| |  | Director: William A. Wellman
Actors: Henry Fonda, Dana Andrews, Mary Beth Hughes, Anthony Quinn, William Eythe
Studio: Fox Home Entertainment
Buy New: $99.99
Rating:  57 reviews
Sales Rank: 100270
Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, Original Recording Reissued, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), Spanish (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: VHS Tape
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 75 Minutes
UPC: 024543055907
EAN: 0024543055907
ASIN: B00008MTW4
Theatrical Release Date: May 21, 1943
Release Date: August 4, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 51-55 of 57
 Food For Thought December 30, 2007
Sarah Carlson
This is an old movie and in black and white so if that bothers you, you probably won't like it. It is also quite "talky" so if you are looking for fast action...strike two. What this movie DOES have is a very interesting story of right and wrong and justice. It is appropriate for TODAY even though it was a movie made long ago.
Nothing to do in this old west Nevada burg but drink, fight, February 22, 2008
JOHN GODFREY (Milwaukee ,WI USA)
eat & sleep. Then word comes down. A well liked rancher has been murdered & his cattle rustled. Both are hanging offenses. The sheriff is out of town, leaving an incompetant deputy. Despite the pleadings of the judge, the deputy forms a posse to track down the killers. It takes about a nano-second to realize that this is a lynch mob. Henry Fonda is a drifter with a sense of righteousness who joins the "posse". Woe be to whomever they encounter. A classic western about mob rule & frontier justice. One of the earliest & best on the subject. They ambush a cattle rancher played by Dana Andrews & his two partners, one of them a shady, young, Anthony Quinn. Andrews pleads for his life. He has a wife & children. The blood thirsty mob fueled with booze will hear none of it. Fonda & several others protest the lynchings as murder but are silenced by the majority. This is America right? Majority rules. This is justice at it's worst. That is no justice at all. Without any moral or legal authority the three men are hanged with unreal haste. The blood lust of this mob will be quenched. Very shortly, the Sheriff arrives with the news that the rancher has only been wounded & three men have been apprehended. There is a small sub-plot about why Fonda is there in the first place that is unimportant to the story. Excellently shot & directed western classic from the forties.
 Not your usual Western, but it is all about suspense, not action. April 8, 2008
Henry-Clyde (North of Nowhere, South of Everywhere, East of There, West of Here)
Ask yourself: what is justice?
Henry Fonda and William Wellman team up to make what I would consider to be one of the greatest movies ever made, if not one of the greatest Westerns ever made. There is only one word that can define this movie - excellent. The basic story is that Gil Carter (Fonda) and his partner Art Croft (Harry Morgan) ride into a dusty Nevada town. Take note of what happens when they arrive - a dog crosses the street from left to right. This small occurrence will be more interesting later in the film. Word is brought to town that a wealthy rancher has been murdered, and his cattle have been rustled off his land. Apparently, this man was well liked among the townpeople, and they are determined to see that justice is done. This is the point where the audience becomes suspicous as to whether or not the right thing will be done. What makes the audience suspicous are the attitudes of the people, especially the gestures of one. He repeatedly takes a rope to his own neck, pulls on it above his head, and makes a gagging noise. At first, Carter and Croft are unsure as to exactly what is going to happen. The answer is simple - a hanging. However, what is right and what is wrong are two different things. These people are obviously very ignorant as to what actual justice is. They do not care about justice. If they do find the men, they will hang them. This will make them no better than the real culprits. But you cannot have a hanging without a hanging party. People in this hanging party are Major Tetley, who is a stubborn Confederate, a deputy who has promoted himself to sheriff and handed out badges even though he is not permitted to do that, and a cackling old woman played by the great character actress Jane Darwell, who, only three years before, had co-starred alongside Fonda in "THE GRAPES OF WRATH". The judge of this town, summoned from his house by Carter, is not exactly willing to protest and see that justice is done, for the simple reason that is not his job. (When Carter goes to the judge's house, watch for Margaret Hamilton, from "THE