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IMDbPro

Pelon palkka

Original title: Sorcerer
  • 19771977
  • K-16K-16
  • 2h 1m
IMDb RATING
7.7/10
22K
YOUR RATING
Pelon palkka (1977)
Theatrical Trailer from Universal Pictures
Play trailer2:53
2 Videos
99+ Photos
AdventureDramaThriller

Four unfortunate men from different parts of the globe agree to risk their lives transporting gallons of nitroglycerin across dangerous Latin American jungle.Four unfortunate men from different parts of the globe agree to risk their lives transporting gallons of nitroglycerin across dangerous Latin American jungle.Four unfortunate men from different parts of the globe agree to risk their lives transporting gallons of nitroglycerin across dangerous Latin American jungle.

IMDb RATING
7.7/10
22K
YOUR RATING
    • William Friedkin
    • Walon Green(screenplay)
    • Georges Arnaud(novel "The Wages of Fear")
  • Stars
    • Roy Scheider
    • Bruno Cremer
    • Francisco Rabal
    • William Friedkin
    • Walon Green(screenplay)
    • Georges Arnaud(novel "The Wages of Fear")
  • Stars
    • Roy Scheider
    • Bruno Cremer
    • Francisco Rabal
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 180User reviews
    • 111Critic reviews
    • 68Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 1 Oscar

    Videos2

    Sorcerer
    Trailer 2:53
    Watch Sorcerer
    Sorcerer
    Clip 2:50
    Watch Sorcerer

    Photos141

    William Friedkin in Pelon palkka (1977)
    Pelon palkka (1977)
    Amidou in Pelon palkka (1977)
    Amidou and Bruno Cremer in Pelon palkka (1977)
    Roy Scheider, Amidou, Ramon Bieri, Bruno Cremer, and Karl John in Pelon palkka (1977)
    Pelon palkka (1977)
    Roy Scheider in Pelon palkka (1977)
    Roy Scheider in Pelon palkka (1977)
    Pelon palkka (1977)
    Roy Scheider in Pelon palkka (1977)
    Amidou and Bruno Cremer in Pelon palkka (1977)
    Amidou in Pelon palkka (1977)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Roy Scheider
    Roy Scheider
    • Scanlon…
    Bruno Cremer
    Bruno Cremer
    • Victor Manzon…
    Francisco Rabal
    Francisco Rabal
    • Nilo
    Amidou
    Amidou
    • Kassem…
    Ramon Bieri
    Ramon Bieri
    • Corlette
    Peter Capell
    Peter Capell
    • Lartigue
    Karl John
    Karl John
    • 'Marquez'
    Friedrich von Ledebur
    Friedrich von Ledebur
    • 'Carlos'
    • (as Fredrick Ledebur)
    Chico Martínez
    • Bobby Del Rios
    • (as Chico Martinez)
    Joe Spinell
    Joe Spinell
    • Spider
    Rosario Almontes
    Rosario Almontes
    • Agrippa
    Richard Holley
    • Billy White
    Anne-Marie Deschodt
    Anne-Marie Deschodt
    • Blanche
    • (as Anne Marie Descott)
    Jean-Luc Bideau
    Jean-Luc Bideau
    • Pascal
    Jacques François
    Jacques François
    • Lefevre
    • (as Jacques Francois)
    André Falcon
    • Guillot
    Gerard Murphy
    • Donnelly
    Desmond Crofton
    • Boyle
      • William Friedkin
      • Walon Green(screenplay)
      • Georges Arnaud(novel "The Wages of Fear")
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Director William Friedkin initially wanted Steve McQueen to star in the film. McQueen accepted the part, but on one condition--he wanted a co-starring role for his then wife, Ali MacGraw. Friedkin would not accept his conditions, and McQueen dropped out of the film. Friedkin later went on record, regretting not accepting McQueen's conditions. He tried to get Clint Eastwood or Jack Nicholson, but neither wanted to travel at that time. He stated that casting Roy Scheider in the lead was the worst casting decision he has ever made. Although he felt Scheider is a good actor who did a great job, he is only interesting in a film as a "second or third banana, he's not a star." Amidou, who played the Arab Kassem/"Martinez", was Friedkin's only real first choice--all the other actors were "fourth, fifth and even sixth choices."
    • Goofs
      In the wide shots of the trucks crossing the bridge you can see the tow cables/anchor lines to the bridge going in and out of the water as the bridge rocks back and forth.
    • Quotes

      Scanlon: [Nilo has been shot] What're you gonna do with all that money, you hump? Talk to me! What're you gonna do?

      Nilo: Get... laid! Best whore in Managua!

      Scanlon: Two whores! Two best whores in Managua!

      Nilo: You do it. For me.

