THE
SORCERERS (1967)Director: Michael Reeves
Metrodome (Region 0, PAL)
THE
SORCERERS (1967)The second feature from the late British auteur Michael Reeves also represents the best of Boris Karloff's final film work (along with Peter Bogdonavich's TARGETS). The effort is a splendid mix of horror and sci-fi themes manifested into a unique screenplay by Reeves, Tom Baker (not the actor) and John Burke. The direction by the ambitious but doomed filmmaker is cutting-edge, and the character performances from actors young and old are solid.
The elder Karloff plays Professor Montserrat, an inventive but disgraced hypnotist who has developed a mind-control technique that will allow him to experience the sensation of his chosen subject. Bored by sipping sodas with his beautiful French bird (the lovely Elizabeth Ercy) at a swinging 60s nightclub, Mike Roscoe (a baby-faced Ian Ogilvy) nonchalantly agrees to be the old man's guinea pig. Roscoe is escorted to a gadget-filled white room in the back of the otherwise normal looking middle class flat. After some harried psychedelic conditioning, the influenced Roscoe is unleashed into the streets of London, and Montserrat and his wife Estelle (THE MUMMY'S SHROUD's Catherine Lacey) immediately indulge in the experiment's success.
The elderly couple is now able to dictate the young man's actions, as well as live vicariously through him, feeling all of his actions. After coaxing Roscoe into a soothing late-night swim with his girl, Montserrat wants to report his brainchild and put it to good use, but his wife has other plans. After years of dreary modest living, she takes it upon herself to exploit the dominance over Roscoe, propelling him to steal an expensive fur, indulge in a high-speed motorbike ride, initiate bloody brawls, and eventually the murder of two girls (an ex girlfriend played by a very young Susan George and Dani Sheridan's mini-skirted pop singer). Estelle easily overbears her husband, and her malicious behavior causes him to grow weaker, eventually strapping him to the floor while the situation really gets out of hand.
Surely Karloff has had meatier roles than this, but his performance in THE SORCERERS is one that shouldn't be overlooked (as it often is). His interplay with the sometimes scene-stealing Lacey is precious. Lacey's "wicked witch" thrill-seeking hag perfectly compliments Karloff as the rational yet wearied inventor who finally succeeds but is effortlessly brought down by her unexpected betrayal. Ogilvy is also great as the pawn in their experiment, drawn into dangerous manipulation that seems to prey on the character's own worst instincts and draws him to eventual ruin. Reeves' second endeavor is an essential part of an impeccable terror trio that would conclude with his farewell masterpiece--THE WITCHFINDER GENERAL.
Produced by Tony Tenser's Tigon Films, THE SORCERERS was released in the U.S. by Allied Artists and later showed up on VHS through the company's short-lived video company. As rare as that cassette is, the transfer was terrible and badly censored (even though the film is not overly-graphic in the least). When Warner Bros. took over the AA film catalog, THE SORCERERS showed up uncut on cable TV, but was never re-issued a video release. Sadly, Warner still owns this film as well as the entire AA library (a handful have fallen into the public domain and have been released by other companies), and shows little or no interest in releasing them to DVD. As long as Warner owns THE SORCERERS, there's no chance that there will ever be a U.S. DVD of Reeves' classic horror film.
Thankfully, Metrodome has issued THE SORCERERS as a Region free Pal DVD in the U.K., letterboxed at 1.78:1 with anamorphic enhancement. The transfer seems to be culled from the same source print that aired on U.S. cable TV (or at least it looks that way). The colors are still a bit lacking (not bad, but not exactly stunning either), and there are some speckles and other markings on the print. The image is sometimes grainy, suffering most in darker scenes. But this is still the best-looking presentation of the film to date, and the Dolby Digital Stereo 2.0 audio track is very impressive, with crystal-clear dialog mixed well with Paul Ferris' hip, progressive score.
Extras include "Blood Beast: The Films of Michael Reeves," the short but excellent documentary that was previously included on Metrodome's WITCHFINDER GENERAL disc. There's also a trailer for the film, a trailer for WITCHFINDER, filmographies, an image gallery, and extensive production notes by British writer Kim Newman. Highly recommended. (George R. Reis)