Pharos of Chaos (1983)

10/21/1983Documentary1h 59m
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Overview

A superb, moving and thrilling interview with American actor Sterling Hayden (1916-86), held in Besançon, France, on board a dilapidated barge, when he was 65 years old. An unparalleled portrait, in his own words and without any qualms, of a legendary Hollywood star, icon of film noir and the western, who was also a marine, an OSS agent, an anti-communist informer, a writer and a wandering sailor: the hero of his own life.

Top Billed Cast

  1. Cast 1

    Charles Brauer

    Self - Narrator (voice)

  2. Cast 1

    Sterling Hayden

    Self - Actor

  3. Cast 1

    Burkhard Driest

    Self

  4. Cast 1

    Hannes Wader

    Self

  5. Cast 1

    Hanns Zischler

    Self

A fascinating opportunity to spend some intimate time learning about the life and career of Sterling Hayden as he lives - aged 67 (ish) - on his dilapidated Parisian barge. Unfortunately, the film allows the subject to randomly rabbit on - frequently about alcoholism, from which he clearly suffered. Without any constructive or even vaguely penetrative direction, this becomes little more than a video diary; sometimes engaging and lucid, other times completely in the realms of "Grey Gardens". It is frequently too much of a monologue - it's as if Manfred Blank was too unwilling and/or intimidated...

Status Released

Original LanguageGerman 

Budget-

Revenue -

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