Rediscovering William Friedkin's Sorcerer (1977)

William Friedkin’s Sorcerer (1977) may be one of the most cursed films of all time. Not only did it have one of the worst openings in cinematic history, competing with the initial release of Star Wars, but it also featured only one recognizable American star, Roy Scheider. To further complicate matters, Sorcerer’s title was misleading and confusing. (It’s not about a wizard. The title was chosen primarily due to Friedkin’s love for the Miles Davis album of the same name.) After the movie’s 15-minute prologue, in which no one speaks English, the story shifts to one of the most destitute locales ever filmed. Writing about the movie in Noir City Annual 16¹, Kelly Vance states that the production woes and mishaps were “near-biblical, rivaling even Francis Ford Coppola’s ordeals while shooting Apocalypse Now.” But audiences and critics have come to regard Sorcerer as both a stunning film noir and a top-notch thriller. Yet the picture is not without problems, especially its ending.