The Wages of Fear (1953)
"Le salaire de la peur" (original title)

In a decrepit South American village, men are hired to transport an urgent nitroglycerine shipment without the equipment that would make it safe.

Director:

Henri-Georges Clouzot

Writers:

Georges Arnaud (novel), Henri-Georges Clouzot (adaptation),

Stars:

Yves Montand, Charles Vanel, Folco Lulli

Won 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 5 wins.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Yves Montand	...	Mario
Charles Vanel	...	M. Jo
Folco Lulli	...	Luigi
Peter van Eyck	...	Bimba (as Peter Van Eyck)
Véra Clouzot	...	Linda (as Vera Clouzot)
William Tubbs	...	Bill O'Brien
Darío Moreno	...	Hernandez (as Dario Moreno)
Jo Dest	...	Smerloff
Antonio Centa	...	Camp Chief (as Centa)
Luis De Lima	...	Bernardo
Grégoire Gromoff
Joseph Palau-Fabre
Faustini
Seguna
Darling Légitimus	...	(as Miss Darling)

Storyline

In the South American jungle supplies of nitroglycerin are needed at a remote oil field. The oil company pays four men to deliver the supplies in two trucks. A tense rivalry develops between the two sets of drivers and on the rough remote roads the slightest jolt can result in death.

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Plot Keywords:

oil | driver | american | truck | jungle | 

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Taglines:

Directed by HENRI GEORGE CLOUZOT who gave you "Le Corbeau" - "Jenny Lamour" and "Manon" (original USA/Canada posters)

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

France Italy

Language:

French English Spanish German Italian Russian

Release Date:

16 February 1955 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Wages of Fear

Filming Locations:

Bouches-du-Rhône, France

Company Credits

Production Co:

Compagnie Industrielle et Commerciale Cinématographique (CICC), Filmsonor, Vera Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

131 min 148 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Yves Montand and Charles Vanel both contracted conjunctivitis after filming in a pool of crude oil and being exposed to gas fumes.

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Goofs

In the bar M. Jo puts down a bottle of champagne on the table. It's almost completely full. Luigi then picks it up, while it's still full. However, when he stands up and threatens M. Jo with it, it's empty.

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Quotes

Bill O'Brien: The Hell with the Union! There's plenty of tramps in town, all volunteers. I'm not worried. To get that bonus, they'll carry the entire charge on their backs.
Bradley: You mean you're gonna put those bums to work?
Bill O'Brien: Yes, Mr. Bradley, because those bums don't have any union, nor any families. And if they blow up, nobody'll come around bothering me for any contribution.

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Connections

Spoofed in The Telegoons: The Fear of Wages (1963)

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Soundtracks

"The Blue Danube"
Composed by Johann Strauß

User Reviews

One of the greatest movies ever made

This movie is astonishing, a gritty story filmed in an ultra-real style that relies simply on the beauty of lighting and film to achieve its stunning effects. It seems from another world, which in a way, it is. The acting is superb: Montand's Mario is full of jerky movements and intense impulses but always maintains his Gallic savoir-faire, while Charles Vanel as Jo brings, at first at least, a type of macho to the screen that modern movie-makers simply do not comprehend. The rest of the cast, especially the camp chief, Luigi, and Peter van Eyck as Bimba are incredible, as is Vera Clouzot who is incomprehensibly but believably upbeat and innocent - and totally gorgeous - in the midst of the hellhole of a town they're all stuck in. Clouzot's directing is flawless - I don't think anyone has ever squeezed more tension with just a few essential scene elements. The trucks wheeze and grunt as well as they ever have in the movies - the only comparison is Spielberg's early gem, "The Duel", but Clouzot's automotive cinematics outdo even Spielberg. The stripped down existentialism of the characters, the starkness of their shared dilemma, the grim and grimy scenery, and the cinematography itself are all of a piece. The latter is what elevates this movie to the very top rank, including some of the most dramatic and effective black and white shooting I've ever seen. Yet it never becomes mannered or gratuitous - it is orchestrated with the rise - and rise! - of tension in the film. The final scene takes on a surreal as opposed to ultra-realistic quality that has its own logic. One last word about the acting - we don't see anything like it anymore. The self-conscious mannerism of method acting (which has had its own triumphs) and the toxic awareness of everyone from the actors to the audience, the camera, directors, etc. that each actor is a celebrity and potential artiste, has ruined that conviction that actors were once larger than life people before they went on-screen, that they came to acting as an outcome of living rough, unadorned, and yet imaginative lives as opposed to shooting for fame and fortune and celebrity within an artificial corporate star-making incubator.