Watched these two over the weekend. They're both fantastic in their own ways, but I think I prefer the Friedkin slightly. Though I'd recommend watching the Clouzot film first, because it's much more tense and significantly more concerned with the methodology of transporting nitroglycerine without safety equipment.
I agree with what seems to be the consensus on The Wages of Fear, which is that the first hour of setup is unnecessarily long. It doesn't even build character that much - the blonde guy is still a total cipher by the time they set off on the mission. Some of the characterization is outright negative, as the main character is so firmly established as a misogynist that I was kind of rooting for the nitroglycerine. But they do a good job establishing a rapport within the main quartet that really pays off when the tension ratchets up. The tension-building is fantastic, and this is where Sorcerer pales in comparison.
Wages is meticulous in describing in detail every obstacle that comes up, and conveying all this detail impresses the scale of the danger onto the viewer. It makes you acutely aware of the countless things that could go wrong.
Friedkin's movie is extravagant where Clouzot's is understated. Bold colors and blood and thunder and Tangerine Dream. It's so wonderfully 70s. I liked Friedkin's first half better than Clouzot's. The main characters are introduced in four manic, violent vignettes all taking place in different parts of the world. You don't really get to know them, though. They're masculine ciphers, more important for their role in the story than for their personality traits. Once the actual mission starts, the tension building is lacking. As mentioned before, threats are glossed over rather than explained in detail, and some scenes that
could have been tense have all tension sapped out of them by being paced too fast and set to synth arpeggios. But while they aren't tense, they are often
awesome, in the literal sense of the word. The suspension bridge scene is obviously a highlight, but the whole film is a joy to look at. The characters being flat doesn't hurt the film that much. They're ants, insignificant against the forces of Nature and Fate. It's kind of Herzogian in a sense.
Rounded out tonight's movie night with this:
What the everloving fuck is this shit. Absolutely unwatchable, tapped out with ~15 minutes left of the film. This is the last time I trust your judgment,
@no country for old wainds
