Sorcerer...?

[quickdraw]

William Friedkin's legendary movie is caught up in court with Friedkin trying to gain control of the film or at least figure out who has copyright control. The movie was co-produced by Universal and Paramount and it seems the two studios are contending they don't know who owns copyright control yet claim Friedkin doesn't have any controlling interest either. Friedkin says that he's seen a new print of the film that looks "stunning" and has even been able to screen this movie privately, but no dice (yet) for general release. Seems strange to see The French Connection get released, but no action for this one. We'll have to see how this is sorted out, but it would be a shame to see this movie die on the vine because of either greed or stupidity.

[DrexlerMcStyles]

This has never got a proper release on any home video format. I patiently await the day when I see a widescreen blu-ray announcement for this gem of a film.

[klauswhereareyou]

William Friedkin keeps hinting at some sort of announcement for this film on his twitter account, so maybe the legal issues will finally get resolved and this will come to blu ray.

[tylergfoster]

He popped up again today to say that the original master is in good shape, that they were budgeting a restoration, and that Criterion would not be getting the rights.

He also added in a reply to someone that he will "definitely" record an audio commentary for it, painful memories and all.

[quickdraw]

Originally Posted by tylergfoster

He popped up again today to say that the original master is in good shape, that they were budgeting a restoration, and that Criterion would not be getting the rights.

He also added in a reply to someone that he will "definitely" record an audio commentary for it, painful memories and all.

Saw that tweet too. This is really great news and although it will not be a Criterion release, I think it will get a very respectable transfer. I assume Friedkin will be overseeing the transfer/restoration like he did with the French Connection. He knows that this film has a rabid fan base and I believe I've read somewhere that it was one of his favorite titles, so he must realize the expectations are high. It will be interesting to see which studio actually releases it though.

[beadelf]

Originally Posted by quickdraw

Saw that tweet too. This is really great news and although it will not be a Criterion release, but I think it will get a very respectable transfer. I assume Friedkin will be overseeing the transfer/restoration like he did with the French Connection. He knows that this film has a rabid fan base and I believe I've read somewhere that it was one of his favorite titles, so he must realize the expectations are high. It will be interesting to which studio actually releases it though.

excellent! means it could be region free hopefully

[klauswhereareyou]

Great news. Hoping this will see a release sometime in the next year.

[DrexlerMcStyles]

Originally Posted by quickdraw

Saw that tweet too. This is really great news and although it will not be a Criterion release, I think it will get a very respectable transfer. I assume Friedkin will be overseeing the transfer/restoration like he did with the French Connection. He knows that this film has a rabid fan base and I believe I've read somewhere that it was one of his favorite titles, so he must realize the expectations are high. It will be interesting to see which studio actually releases it though.

Well, if Universal still owns the rights it could also mean that after he oversees the transfer that they could DNR the hell out of it like they do with most of their catalog titles. I sincerely hope its not a Universal release.

[quickdraw]

Originally Posted by DrexlerMcStyles

Well, if Universal still owns the rights it could also mean that after he oversees the transfer that they could DNR the hell out of it like they do with most of their catalog titles. I sincerely hope its not a Universal release.

I'd be seriously surprised if we ever hear the details of the settlement, but I'm hoping that Paramount/Universal reach a deal where they transfer their rights over to Friedkin. The film was funded and distributed jointly by Universal/Paramount through an offshore company the two studios created called CIC, which was supposed to control rights of the film outside the U.S. The jointly held company has gone belly-up a long time ago and Friedkin surmises that resurrecting the bookkeeping of that company is only going to expose Universal/Paramount to more legal problems regarding royalties and distribution rights. Hopefully, the studios will wash their hands and walk away. I still think that whatever happens, Friedkin will ultimately supervise the transfer (hopefully with his cinematographer, like in French Connection) and present the best possible transfer of the film, since it really never had a satisfactory release outside the theaters. Friedkin is well aware of the pent-up demand for this film by movie fans, since it regularly appears on "most anticipated blu-ray release" lists all over the web, so he's going to want to do this one right.

[quickdraw]

From Friedkin's twitter feed yesterday:

"Update...the long and twisted legal path of Sorcerer is slowly being unwound. Thanks for your patience. More as I get news."