    • Crazy credits
      The only opening credits at the beginning of the film are the studios' names followed by the film's graffiti style font title. Although by the late 1990's it was quite common to not have credits at the beginning of a film, in 1977 it was very unusual.
    • Alternate versions
      The European version of the film was re-edited and shortened by CIC, the European distributor, without director William Friedkin's permission. The prologue sequences set in New York, Paris, Vera Cruz and Israel that show what happened to the main characters and why they had to flee to South America, were changed to flashbacks running throughout the film.
    • Connections
      Featured in Sneak Previews: Take 2: Overlooked Classics: Great Movies of the 70's That Nearly Everybody Missed (1980)
    • Soundtracks
      Spheres (Movement 3)
      Performed by Keith Jarrett

      Used under license from Polydor Incorporated and through the courtesy of ECM Records

    User reviews180

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    9/10
    4 desperate men and two trucks called Sorcerer and Lazaro carrying a cargo of tempestuous explosives.
    Sorcerer is directed by William Friedkin and adapted to the screen by Waldo Green from Georges Arnaud's novel Le Salaire de la peur (The Wages of Fear). It stars Roy Scheider, Bruno Cremer, Francisco Raba and Amidou. Music is scored by Tangerine Dream and cinematography by John M. Stephens and Dick Bush.

    It bombed famously at the cinema, was a location shoot nightmare with rows aplenty between cast and director, and even recently a court case erupted over the film as Friedkin sued Paramount and Universal over ownership of the picture. A film with such a mystical sounding title, could it be cursed? All the shenanigans surrounding Sorcerer have sort of had it hovering around the "forgotten" bin, where were it not for the Friedkin purists and 1970s movie aficionados it would have dropped in and had the lid put on it. However, if ever a movie from 1977 deserved to be revisited and treated better on home formats, then Sorcerer is the one. Where in its complete two hour form plays out as a lesson in skilled story formation, letting us know how these guys came to be in the situation they find themselves in, which in turn gives way to utter suspense as desperate men fight nature's jungle whilst perched on the precipice of explosive doom.

    There are a number of factors put forward on why Sorcerer failed at the box office. The title itself is a classic case of misdirection, the name given to one of the trucks in the story, it conjured up images of mystical and magical dalliances, it's safe to say that the film is a million miles away from that sort of genre. It also went up against the box office monster that was Star Wars, in comparison, and Friedkin readily admits this, it's dwarfed in production scope and cross demographic appeal. Then there is the matter of the "cut" version that did the rounds, where almost thirty minutes were chopped to allow more showings in theatres, without Friedkin's permission, the resulting film was a travesty of Friedkin's vision. Lead man Scheider, who is terrific, didn't want to promote the film, such was his anger at Friedkin cutting a subplot involving his character being shown in a sympathetic light. Have to say the director was right in keeping it grim.

    Also there's the Clouzot's factor and his version of the Arnaud novel released in 1953. Much beloved by many a critic as some sort of sacred cow of French cinema, Clouzot's The Wages of Fear is a very good film, but hardly a masterpiece. Looking back at some of the reviews upon Sorcerer's release, it seems that some big critics of the day wanted to appear cool by lauding from the roof tops about a foreign movie and how it shouldn't be remade. Weird really since Sorcerer isn't a remake, it's an interpretation on Arnaud's source. Inspired by Clouzot? Undoubtedly, but it's not remaking his movie. They moaned about the good hour of build up, calling it slow, but I'm sure I remember it rightly that Clouzot's movie does the same thing, and that didn't have Friedkin's fluid camera and Tangerine Dream laying hypnotic synthesisers all over it.

    Though the current Region 1 DVD of the film is full frame and grainy in print, the skill of the director, photographer and actors really comes to the fore. Film is often gritty and realistic and playing better now thematically than it did back in the 1970s. The locations are real and you are easily transported into the character's world, you feel the danger as nature and human bandits enter the fray; as if it wasn't bad enough with the case sensitive explosives in the back! There are risks at almost every turn, breath holding the order of the day, and the famous bridge scene is as good a sequence as 70s cinema has to offer (a logistic nightmare for Friedkin that required take after take to finish). All this only works because we have had the hour of build up previously. True, we may hanker for deeper character interaction as they traverse the perilous terrain, but this isn't about bonding, it's about men risking their lives for freedom and redemption. It beats a black heart and never once cops out. A truly great film crying out to be rediscovered by old and new film lovers alike. 8.5/10
    helpful•23
    3
    • hitchcockthelegend
    • Aug 10, 2012

    FAQ2

    • Is this movie an original story?
    • What are the differences between the US Version and the European Version?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 21, 1978 (Finland)
      • United States
      • English
      • Spanish
      • French
      • German
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Bisti-De-Na-Zin Wilderness, New Mexico, USA
    • Production companies
      • Film Properties International N.V.
      • Paramount Pictures
      • Universal Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • 2 hours 1 minute
      • Mono
      • 4-Track Stereo

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