The Ox-Bow Incident
by William A. Wellman
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Anthony Quinn, Dana Andrews, Henry Fonda, Mary Beth Hughes, William EytheDirector: William A. Wellman
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; Spanish (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 75 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-11-04
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Movie Reviews of The Ox-Bow Incident
Movie Review: The Darkest of "Films Noire"
Summary: 5 Stars
Wonderfully directed by William Wellman in 1943, this is perhaps the darkest of all "Films Noire." I cannot imagine another film that would be more appropriately filed in black and white. It is one of the most heart-wrenching of all western movies, in that the viewers can clearly see the tragic direction the story inexorably moves in.
As others have synopsized, two drifters (Henry Fonda and Harry Morgan) are caught up in a scenario that mixes cattle rustling, murder, and the exacting of blind "justice." Portraying drifter Gil Carter, Fonda's performance is typical of the masterful, low-key portrayals by the actor, such as in "Twelve Angry Men," where he stands out as the lone voice for true justice. Unfortunately, the ending is much different in "The Oxbow Incident." The story in perhaps the thematic predecessor of Clint Eastwood's "Hang "em High," where an innocent man is hanged by a group of "good citizens" who actually epitomize mob mentality, except once again, the ending is quite different.
The is film blends all of the variables that together constitute virtually a perfect film, where it integrates those described above with the omni-present quest for power, the arrogance that almost always accompanies it, the ignorance that pervades mob mentality, and the over-riding theme that in life, things do not always turn out right.
While the story moves rather quickly, the most meaningful and powerful vignettes slow to a pace that emphasize their impacts. Yes, there is a sense of justice at the climax, where the film's focus of power and arrogance, Major Tetley, is dealt with appropriately. But "the" scene that is not to be missed is the moment where Fonda reads to the lynch mob the farewell letter written to his wife by Dana Andrews' character, Donald Martin.
Seriously, this is one of the most powerful films of its era, and still stands out as one of the best ever. The film reiterates human qualities that cross all generations.
Summary of The Ox-Bow Incident
The Ox-Bow Incident is one of the essential Westerns, directed by William Wellman. A study of the effects--and aftereffects--of mob violence, this film (based on a true story) begins with the murder of a popular rancher. Angry townspeople form a posse, find suspects, and, without waiting for a trial, summarily hang them in an expression of biblically tinged frontier justice. But the one cowboy who tried to turn the mob aside ultimately proves that they executed innocent men. Made in 1943, the film features stunning black-and-white cinematography and a solid dramatic sense about what a deadly combination ignorance and self-righteousness can be. Fonda made this film between The Grapes of Wrath and My Darling Clementine, at a point when he was at the peak of his powers as a young actor. --Marshall FineTwo drifters are passing through a Western town, when news comes in that a local farmer has been murdered and his cattle stolen. The townspeople, joined by the drifters, form a posse to catch the perpetrators. They find three men in possession of the cattle, and are determined to see justice done on the spot.
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