By the early ’70s, Burt Reynolds was one of cinema’s rising men of action. With starring roles in films like Fuzz and Skullduggery, Reynolds was charming, physical and was rarely asked to show much beyond that. But it wasn’t until Deliverance that audiences and directors started to see what he could do, playing an outdoorsman slowly losing hope in the Georgian wilderness.

John Boorman’s thriller is a tough descent into fear and violence. What starts as a weekend adventure for four city men looking to conquer the wilderness quickly turns into a desperate struggle to escape it. Between the realism of its violence, the tension that never lets up, and the unsettling themes at its core, Deliverance remains just as powerful today as it was over 50 years ago.

No one could quite expect what Deliverance would show. Regarded as one of the most disturbing thrillers of all time, the film follows four men – Lewis Medlock (Burt Reynolds), Ed Gentry (Jon Voight), Bobby Tripe (Ned Beatty), and Drew Ballinger (Ronny Cox) – on a canoe trip down the Cahulawassee River in Georgia. But on their second day out on the river, Ed and Bobby venture out on their own and become separated from the group. Lost, they pull onto the river’s bank where they meet two mountain men wandering in the wilderness.

What follows is a series of torturous events as the group try to escape the wilderness and the locals that protect it. They’re pushed to their limits, experiencing both physical and psychological suffering as they struggle to survive and make their way back to civilization. What began as an adventure quickly turns into a terrifying nightmare, with no guarantees of survival.

, with films like Fuzz, Shark!, and Skullduggery. However, in Deliverance, Reynolds took a slightly different turn as an outdoorsman slowly losing hope.

By this point, Reynolds was already starting to make a name for himself, having starred in several TV films, but it was Deliverance that pushed his career to new levels. Most of his earlier and later roles – typically as cops, cowboys, and athletes – required a degree of physicality. And while Lewis required some physicality, given his background as an outdoorsman, the role primarily demanded a vulnerability that Reynolds hadn’t been asked to explore before.

As the story progresses, , and his self-assurance begins to crack under the pressure. Unlike the self-confident heroes Reynolds was known for, Lewis’ transformation throughout the film shows an uncertainty that had never been the focal point of his earlier work.

This opened doors to different roles later in his career. He was no longer the generic hero, but an actor that could bring depth to a role that demanded it. This led to his performances in films like Boogie Nights and The End, where he played characters who were equally strong but had to reckon with their limitations. It was a standout performance and a key turning point in his career, shifting from the tough-guy persona to one who could show vulnerability.

Even over 50 years later, , challenging audiences to confront uncomfortable truths about survival and human nature. From the film's iconic banjo scene, which, as harmless as it appears, sets the stage for the horrors that are about to unfold, to the infamous and disturbing squeal-like-a-pig scene, Deliverance offers enough moments to make any viewer squirm in their seat. Or, as many did in the initial viewing, just walk out.

Another reason the film stands the test of time is its pacing. James Dickey’s script, adapted from his own novel, wastes no time getting to the heart of the story. , and once they meet the mountain men, the film shifts into a full-on survival thriller. Director John Boorman keeps the story moving, with quick shifts between scenes to show the passage of time, never allowing the tension to subside.

After the horrific torment from the mountain men, the conflicts keep escalating. The wilderness becomes even more treacherous, and the men find themselves increasingly isolated, pursued, and tested in ways they never anticipated. The river grows more dangerous, a man is killed, and the survivors must deal with the consequences of their actions, knowing that they’re in deeper than they can handle. , which creates an almost suffocating atmosphere that makes the film impossible to look away from, even as it pushes the characters – and viewers – to their breaking points.

Even the film’s climax, the most peaceful moment of the film, doesn’t let up on the tension. While the men make it back to civilization, the emotional and psychological weight of their journey is far from over. The final scene, where Ed is disturbed by a nightmare of a dead hand rising from the lake, underscores the lasting impact of the suffering. In this way, Deliverance doesn’t offer the closure that many survival films do. Instead, it leaves the characters with an unsettling sense of unresolved trauma. Deliverance remains a classic because it never lets the audience forget the real horror of survival is the lasting damage inflicted on the mind and soul. In that sense, .

On top of that, Deliverance carries a subtext that rings even more true today. When the characters discuss their journey down the Cahulawassee River at the start, they reflect on the vanishing wilderness and the impending threat of the river being dammed. In a world where environmental concerns continue to dominate the global conversation, the film's focus on the destruction of nature feels more poignant than ever. What was once a more localized concern is now a global crisis, and Deliverance highlights the fragile nature of the wilderness at a time when the environmental movement was just beginning to gather steam.

Few films from the 1970s have lasted the way Deliverance has. Its take on survival, violence, and the fragility of civilization still hits just as hard today, refusing to let audiences look away. And at the center of it all is Burt Reynolds, delivering a performance that proved he was more than just a charming action star. More than 50 years later, Deliverance remains one of the most unsettling thrillers ever made. Its impact stays, not just in its scenes, but in the way it explores the limits of persistence and the cost of survival. For Reynolds, it was a turning point, a role that showed what he was capable of. And for audiences, Deliverance is still an experience that’s impossible to forget.