You’ve probably already figured out that this is a blog dedicated to William Friedkin’s Sorcerer (1977), a film I consider one of the most criminally-overlooked masterpieces in cinema history. My goal for this is to create a makeshift archive — news, interviews, photos, whatever. Kinda like bonus material waiting for a DVD. Or maybe it’s just a digital valentine for a movie I love dearly.
Very few people saw Sorcerer when it came out in June 1977, and it’s been almost impossible to track down over the last 35 years — despite Mr. Friedkin’s efforts to free it from the corporate clutches of whatever studio wants to lay claim to it (it was one of the first two-studio productions).
My dad and I saw it opening day at the Valley Twin in Raleigh, North Carolina. There were less than a dozen people in the theater. By the time the house lights came up, I felt like I’d been punched in the stomach. No other movie has done that since.
Toby
The Sorcerer Blog. 
One of the SORCERER posters floating around in 1977 (in New York, anyway) read: “Adventure! Courage! Danger! Madness! Mystery! Suspense!” Love to see that one-sheet again.
Thanks for the comment, Mitch. I’d love to see that poster. I love the line on the UK posters: “WANTED. Four men willing to drive a cargo of death to escape a life in hell.”
The various campaigns used around the world are really fascinating to me. The retitling, however, makes me mad.
Just started watching Sorcerer yesterday for the first time and I’m blown away. I had no idea it was such an excellent film. I remember it being out when I was a kid (11 at the time). Thanks for the great site, I look forward to exploring it.
It’s never too late to discover a great film, and I’m glad you thought enough of this one to look it up — and end up here.
Toby,
This is quite simply one magnificent endeavor on your part to recognize a spectacular film that deserves all the attention it can get. I saw it originally in ’77 at a theater in Alabama after being teased by full-page newspaper ads in the Atlanta Journal and was stunned by it’s impact. Like you, I didn’t find the theater crowded, either. And it was gone in a few days. I was puzzled by it’s poor critical reviews and wondered how it could fade into oblivion. Ive told every movie-lover I ever met to see it if they could.
When VHS tapes became popular, I found a copy and even though it isn’t a great transfer, I wanted to be able to view whenever the mood struck me. Thinking it was time for a Blu-ray -widescreen- version, I started my internet search and eventually found your blog. What a treat! Thanks for your efforts — beautifully informative and well worth the two hours I’ve just spent viewing. Keep up the great work!
Bob
Thanks a lot, Bob. It’s nice to hear from someone else who saw it theatrically — there don’t see to be that many of us! It’s interesting to hear how people came to this film, from the theater to cable to VHS to whatever.
Many people have sent links in to stuff, so I can’t take credit for all this. I’m more of a caretaker at this point.
Thanks again for stopping by. There’s more to come.
There’s a pretty detailed comparison between US and German versions: http://www.movie-censorship.com/report.php?ID=4978
Part one of an interview with WF by CaptureMag (in French): http://www.capturemag.net/sur-ecoute/plus-dure-sera-la-chute/
Part two of the CaptureMag interview:
http://www.capturemag.net/sur-ecoute/retour-a-la-vie/
http://jakemulligan.tumblr.com/post/84437656265/on-sorcerer-by-william-friedkin