Southern Comfort

* My favorite IMDB user reviews about Southern Comfort:

Southern Greetings - 29 November 2008
Now this is a atmospheric survival action film and Walter Hill at his peak. Love it! It's so simple (although streaming through it is a biting allegory about the Vietnam War), but nonetheless exhilarating, tense and raw film-making. Sure the acting and dialogues aren't master-class, but however they're commendably pulled off. In which case Powers Boothe (whose booming voice takes charge) and Keith Carradine (excellently pitched as the guy of reasoning) are terrific leads, and the support Fred Ward (a memorably hot-head and tooting turn), T.K Carter, Lewis Smith, Franklyn Seales, Peter Coyote and Brion James are also quite compelling. Tough, authentic and a real sense of claustrophobic tension stems from the actor's rapport and cynical script. This blends well with the brutal bloody violence (like the barnstorming climax with the powerful freeze frame closing) and the dank, devouring swamp terrain that ultimately swallows them up. But where I think it's at its most effective is during the interludes of Ry Cooder's fascinatingly folksy music score. Each time it creeps in, it demonstrates the right illustrations to the striking visuals and harrowing moods. Cooder's handling is multi-layered and truly echoing. From a relaxing southern flavour, to a haunting stillness and a punishing sting. It's cohesively perfect in it's random shifts. Hill's bravura direction holds up tautly, as the well-used slow motion is suitably done and the highly measured suspense piercingly infused. I liked how the hunters are kept as void-like background figures, because towards the end it makes the whole paranoid feeling and unease thrillingly justified.

Like "Deliverance" with Cajuns instead. Decent film throughout, with an ending elevating it to greatness. - 10 June 2012
As a Frenchman I've long been fascinated with Cajun culture, surviving against all odds, so when I learned "Southern Comfort" was like "Deliverance" with Cajuns I figured it had to be fun and that I should check it out. I wasn't disappointed.

The plot is pretty simple. A National Guard squad gets stranded in Cajun country swamps, and are victim to attacks from the locals who consider that it's their land, and the film predictably proceeds in having the soldiers killed one at a time while they also destroy each-other because of their increasing paranoia.

The score and cinematography are great, as is the acting. However I must say that ultimately most of the movie with the soldiers stranded in the swamps isn't as intense as it could have been. It's surely entertaining, but pretty basic, and for that only I would have given "Southern Comfort" a 7. However, the last 20 minutes of the movie are absolutely fantastic, elevating the film to something highly satisfying. I don't want to spoil anything, and anyway I probably couldn't accurately describe how superbly cut the climatic ending of "Southern Comfort" is. If most of the film is just above average, the ending makes sitting through it even more worthwhile, as it all builds up to those last scenes.

The theme of the film obviously borrows from the Vietnam war, and the film itself inspired later films. Just a little trivia for you, I actually first learned about "Southern Comfort" from reading about the film "Aliens". "Southern Comfort" producer David Giler convinced the studio to make an "Alien" sequel by making the sequel like "Southern Comfort" in space. And it's true that "Aliens" does have a similar Vietnam war theme.

Anyway, "Southern Comfort" is a good 80s film which truly did remind me of "Deliverance", so if you liked that film, you will like this one too. Recommended.

Relatively unknown classic - 21 October 2008
This taut, well-paced thriller has stood the test of time. I watched it recently (more than 25 years after it was made) and it is still filled with tension, creepiness and thinly-veiled commentary on the Vietnam War.

Southern Comfort tells the story of some National Guardsmen who are sent on a combat exercise marching across the swamps of Louisiana. The troops have a casual attitude (to say the least) and are certainly not ready for actual combat. Along the way they thoughtlessly cut fishing nets, "borrow" some canoes, and even taunt some local Cajun hunters by firing blanks in their direction. This is a classic case of messing with the wrong people in the wrong place. The Cajun hunters prove to be a murderous bunch and start picking off the inept soldiers one-by-one.

What makes the movie excellent is the interaction of the characters as the chain of command starts to break down. The soldiers realize they are in deep trouble and panic sets in almost instantly, their training quickly forgotten. The film offers rather obvious (but effective) commentary on the Vietnam War: The soldiers are not properly trained, not psychologically ready for combat, and they've been dropped into foreign terrain against a mysterious enemy. Needless to say, their chances of survival are minimal at best.

Fine film - 27 July 2001
This is a simple yet, wholly compelling story that focuses on a group of "weekend warriors" who set out for a routine weekend in the Louisiana Bayou. Things are going smooth until they decide to "borrow" a couple of boats, then things get really outta hand one of the guys fires off a round of blanks as a prank.

What may appear to be a Deliverance clone actually turns out to be one of Walter Hill's best films. The tension is sometimes smothering and the claustrophobia just as bad. It reminds me a lot of John Carpenter's "Assault on Precinct 13". Hill doesn't even bother to fully establish the characters. This, while normally considered a flaw, actually works here. While there are some familiar faces here, they are mostly on the same level of fame and you never know who is going to bite the dust next.

I must say that Mr. Ry Cooder has out done himself on the score. It goes hand in hand with the atmoshphere and sets the mood perfectly. He and Walter Hill work together a lot and they make a great team.

Now for the performances, Powers Boothe is excellent as the guy from El Paso who doesn't want to be in Louisiana and can't stand the rest of his group. Fred Ward is great as the paranoid redneck who certainly doesn't help the situation, and Keith Carradine does a fine job with the "alright guy/lead role".

It's quite a suprise that this movie has been so overlooked. If you can find a copy, it is well worth your time. I give Southern Comfort a 9/10 and reccommend it to anyone looking for a good action flick that is a little different from the pack.

Atmosphere-soaked action drama from genre maestro - 16 April 2006
Magnificent, atmosphere-soaked action drama from genre maestro Walter Hill. Andrew Laszlo's sullen images of the Louisiana bayou are hypnotic, and draw us into a tense situation that arises after National Guardsmen abscond with property -- a boat -- belonging to local Cajuns. A misunderstanding then triggers return fire that provokes a violent hunt. Assisted by Ry Cooder's superb, moody score, Hill focuses on the ragtag unit of weekend warriors as their considerable machismo is put to the test in a hostile land that is not their own. Powers Booth, Fred Ward, and Keith Carradine are stand-outs in this tense, tightly directed thriller that builds to a pumping climax. Brion James, the only Cajun who is not faceless, supplies a convincing turn, too. Hill and editor Freeman Davies keep the pacing realistic, and cut the action more for mood than kineticism. The climax, which takes place during a Cajun celebration, integrates memorable native music and has a "Straw Dogs" quality. The film is a very solid achievement.

Simply fantastic! - 9 January 2003
I love this film! It is creepy, scary and has an fantastic atmosphere. It is set in a fantastic environment, the Louisiana swaps, that gives it an outlandish, almost out of this world, kind of atmosphere. There is an almost colourless feel to the scenery and the anonymity of the pursuers make this an extremely suspenceful film.

But what really makes this film so fantastic is the incredible soundtrack signed Ry Cooder! Is the man a genius or what? He combines creol music and the violence in the film in a way that makes Bueno Vista Social Club seem dull. ¨ Ok, some of the acting is subpar and Walter Hill could have found some more charismatic actors, but still.

I own one DVD and this is it. Judge for yourself.