film and see if we can get it into the top 250!

movies.Oddly,star Henry Fonda is nothing but a witness-except for the last sequences -and it's Dana Andrews' extremely harrowing performance which will haunt the viewers -as well as his hangmen- long after the ending.Andrews' portrayal is so moving that he almost outshadows the rest of the stellar cast,not a small feat:a western hero has rarely shown so much despair and dignity and his letter will move you to tears .It's anyway the sequence when he writes it that climaxes the movie,when most of the guys are guzzling or drinking ,with the horrible fat woman 's shrill chuckles as a sinister soundtrack.As Neil Young sings "would fade away so young/with so much left undone/remember me to my love I know I'll miss her" Powderfinger Do not miss this film !It's a timeless classic.

picture.This film brought to mind another Henry Fonda film: "12 Angry Men", in which a more or less posse is trying to decide the fate of a young man accused of committing a heinous crime. In this film, we get a similar idea, in that the mob group that is formed will end up bringing the wrong kind of justice to the three unfortunate men that are deemed guilty and will be lynched; for all practical purposes these men would be proved innocent in a real court of justice.Henry Fonda does an excellent job as Gil Carter. The biggest surprise though is the then unknown Dana Andrews, one of the men that is made to pay for a crime he didn't commit. Also, this is an early film in which Anthony Quinn appeared as one of the doomed men. The director got marvelous acting in general from the supporting cast, notably, Frank Conroy, William Eythe, Jane Darwell and Mary Beth Hughes.This is a classic film to be treasured.

woman who Fonda is sweet on. No matter. In the end, the film is overwhelmingly successful and poignant, despite these observations.

sheriff is out of town and a lynch mob quickly forms to bring what they see as swift justice to the culprits, Gil & Art join the posse so as to make sure they themselves don't get blamed for the shooting. The posse finds three weary workers and convince the majority that these guys are guilty and that instant hanging is the only way to do things. There are, however, one or two dissenting voices...What a fabulous movie this is, a powerful indictment of how the lynch mob mentality can grip and lead to pain for many. William Wellman directs superbly, with a big ensemble in such a small area Ox-Bow , he manages to get the right blend of emotive reactions from the leading players. Henry Fonda as Gill Carter is perfectly sedate and compassionate, even though he is far from being a flawless character, Dana Andrews as Donald Martin is heart achingly real, while others like Frank Conroy as Major Tetley are suitably full of ignorant bluster. It's quite an experience to see Wellman pull them all together with so much style. The photography from Miller is excellent, shadowy low tone black and white that is in keeping with the downbeat nature of the film, it infuses the picture with a gritty hard bitten noirish look. While Mockridge scores it suitably as sombre.Ultimately it's the story that triumphs the most, claustrophobic in nature, it is simple yet tragic as it spins out to tell us how a group of seemingly sane individuals turned out to be a mass of incoherent reasoning. When a letter is read out during the finale, it is devastating in its effect, we see men broken, heads bowed in shame, others heavy in heart, their lives never to be the same. The emotional whack is hard hitting, and rightly so. For this is unashamedly a message movie, and a worthy one at that, so much so its reputation has grown over the years, where both the film and novel have made it into some educational curriculum's. It's very much a landmark Western, by choosing to forgo action for dark characterisations, it opened up the Western genre to being more than just shoot-outs and trail blazing. Had it been made seven or eight years later I think it would have garnered higher critical praise. In spite of being one of Fonda's favourite movies that he made, the film didn't make money. The public were not quite ready for such sombre beats Orson Welles, tellingly I feel, loved it , the critics of the time were irked by Wellman's decision to film the key trial and lynching sequences on the stage. Yet the closeness this gives the narrative serves it well, thrusting the many characters close together so they, and us, can see the whites of everyone's eyes, this is about focusing on the faces of those about to commit a capital crime. The close confines also gives off a pervasive sense of doom, where pessimism seeps through, there is no short changing here, the makers are dealing in bleakness and the right choices are made to produce one of the finest and most upsetting exponents of mob mentality played out on film. 9/10

