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Sorcerer (1977)
Rate:
9
Viewed:
8/15, 12/18, 5/21
8/15:
The title of Sorcerer is misleading because it doesn't have anything to do with wizards.
In fact, if I were William Friedkin, I would've come up with a better title because it's the South American version of
Runaway Train. As unique as the plot is, there are many flaws that prevent it
from being a great film. William Friedkin may have been shortsighted of its potential. Although I think it's a '6'
picture, I'm going to be fair and give it a '7'.
It's the first fifty minutes that hurts the film overall because I don't feel it worked as I was kept waiting for a good
reason to care about the characters. Once the premise was made clear, it's when Sorcerer took off. The
next hour is so unbelievably good that it should be the entire film.
It's not the acting performances that take the cake but how the characters show their emotions to underscore the gravity of
the obstacles they encounter during their 218-mile trip through the rain-drenched South American jungle. There are dramatic
scenes, especially during the bridge-crossing. It turns out the four actors did the driving and most
of their own stunts. The places are authentic as they were shot on location in Jerusalem, Vera Cruz, Paris, New Jersey,
and the Dominican Republic. Considering the current state of cinema, it's impressive.
All in all, Sorcerer is certainly something else but has the potential to be much more if it's properly edited.
12/18:
It gets better the second time around for Sorcerer which is a unique motion picture by William Friedkin that
takes place in the Dominican Republic.
It isn't the plot per se but an adventure of four men who are down on their luck and will do anything to turn around their
fortune even if it means life and death. Where Amores perros fails, Sorcerer
succeeds by the convergence of four parallel threads to a single point: the success of their mission through the
rain-drenched jungle in South America.
Among the finest and most unforgettable scenes in cinema history is the bridge crossing, twice at that, which
took three months to film. Every second of it has been worth the price of admission, and the tension felt by the four
desperadoes is palpable.
All in all, there isn't a motion picture that captures the raw intensity like Sorcerer.
5/21:
I finally got around to seeing the original: Le Salaire de la peur
(The Wages of Fear).
Quite simply, there's no contest: Sorcerer is the superior film. Even the author of the book, Georges Arnaud,
concurred. I thought about giving it a '10' for a while, but '9' will do for now. Yes, I can see how the first fifty
minutes can be problematic for the new viewers who'll probably ask, "What is this? What's going on?" But when the true
action is underway, it's when the movie starts becoming incredible.
Although Roy Scheider (whose role was envisioned for Steve McQueen) and Francisco Rabal (again for Marcello Mastroianni)
aren't bad, Bruno Cremer and Amidou steal the show, especially during the bridge-crossing scene. They're dynamite. It's
too bad their characters let down their guards when they were close to the end of the mission. The four aforementioned
actors did most of their own stunts, and each of the vignettes was shot on location.
All in all, you don't know what "intense" means until you've seen Sorcerer.