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The Deer Hunter

1978 · directed by Michael Cimino · 183 min
26,731 feet · Prominence
123rd of 15,261 films scored
Not coveredThe 123rd highest film on the mountain, and The Rewatchables has never done it.

How this film scores

Draw63

$49m worldwide in 1978 — $248m in today's money.

As released$49mIn 2026 money$248mRank1,345 of 8,589In 197811 of 59

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise94

Critics 88, awards 93. Half each, so Praise lands at 94.

Critics88 → 44Awards93 → 47

Oscars5 won Picture, Director, Supporting Actor, Film Editing, Sound4 nominated Actor, Supporting Actress, Original Screenplay, Cinematography
Golden Globes1 won Director
BAFTAs1 won Cinematography
How Praise works

Half critics, half a tiered award record where Picture and Directing carry most of the weight. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy80

Judged directly: The Deer Hunter reviewed.

Verdict80 of 100IMDb8.1 from 387kWikipedia70k views a monthAge48 years

On the listsNational Film RegistryAFI 100Sight & Soundevidence, not an input to the score
Scored beside it · 125 of 3,430 films judged
80Cast Away (2000)
80The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)
80Independence Day (1996)
80Inglourious Basterds (2009)
80Moonlight (2016)
80A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
80The Deer Hunter (1978)

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 63 praise 94 legacy 80averages 79, which places it at26,731 ft
How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

In these careers — elevation for this film

Robert De Niro22,754 ftMeryl Streep22,112 ft