WIZARD OF OZ", as Mrs. Larch.) In the end, the lynch party disregards all advice from the judge and others that are against the hanging, and they leave town. Carter and Croft go along only to do what they can to stop the hanging. What is shocking here is that they leave to hang some rustlers and murderers, but they do not have the slightest idea as to who they are! When they do come upon who they think are the ones that did it, there are three of them. Three of the most unlikely people to be rustlers or murderers. These three are a young man, an old man, and a Mexican. Of course, they are innocent, and do not know anything about what has happened, but the cards are unfortunately stacked against them. The young man, whose name is Donald Martin, writes a letter of farewell to his wife and children. The old man is greatly afraid. The Mexican attempts to run away, but is caught and wounded. These acts of the three display how they actually feel. Martin is scared, not for himself, but for who he will have to leave behind. His feelings basically are that he has tried to show that he is innocent, but he has no proof. He will take it as it comes. The old one is so scared that he cannot even think straight. He obviously has no one he wants to write to. He is only scared for himself. The Mexican does not want to die, but there is no hope for him or his companions. It is asked to the group if there is anybody that does not approve. Their are only seven that "cross over the line". Among these seven are Carter, Croft, and more importantly, the son of Tetley. He is determined to go against the iron will of his father, even though he believes himself a coward. At dawn, the supposed murderers are hanged from a nearby tree. The camera again shows the feelings of the three on their way to their death. As they are put up on their horses, Martin says his wife's name over and over, the old man repeatedly says that he does not want to die, and the Mexican prays. This is all due to the wonderful cinematography. As the party rides out, they are stopped by the sheriff. He tells them that they were wrong. Those three were innocent, the rancher is not dead, and the cattle have not been stolen. He asks if anybody is there that had no part in it. The reply is "only seven". Once the party returns to town, everybody shows their feelings over their own ignorance. Carter reads the letter that Martin wrote. It shows that Martin was the farthest from a murderer or a rustler. Meanwhile, up the street at the wealthy Tetley house, the Major goes into the house, but locks his son out. The boy yells through the door all that he has been feeling. How much of a coward he is, how much of a cruel man his father is, and that yes, he was willing to stand up to his father! The Major then commits suicide, but the audience only hears a gunshot. Tetley obviously could not stand the anguish within himself, the stupidity, the disbelief. The next, and final scene is of Carter and Croft riding out of town, with the very same dog from earlier in the film crossing the road, but from right to left. It was as if this dog was sealing their fate. It is surprising that no other reviewer had caught this subtle occurrence. It is very possible that the filmakers did not mean for a scene of a dog crossing the street to mean anything, not to mention powerful. But that is what I personally view it as - a great last scene.
SPECIAL FEATURES
Theatrical Trailer
A&E Biography: "Henry Fonda - Hollywood's Quiet Hero"
Stills Gallery
Also Recommended: "JESSE JAMES" (1939), "THE GRAPES OF WRATH" (1940), "THE RETURN OF FRANK JAMES" (1940), "MY DARLING CLEMENTINE" (1946), "FORT APACHE" (1948), "THREE GODFATHERS" (1948), "THE LONGEST DAY" (1962)
THIS REVIEW IS DEDICATED TO ANYONE, LIVING OR DEAD, INVOLVED IN THE MAKING OF "THE OX-BOW INCIDENT".
Great Classic Western April 15, 2008
Maizie James (Brandon, MS)
OX BOW INCIDENT is an excellent western of the early 40's, which is an account of what happens when men decide to press for 'justice', discounting the law. This classic has underlining themes about false valor, mob mentality, pride, and ultimately redemption. Henry Fonda's and Dana Andrews' characters emerge the true hero. This is a must have among classic westerns.
Classic September 1, 2008
L. Jerome (Silver Spring, Maryland USA)
The majority is not always right - as this classic western makes clear. Peter Fonda does an excellent turn as one of only seven who stand in the minority against a mob determined to exact revenge - even if that means taking revenge on the wrong parties.
Great movie to remind us that might does not make right, and it is good to be in the minority when it comes to standing up for justice.
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