Sorcerer (1977)

Sorcerer (1977)

Remake of the classic The Wages of Fear (1953), which could also have been called Le Convoi de la Peur.

An adaptation of Clouzot’s classic… which I haven’t read or seen…

Remakes are often criticised in this day and age. I don’t think that was necessarily the case in the 70s. I’ve seen a lot of positive reviews for this film.

Here are a few of them:

1) ‘Criminals, crooks and assassins are sent on a wild goose chase through green hell, with truckloads of nitroglycerine on board, in order to extinguish, at the end of the film, a jungle drilling station that has caught fire, with a counter-explosion of nitroglycerine. The reward for the infernal commando: lots of money and freedom. However, the journey turns into a pure nightmare and is filmed in a totally surreal, fantastic way! The two films, ‘Sorcerer’ (superbly shot in colour) and ‘The Wages of Fear’ (thrilling in black and white) are made for two generations. ‘The Wages of Fear’ was my father’s favourite film (born in 1932) and for me, “Sorcerer”, with its Tangerine Dream soundtrack, was a hit! Everything that happens in the Green Hell is pure fascination! The jungle, with its hot and humid climate, is the merciless protagonist of ‘Sorcerer’. A must-see!’

2) ‘Also fascinating in its original English version and on BluRay (absolutely superb picture), it’s nail-biting! A total of 5 stars and two thumbs up!’

3) ‘A perfect adventure film!
This film is a true classic, hard to top in terms of suspense.’

4) ‘A forgotten masterpiece!
Right, sadly a little out of date, Roy Scheider & Co. in great form, has nothing to envy the original. A must-see for everyone!

5) ‘Friedkin’s best film…
… along with French Connection and Exorcist. A remake of The Wages of Fear in Friedkin’s distinctive 70s style: dirty, brutal, nihilistic.
A jewel of adventure cinema, sadly unjustly forgotten … which would have deserved a special edition!’

So, I have to admit that I was very disturbed by these reviews.
For my part, I was really bored out of my skull for most of the film.
I have a lot of respect for these actors and all the work that goes into this long film, but I think I’m just not the right audience, or the right target for this kind of adventure film. Clearly!

For me, this director is capable of the worst, Bug (2006), as well as the best, The Exorcist (1973). In any case, his cinema is ultra varied and his films don’t really resemble each other. Hats off to him for that!

However, I haven’t seen Cruising (1980), which is apparently very crude and gave Al Pacino a surprising role.

I had to dig really deep to finally find reviews that put into words what I was feeling.

Here’s the first one:

1) ‘William Friedkin’s remake of “The Wages of Fear” is no match for the original. Even more so than the original film, ‘Sorcerer’ takes a very long time to get going and the story really struggles to get going. What’s more, the psychology of the characters isn’t really explored, as Friedkin focused solely on the action. We don’t tremble at all for characters we know nothing about and to whom we don’t get attached. The director overdoes it and overwhelms us with incessant engine noises that really take their toll in the long run. I strongly advise against watching ‘Sorcerer’, which is pointless. Go and see Henri-Georges’ film, which was much better.

2) ‘Very big disappointment!!!
And to think that the film is dedicated to Clouzot, the poor guy must be turning in his grave. The film only starts after an hour, before the story is very confused. After that, there’s no empathy for the characters and, as far as suspense is concerned, no feeling at all. I love Friedkin, but here he’s completely failed’.

Basically, I found this film long and boring. I felt no interest whatsoever. It’s slow, the script isn’t interesting at all. It’s well shot, all right, but… that’s not enough to make a good film. In short, not my thing at all. Sorry about that!

My Rating