William Friedkin is a hell of a filmmaker.
Since Friedkin is the man who brought us The Exorcist, that statement is both true and an unintentional pun. Because in 1973 The Exorcist scared the hell out of a lot of people. Still does today.
I’ve read a lot of critical analysis of Friedkin as a film maker, and the general concensus is that his best film is The French Connection, the film that he directed prior to The Exorcist… Though a vocal minority claim that his best film is actually the one that he made AFTER he brought us Father Merrin fighting the Demon Pazuzu. And I agree.
It’s too mad that when it came out it was a box office failure, and hardly anyone went to see it.
That movie was Sorcerer, and it is an astonishing work.
Sorcerer stars Roy Scheider as a member of an Irish gang who is hiding out from the Mafia in a South American country, working as a manual labor. He is one of four major characters whose paths intersect in this place… And when a dangerous opportunity presents itself, Schieder and these men go on a journey that is harrowing as they come.
Any more details would spoil the film. I recommend that you go into this one as “cold” as possible. I showed to my oldest son with no context whatsoever, and he loved it.
This film is a great example of “they don’t make movies like that anymore.” Shot on location, mostly in the Dominican Republic, there is an incredible sense of reality to the film. This is a dirty, sweaty and ultimately harrowing film, and two sequences in particular are absolutely gripping. You’ll know them when you see them.
It is also a dark, dour film. Do not go into this one looking for a fun adventure romp. You won’t find it. What you will find is a great story about human nature, well told and with great characters and a bleak ending. It’s the ultimate 70s adult film.
Thankfully, more and more people are discovering Sorcerer, thanks to a beautiful Blu-ray release a couple of years ago. I am one of those people, and am very grateful that such a masterpiece is finally getting some well-deserved exposure.
One more note: The reason that Sorcerer was a BO failure? There were a number of factors (one being that the title is non-de script and only makes sense once you see the movie), but the main reason audiences weren’t interested can be summed up in two words: Star Wars.
Sorcerer was released within a month of Star Wars, and after the one-two punch of Vietnam and Watergate Americans were ready for escapism. They wanted to have fun at the movies. Sorcerer is many things, but “fun” it most definitely is not.
Timing is everything.