having it changed for box-office assurance.Set in Nevada in 1885, Gil Carter Henry Fonda and Art Croft Henry Morgan , two drifting cowboys, ride into Bridger's Wells, a sleepy town where the only excitement is eating, sleeping, drinking, playing polka and fighting. After a couple of drinks at Darby's Saloon and Hotel, the sleepy town gathers excitement when a adolescent Billy Benedict rushes with the news that rancher, Larry Kincaid, had been shot through the head. Frustrated over the recent crimes of cattle rustling, and assuming the killing to be related, a posse if formed and deputized to go and capture the culprits during the absence of the sheriff. While riding through the night many miles from town, the mob encounters three strangers sleeping by the campfire at a secluded location called Ox Bow: Donald Martin Dana Andrews , a Mexican Anthony Quinn who speaks only Spanish "No sabe" , and a bearded old man Francis Ford with horses and other items belonging to Kincaid. Because they have no bill of sale, the mob automatically assumes them as guilty. Tied up and surrounded by an angry mob as their judge and jury, the men claim to be innocent. While Mr. Davies Harry Davenport , an old storekeeper, insists on taking the accused to town for a fair trial, with six others in agreement, it's mob leader Major Tetley Frank Conroy , an ex-Confederate Army officer wanting to make a man out of his cowardly son, Gerald William Eythe , who orders the mob to carry out the execution by hanging. It is only after the fact does the mob learn the truth.A hard-hitting story that offers no apologies, THE OX-BOW INCIDENT is certainly what the title implies. In spite of Fonda's name above the title, he's actually a secondary character witnessing an injustice he wants and hopes to prevent. "Hanging is any man's business that's around," he tells the people, who have already made up their minds. Among the members of the lynching party are Jenny "Ma" Grier Jane Darwell a tough woman with a wicked laugh; Monty Smith Paul Hurst , the noose carrier; Pancho Chris-Pin Martin , who listens to the condemned Mexican's confession that's to be conveyed to a priest in town; among others. In smaller parts are Mary Beth Hughes as Rose Mapen, Gil's girlfriend who returns from Frisco via stagecoach with a new husband George Meeker ; Matt Briggs as Judge Tyler; Leigh Whipper as Sparks, the preacher; and Margaret Hamilton appearing briefly as Tyler's housekeeper. An excellent cast, standout performances go to Dana Andrews as leader of the guilty party who not only pleads for his life, but makes his last request to write a letter to be sent to his wife and two kids back home; Harry Davenport as Davies, a old man with common sense; and of course Frank Conroy as the blood-thirsty leader.Having first seen THE OX-BOX INCIDENT on late night television in the early 1970s, my biggest recollection is how it kept my attention throughout its tight 75 minutes. After a slow start, it picks up considerably within ten minutes and doesn't let go. The book from which it was based also had a slow opening, with the final three of its five chapters being the best. Reportedly a box office flop upon release, THE OX-BOW INCIDENT was actually ahead of its time to be fully appreciated by World War II audiences. Thanks to frequent television revivals on cable channels ranging from American Movie Classics, Turner Classic Movies, Fox Movie Channel and/or The Westerns Channel, as well as availability on video cassette and DVD, THE OX-BOW INCIDENT has gained the recognition it deserves. With FURY 1936 and THEY WON'T FORGET 1937 as earlier attempts of mob violence themes, THE OX-BOW INCIDENT seems more natural in a western setting. Although not to everyone's taste in regards to cinema entertainment, it's an outstanding achievement as well as a sort of motion picture that can be done once in a lifetime and fully appreciated years after it was made. ***1/2

a much more absorbing and long-lasting nature. The implications of this film can be applied to almost any time in history and it will be relevant, and that is what makes The Ox-Bow Incident such a great film. The story follows two drifters who ride into a town to find that the locals are forming a posse to catch and hang the men that they believe have murdered a local farmer and stolen his cattle. It quickly becomes apparent that the men accused may not be guilty, but the townsfolk are bloodthirsty and hungry to see justice done there and then.The themes in the film are more prevalent and important than the plot itself. The film shows how rash decisions can out-shadow the truth, and this story can be likened to any number of stories over the last few centuries where the American value of 'innocent until proved guilty' has been overshadowed in favour of a crowd-pleasing decision. The tragedy of the film is always at the forefront, and this makes it difficult to aptly categorise this film as a western. Putting this film in with a genre of film that often focuses on gunfights and chase sequences somehow doesn't seem right. This film is really an ensemble drama, and in just a 72 minute running time, director William A. Wellman has managed to make a film that both intrigues and gives it's audience food for thought. Too many filmmakers these days think that a long running time is what makes a great film; but Wellman has proved that tight plotting and an important story are the far more important aspects. Henry Fonda is the biggest name on the cast list, and he does well; but even he struggles to shine amongst this film's real star, which is, of course, the script and the themes on offer. On the whole, this is a great film, which deserves more respect and shouldn't be missed by anyone!

the most riveting role in the whole film and makes the most of it. His is the outstanding contribution, sensitive and gripping. The story is based on a true incident that happened in Montana in the late 1880s--and, of course, one that could have happened anywhere in the old West.It's easy to see why it was not a commercial success. Except for Fonda, there are no other major stars in the cast for marquee value. Neither Dana Andrews nor Anthony Quinn had yet achieved star status. The story is grim and downright sobering, dwelling, as it does, on man's inhumanity to man. The Paul Hurst character, who makes various mocking gestures with his hangman's knot, adds to the grim gloominess of all the proceedings. Hurst who played the Yankee deserter in GWTW was almost always cast as a villainous lug.The night scenes involving the hanging seem to take place on a studio soundstage but somehow it doesn't matter. Nothing distracts from the taut realism of the drama once we know that the lynching is definitely going to be carried out. Afterwards, the knowledge that the man they allegedly hanged is not dead, comes as a twist that drives home the senselessness of what their mob mentality has done.Mary Beth Hughes has a decorative role as the only feminine interest in the film--except for an uncredited bit by Margaret Hamilton and an unusually grim and unsympathetic role for Jane Darwell.Well worth watching, a message picture that delivers without being preachy. My only complaint is that the letter Fonda reads at the end could have been simpler and less eloquent for the sake of realism and in keeping with the naturalness of Dana Andrew's performance. Complementing Andrew's work is a nice, sympathetic performance by character actor Harry Davenport as the man who tries hard to prevent the hanging.Otherwise, everything is right on the mark. Well worth watching.