THIS STORY HAS BEEN UPDATED FROM OUR ORIGINAL POSTING OF JANUARY 6. THE BLU-RAY PACKAGING ART HAS BEEN ADDED AND THE TITLE IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER FROM AMAZON. 

Good news for fans of William Friedkin's underrated 1977 classic Sorcerer: after years of false starts, the remastered film will now be available on Blu-ray through Warner Home Video. Check out the press release we've just received from them:

Burbank, Calif., January 6, 2014 – William Friedkin’s Sorcerer, the cult suspense thriller that has been largely overlooked since its 1977 release, has now been acquired and fully restored by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and will make its Blu-ray™ debut on April 22, 2014. The release, also available on DVD, will be packaged as a 40-page Blu-ray book filled with beautiful images from the film and excerpts from the book, “The Friedkin Connection: A Memoir.”

Sorcerer is derived from the same Georges Arnaud novel that inspired Henri-Georges Clouzot's 1953 French classic, The Wages of Fear. The film, made following the successes of Friedkin’s The French Connection and The Exorcist, tells the story of four men who, for various reasons, cannot return to their own countries and end up in a dismal South American town where an American oil company is seeking courageous drivers willing to haul nitroglycerin through 200 miles of treacherous terrain. The four displaced men have nothing to lose so they agree for a small payment of cash.

Roy Scheider (Jaws), Bruno Cremer (Under the Sun), Francisco Rabal (Dagon) and Amidou (Ronin) star in Sorcerer which Friedkin directed from a Walon Green (The Wild Bunch) screenplay. The haunting music was the first credit for Tangerine Dream, the German electronic experimental band who went on to provide many successful scores for such films as “Risky Business,” “VisionQuest” and “Catch Me if You Can.”

Over the years, awareness of the film has been steadily building as a result of Friedkin fan requests and newly-found praise from critics[1]. Then last year, the director was asked to introduce Sorcerer for its screening at the Venice 70^th International Film Festival where he was presented with the Golden Lion Award for Lifetime Achievement.

In a recent L.A. Times interview, prior to the Venice Film Festival, Friedkin offered some theories as to why the film may have failed to achieve commercial success when it was initially released:

"The only known actor, who was not a major star, was Roy Scheider…and people didn't really understand the significance of the title [the name of one of the trucks] -- they thought it was a film similar to 'The Exorcist.’ [But most importantly], the film came out just after 'Star Wars,' a movie that became the template for the future of American film, which it basically still is.

“I have a great fondness for Sorcerer, more than any other film I’ve made.. Sorcerer is the one I hope to be remembered for and the one film that came closest to my vision.”

The film has been remastered by Warner Bros., under Friedkin’s supervision along with colorist Bryan McMahan who has worked with the director since 1994. "The new restoration makes the film appear as if it was just made. None of the essentials — the clothes, the hair — are dated in any way. It looks the way it looked to me when I looked through the lens of the camera," said Friedkin.

The restoration began with a 4K film resolution scan of the original 35mm camera negative. 

Ned Price, Chief Preservation Officer of Warner Bros. Technical Operations, who oversees restoration projects for the studio, said, “I was amazed at the brilliance of the original photography. Up to this point, I had only seen poor quality 35mm theatrical prints made from inferior subtitled dupe negatives. Working from the 4K scan allowed us to free up all the information contained in the original negatives.”

The soundtrack was restored from the original 35mm 4-track stereo masters which were in remarkably good condition and contained full dynamic range.

The new restoration allows audiences to appreciate the true visual and aural impact of this film.

[1] Among them: Peter Sobczynski,,eFilmCritic.Com; Brent Lang,,The Wrap; Nat Segaloff, Harvard Film Archive..

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In the web site for The Independent, Cinema Retro contributor Sheldon Hall provides an adaptation of his latest cover story for Cinema Retro about the making of the 1964 British war classic Zulu. Click here to read.

(Hall appears tonight at 7:00 PM on BBC1 in the UK)

The fascinating behind the scenes story is told in greater detail in issue #28 of Cinema Retro and in the updated edition of Hall's book about the making of the film.  

By Darren Allison

Vocalion’s latest release from their continuing series of popular Geoff Love re-releases from the 70s is this pairing of a couple of glorious albums originally released by MFP Records, La musique de Michel Legrand (MFP 2M046-95030) and La musique d’ Ennio Morricone (MFP 2M046-94653) (both 1973). What made these two albums unusual was the fact that they were specifically produced for the European market. Later in 1975, both were issued in the UK as a 2-LP set - The Music of Michel Legrand and Ennio Morricone (EMI DUOS 1181). Legrand’s heartfelt melodies work perfectly for Geoff Love’s style of Orchestration. The Windmills of your Mind and The Summer of ’42 will of course always be considered among Legrand’s finest signature pieces. However, Love brings a genuine sense of warmth to these covers, satisfying the ear of the easy-listening enthusiasts without distracting too far from the much remembered originals. There is certainly plenty of material to cheer about; music from Lady Sings the Blues provides a rare opportunity to listen to Legrand’s wonderful melancholic score. The Happy Ending is a 1969 film that doesn’t perhaps conjure up too many memories, but chances are – you’ll instantly recognise ‘What Are You Doing for the Rest of Your Life?’, a beautiful theme from the film that enjoys longevity much more than the film itself. The album is an impressive compilation and a joy from beginning to end.

The second half of the CD focuses on Ennio Morricone. As with the nature of Morricone’s compositions, they are dauntingly unique, and one can only imagine exhaling a sigh of tense disillusionment at the prospect of taking on the man’s work. However, Love handles the challenge well, kicking off proceedings with a very nice, haunting version of Harmonica’s theme from Once Upon a Time in the West. It is only when we reach the “Dollars Trilogy” that the album appears to suffer slightly. The renditions are not unlistenable - but they just seem to lose the boldness or weight of their unconventional instrumentation. Cymbals, rumbling trumpets and even flutes simply appear weak and lack in sustaining their vibrant punch. What is perhaps apparent to this listening experience is the absence of any wordless vocals, often provided by long term Morricone collaborator Edda Dell'Orso. That said, the epic nature of the CD’s closing track (from Once Upon a Time in the West), seems to manage very nicely indeed, but one can only wonder what Love might had achieved had he been afforded the luxury of a full choir. Overall, the album is a delight and very easy on the ears.

In regards to production values, La musique de Michel Legrand / La musique d’ Ennio Morricone (Vocalion CDLK 4509) retains Vocalion’s very high standards. Beautifully remastered by Michael J. Dutton from the original analogue tapes, the CD ensures that our ongoing trip down ‘MFP Lane’ continues to be an extremely happy experience. Long may it continue!

http://www.duttonvocalion.co.uk/proddetail.asp?prod=CDLK4509