Sorcerer Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.5

Sorcerer Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov June 21, 2025

William Friedkin's "Sorcerer" (1977) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the release include Francesco Zippel's documentary "Friedkin Uncut"; new program with filmmaker James Gray and critic Sean Fennessey; archival program with William Friedkin and Nicolas Winding Refn; vintage trailer; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

It is difficult to praise William Friedkin’s Sorcerer for multiple reasons, not only because it cannot match the brilliance of Henri-Georges Clouzot’s The Wages of Fear, which works with the same original material from Georges Arnaud’s famous novel. For example, Sorcerer has undeniable basic structural problems that make it awfully difficult, perhaps even impossible, for Friedkin to introduce the strong, complete characters needed to resurrect the original material. In The Wages of Fear, each character gets a proper introduction and very quickly develops a dominant presence that becomes half of the story that is told there. In Sorcerer, each character gets an odd introduction through a perplexing mosaic of unrelated events occupying over a third of the story told there. After that, it looks and feels like Friedkin tries his best to make the remaining two-thirds of the story a logical extension of the mosaic, and this development, whether intentional or not, unleashes all sorts of other problems.

In Sorcerer, the blending of suspense and action, which must create the crucial atmosphere that is supposed to provide its identity, is unconvincing too. Most of what does not work well is directly related to the structural problems, but plenty can also be traced back to Friedkin and his desire to embellish and/or alter the original material in random ways. As a result, certain sequences or slightly longer segments can look good or great, but they cannot create and sustain the same brilliant atmosphere that becomes one of the biggest strengths of The Wages of Fear.

Sorcerer and The Wages of Fear introduce similarly unlikeable characters, but only the latter carefully begins misplacing their strengths and weaknesses to make the audience look for more behind everything they do. This development further enhances the suspense, too. In Sorcerer, only one character, Scanlon (Roy Scheider), an American wheelman for a gang of thieves who screw up so badly that he must hide in one of the worst places on Earth, reveals an intriguing complex personality. The remaining three characters are just typical bad hombres. Kassem (Amidou) is an Arab terrorist who detonates a bomb in Jerusalem and then miraculously outsmarts the Israeli soldiers tracking him down. Manzon (Bruno Cremer) is a French embezzler who runs out of luck while attending a posh restaurant. Nilo (Francisco Rabal) is a Mexican killer.

All of the effective material that makes Sorcerer worth seeing is in its final third. After an American oil rig is set on fire, Scanlon, Kassem, Manzon, and Nilo are hired to drive two trucks loaded with explosives. As in The Wages of Fear, the journey turns out even more complicated and dangerous than initially described. However, the journey in Sorcerer is significantly shorter than the one in The Wages of Fear.

Friedkin was a great conversationalist. He frequently told fascinating stories, some of which he turned into wonderful films. However, it is indisputable that Friedkin occasionally did a much better job of describing rather than directing a film. Sorcerer is one such project. Certain parts of it, particularly from its final third, are done well and can even look great, but the complete film is unconvincing.

*The great electronic band Tangerine Dream created the soundtrack of Sorcerer while only referencing a rough draft of the screenplay, handed by Friedkin. The band did not have access to early footage from Sorcerer.

Sorcerer Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 and granted a 1080p transfer, Sorcerer arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

The following text appears inside the leaflet provided with this release:

"This new 4K restoration was created from the 35mm color reversal intermediate. A 1998 35mm print provided by Paramount and a 2013 digital master, both approved by director William Friedkin, were used for color reference. The 5.1 surround remix was created in 2013 and approved by Friedkin. The original theatrical 2.0 surround soundtrack was remastered from the 35mm magnetic track. Please be sure to enable Dolby Pro Logic decoding on your receiver to properly play the 2.0 surround soundtrack.

Mastering supervisors: Lee Kline, Giles Sherwood.
Colorist: Bossi Baker, Resillion, Burbank, CA.
Image restoration: Resillion, New York.
Audio restoration: The Criterion Collection."

The new 4K restoration of Sorcerer is also made available on 4K Blu-ray in this combo release. I viewed the 4K restoration in native 4K and 1080p, on different days and without interruptions, because I wanted to see how the entire film looks after it was redone and regraded.

I found the 4K restoration underwhelming because it gives the film a prominent teal-ish appearance that makes it look like a contemporary production. In some areas, the shift is so dramatic that the entire color temperature is different now. For example, in the final third, the blue nighttime footage looks completely different. Many of the regrading changes are very similar to those present on the recent 4K restoration of Night Moves, which I found equally unconvincing. This is unfortunate because the new 4K restoration of Sorcerer produces rather strikingly healthy visuals, with terrific density levels, which can look quite a bit better on a large screen than those of the previous presentation. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Sorcerer Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

My two viewings of Sorcerer on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray were with the 2.0 track. I did not sample the 5.1 track. The comments below are from our review of the 4K Blu-ray release.

The original Blu-ray release of Sorcerer had only the recent lossless 5.1 track that William Friedkin approved. It is why I decided to revisit Sorcerer with the theatrical 2.0 track. It is a very healthy, very attractive lossless track. In the areas where Tangerine Dream's music has an important role to play, it performs magnificently. The action material, and especially the explosions, sounds great, too. The 5.1 track expands the audio field better in areas where Mother Nature and the moving truck do more as well. You can experiment with both tracks. They are very good and, more importantly, very effective.

Sorcerer Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

BLU-RAY DISC ONE

• Bonus Features - there are no bonus features on the Blu-ray disc.

BLU-RAY DISC TWO

• Friedkin Uncut - this archival documentary examines the life and cinematic legacy of William Friedkin. Included in it are clips from interviews with Friedkin, Walter Hill, Dario Argento, Francis Ford Coppola, Quentin Tarantino, Ellen Burstyn, William Petersen, and screenwriter Walon Green (Sorcerer), amongst others. The documentary was produced by Francesco Zippel in 2018. In English and Italian, with English subtitles where necessary. (107 min).

• James Gray and Sean Fennessey - in this new program, James Gray (The Yards) and critic Sean Fennessey discuss Sorcerer and its reputation. The program was produced for Criterion in 2025. In English, not subtitled. (29 min).

• William Friedkin and Nicolas Winding Refn - in this archival program, William Friedkin and Nicolas Winding Refn (Drive) discuss Sorcerer, its complicated production, critical reception, and some of its unique qualities. The program was produced in 2015. In English, not subtitled. (77 min).

• Walon Green and Bud Smith - this new program gathers clips from audio interviews with screenwriter Walon Green and editor Bud Smith, which were conducted by film scholar Giulia D'Agnolo Vallan as research for hew book William Friedkin (2003). The program was created by Criterion in 2025. In English, not subtitled. (37 min).

• Behind the Scenes - presented here is a collection of behind the scene vignettes with cast and crew members shooting material for Sorcerer in New Jersey. Silent. (7 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage trailer for Sorcerer. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

Sorcerer Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Mainstream critics have a long history of dismissing good, at times even brilliant films, which decades later are reevaluated and given the respect they always deserved. When William Friedkin completed Sorcerer, he believed that it was his best work, a masterpiece, so he was shocked to see the mainstream critics disagree with him. I think that the mainstream were right. Sorcerer is a problematic film, and it is definitely not Friedkin's best work. Some interesting things happen in it, especially in its final act, but there is a lot that quite simply does not work as Friedkin intended. Criterion's upcoming Blu-ray release introduces a new 4K restoration of Sorcerer that did not impress me. However, it has a terrific selection of supplemental features, one of which is an unmissable recent documentary, produced by Francesco Zippel. A 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack streets on the same date as well.