Southern Comfort, 1981.
Directed by Walter Hill.
Starring Keith Carradine, Powers Boothe, Fred Ward, Peter Coyote, T. K. Carter, Franklyn Seales, Lewis Smith and Les Lannom.
SYNOPSIS:
A squad of National Guards fight for their lives after angering local Cajuns during an isolated weekend training exercise in the Louisiana swamp.
Action director Walter Hill may be best known for 1982’s genre classic 48 Hrs which put Eddie Murphy on the road to stardom, but he hasn’t released a film for a while and his name is most probably lost on today’s audiences. The reality is that Hill was one of the pioneers of the early 80’s action cinema with titles like The Driver, The Warriors, Extreme Prejudice, and above all 1981’s Southern Comfort as part of his excellent filmography.
Southern Comfort is a simple tale of the Louisiana national guard’s summer exercise which goes horribly wrong when they are picked off one by one after they borrow the canoes from local Cajuns. Part Deliverance and part war movie, Hill’s film is so much more than just the thrills it delivers constantly across its 100 minutes; it is an analogy of the Vietnam War (despite Hill referring to it as a “misplaced Western” in the Blu-ray’s excellent special feature interview) as the soldiers enter a land they don’t understand, get involved in a fight they don’t need to be involved in, underestimate the enemy, and are forced to retreat and pull out. Of all the post-Vietnam films, this ranks amongst the best.
Hill directs the film expertly well; he uses simple but effective shots and uses slow motion with effect rather than as a gimmick to look ‘cool’ (as it is today) and the film must have looked fantastic on the big screen thanks to the frequent close ups and wide shots of both characters and the eerie Louisiana swampland, which is used as a character in itself. The film takes a unexpected turn in the final act when the two remaining soldiers manage to escape only to find themselves in the heart of the Cajun town and as the town have a party the soldiers fight to the death with their pursuers. The beauty of Hill’s direction in the final scene is that it can be watched with the volume muted and the audience would still know exactly what is happening thanks to his perfect shot selection. Muting aside, the accompanying Cajun music really sets up the tension, as does the entire score by frequent Hill collaborator Ry Cooder which is a soundtrack to listen to independent of the film itself – the hallmark of any good soundtrack.
Walter Hill is back next year with Sylvester Stallone in Bullet to the Head and this re-release of one of Hill’s best films make the perfect introduction to anyone looking for a reason to go see it.
Note on the Blu-ray: The transfer is very good for a film 30 years old although the dialogue is a little low, so be prepared to have the volume turned up.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★
Rohan Morbey – follow me on Twitter.
Originally published November 26, 2012. Updated April 11, 2018.
