Page "Sam Peckinpah" Paragraph 33

By 1982, however, Peckinpah's health was in poor shape.

Producers Peter S. Davis and William N. Panzer were undaunted, as they felt that having Peckinpah's name attached to The Osterman Weekend ( 1983 ) would lend the suspense thriller an air of respectability.

Peckinpah accepted the job but reportedly hated the convoluted screenplay based upon Robert Ludlum's novel ( which he also disliked ).

Multiple actors in Hollywood auditioned for the film, intrigued by the opportunity.

Many of those who signed on, including John Hurt, Burt Lancaster and Dennis Hopper, did so for less than their usual salaries for a chance to work with the legendary director.

By the time shooting wrapped in January 1983 in Los Angeles, Peckinpah and the producers were hardly speaking.

Nevertheless, Peckinpah brought in the film on time and on budget, delivering his director's cut to the producers.

Davis and Panzer were unhappy with Peckinpah's version, which included a grossly distorted opening sequence of two characters making love.

The producers changed the opening and also deleted other scenes they deemed unnecessary.

The Osterman Weekend had some effective action sequences and some strong supporting performances, but Peckinpah's final film was critically panned.

It grossed $ 6 million domestically and did extremely well in Europe and on the new home-video market.