Hmmmm.... frankly, I think I am somewhat disappointed by the new Deluxe SD transfer. In most respects it excels above the original DVD release from 2001 which had a large black border (picture-boxed) circumventing the anamorphically enhanced frame (see image below) and is rife with digital artifacts on a single-layered DVD. In many scenes the image is shifted slightly to the left in comparison to the new Deluxe release. What looks odd to me are the colors and detail. It can look very green at times but skin tones are less red than in the original. I never saw this theatrically so I can't talk with any assurance about the colors - I'll just say I am suspicious and will investigate further when I have it in Hi-def in a few days. Hopefully it will retain some of its sharpness. It is dual-layered, progressive and 16X9 in the impressive 2.35 scope. Both have the same 5.1 boosted track and a French mono DUB. The deluxe adds a Spanish subtitle option on top of English and French.

Supplement-wise the new deluxe DVD has a decent Boorman commentary. It has many healthy gaps and he tends to narrate a bit - but when he does talk about the production (acting and the narrative interpretation etc.) it is quite informative. A new 52 minute featurette is broken up into 4 separate segments:

Deliverance: The Beginning - Takes a historical look at the novel and its adaptation to the screen.
Deliverance: The Journey - Along from the early stages of filming to the creation of classic moments, such as the Dueling Banjos scene.
Deliverance: Betraying the River - The making of one of the most controversial and ground-breaking sequences in film history.
Deliverance: Delivered - A reflective look back on the completion of the film, its impact and how the idea for the shocking ending came to be.  

They have input from Boorman, Reynolds and Voigt among some of the participants. Quite enjoyable. Also included is the original 10 minute featurette; The Dangerous World of Deliverance ( The original behind-the-scenes documentary on the difficult conditions and challenges of making this film) which was the only extra feature on the first Warner DVD. Both have a theatrical trailer and the original has the pan and scan version on the opposite side. 

Overall I look forward to my Hi-def edition and if I notice some significant improvement may attempt to post some comparative caps here. Stay tuned. Bottom line this new edition is better (how could it have been worse?) but it doesn't seem to show 6 years worth of digital (SD) technical improvement although the film is 35 years old - perhaps this is 'it'. It is, of course, still very watchable and I love the film and its subtle symbolism - I guess I was just expecting more from the visual.

Gary W. Tooze