Blu-Ray Review: Classic ‘Wages of Fear’ Thrills in HD

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Blu-Ray Rating: 5.0/5.0

CHICAGO – The Criterion Collection continues their brilliant Blu-Ray release pattern this week in which they induct a new film into the collection (“In the Realm of the Senses,” which will be reviewed separately) and bring one of their most beloved titles on to the next-gen format on the same street date. The classic this week is the amazing and timeless “The Wages of Fear,” better than ever in HD.

“The Wages of Fear” is about a group of men caught in a desperate, isolated situation in a small South American town. From all over the world, these people are literally stuck. They can’t afford the plane ticket to leave and don’t really have anywhere to go if they could. They are lost souls.

The Wages of Fear was released on Blu-Ray on April 21st, 2009.
Photo credit: Courtesy of the Criterion Collection

On the outskirts of this small town, the Standard Oil Company has a fire that they can’t put out. They need to blow up the well to bury it and that requires tons of nitro-glycerin and the only way to get it there is on trucks over unpaved, dangerous, South American roads. Four men - two drivers per truck - take the offer of $2,000 to strap themselves to what is essentially a bomb on wheels and start the white-knuckle ride.

The Wages of Fear was released on Blu-Ray on April 21st, 2009. Photo credit: Courtesy of the Criterion Collection

There are passages in “The Wages of Fear” that I literally find hard to watch. This massively influential thriller makes my skin crawl and my heart race like hardly any other film in the history of the medium. Even though I’ve seem it before, every time Yves Montand is backing the truck up on that rickety platform or trying to get through the oil pond, I can barely watch. That’s the sign of a truly suspenseful film - when it can impact you even though you already know the outcome.

Henri-Georges Clouzot’s “The Wages of Fear” was mangled and manhandled when it was first released in 1953. A large portion of the set-up for the film, as well as character details from the entirety of the piece, were cut from the original 147-minute running time. It wasn’t until nearly four decades later that Clouzot’s film was restored, bringing back what censors originally thought were anti-American sentiments and even hints at homosexuality.

Watching the analysis of the history of the film and the differences between the versions in the Criterion special feature “Censored” is an amazing lesson in how drastically a film can be altered for theatrical release. Some have suggested that the cut version of “Wages of Fear” is actually better and that cutting the first hour made for a tighter suspense film. Maybe, but the suspense of the last two acts is heightened by the atmosphere and desperation set up by the first one. I would never watch the cut version of “Wages” again.

And I don’t have to with a perfectly mixed and transferred version from Criterion, featuring a restored high-definition digital transfer with uncompressed monaural soundtrack. The film is presented in its original full frame, 1.33:1 aspect ratio and the black-and-white transfer is simply beautiful. The mono track is clear and appropriate for the film. I’m so happy that Criterion doesn’t take films recorded in mono and try and remix them to surround sound. Those tracks never sound right.

The special features for “Wages of Fear” include archival interviews with assistant director Michel Romanoff, Clouzot biographer Marc Godin, and star Yves Montand. Featurettes include the aforementioned “Censored” and a 2004 documentary on the filmmaker called Henri-Georges Clouzot: The Englightened Tyrant”. The great writer Dennis Lehane wrote the essay in the booklet.

The extras aren’t too remarkable for “Wages of Fear,” but the film itself is a classic. I have some serious problems with the ending, but until then this is truly one of my favorite movies of all time and a new highlight of my Blu-Ray collection.

By BRIAN TALLERICO Content Director HollywoodChicago.com brian@hollywoodchicago.com