or moral scars from this sad trek. The message conveyed by the filmmaker is clear: man must accept society and his return to nature can only damage his personality. A must see film.