{"id":5088,"date":"2008-01-02T18:48:31","date_gmt":"2008-01-03T01:48:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5088"},"modified":"2021-01-17T22:50:30","modified_gmt":"2021-01-18T05:50:30","slug":"ox-bow-incident-the-1943","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5088","title":{"rendered":"Ox-Bow Incident, The (1943)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;Don&#8217;t let&#8217;s go off half-cocked and do something we&#8217;ll be sorry for &#8212; we want to act in a reasoned and legitimate manner, not like a lawless mob.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/OxBow-Poster-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/OxBow-Poster-1-201x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"201\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-64055\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/OxBow-Poster-1-201x300.jpg 201w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/OxBow-Poster-1-86x128.jpg 86w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/OxBow-Poster-1-181x270.jpg 181w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/OxBow-Poster-1.jpg 507w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 201px) 100vw, 201px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nTwo drifters (Henry Fonda and Harry Morgan) join a vengeance-hungry posse eager to hang three men &#8212; Dana Andrews, Anthony Quinn, and Francis Ford &#8212; who find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Anthony Quinn Films<\/li>\n<li>Dana Andrews Films<\/li>\n<li>Falsely Accused<\/li>\n<li>Henry Fonda Films<\/li>\n<li>Vigilantes<\/li>\n<li>Westerns<\/li>\n<li>William Wellman Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary&#8217;s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nPeary appropriately labels this relentlessly &#8220;grim&#8221; western (based on Walter Van Tilburg Clark&#8217;s novel) as &#8220;a bit too theatrical&#8221;, noting that director William Wellman&#8217;s camera is &#8220;rarely&#8230; on someone who isn&#8217;t speaking&#8221; &#8212; yet despite the static, somewhat stagy direction, it remains an undeniably powerful tale of mob mentality, one which (sadly) holds more relevance today than ever. Top-billed Fonda (in a role somewhat similar to his &#8220;Juror #8&#8221; in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=42256\"><em>Twelve Angry Men<\/em><\/a>) is really more of a supporting presence, functioning as one of the few participants level-headed enough to recognize that the posse is rushing heedlessly into criminal action; indeed, <em>Ox-Bow<\/em> is truly an ensemble film, with the cast of (mostly) repugnant characters representing group-think at its worst. What&#8217;s most fascinating is recognizing how several key posse members &#8212; primarily ultra-macho Major Tetley (Frank Conroy), who wants his effeminate son (William Eythe) to prove his &#8220;manliness&#8221; through violence &#8212; have deeply <em>personal<\/em> reasons for wanting to exact &#8220;justice&#8221; at any cost, while others are simply turned on by the thought of a triple hanging. While it&#8217;s not a film I look forward to revisiting any time soon, <em>The Ox-Bow Incident<\/em> remains an essential part of cinematic history, and should be seen by all film fanatics at least once. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Note:<\/strong>My favorite moments are those with the inimitable Anthony Quinn, who&#8217;s given far too little screen time: despite his (initial) feigned innocence and lack of English skills, his eyes are simmering with bitterness and knowledge; when he finally confesses to knowing &#8220;seven languages&#8221;, and digs a bullet out of his own leg when no one else is brave enough to stomach the task, he brilliantly defies all the unspoken stereotypes heaped upon him because of his &#8220;ethnic&#8221; appearance. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Dana Andrews as Donald Martin<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/oxbow-andrews.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/oxbow-andrews.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5089\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Henry Fonda as Gil Carter<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/oxbow-fonda.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/oxbow-fonda.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5090\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Anthony Quinn as &#8220;The Mexican&#8221;<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/oxbow-quinn.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/oxbow-quinn.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5091\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>A deeply disturbing look at mob mentality run amok<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/oxbow-mob.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/oxbow-mob.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5092\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, for its status as a seminal western. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Genuine Classic<\/li>\n<li>Important Director<\/li>\n<li>Oscar Winner or Nominee<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> (<span style=\"color:red;font-weight:bold;\">Listed in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-static\/1001Movies.htm\"><em>1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die<\/em><\/a><\/span>) <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/imdb.com\/title\/tt0036244\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1943\/05\/10\/archives\/the-screen-the-oxbow-incident-drama-of-mob-violence-with-dana.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.filmsite.org\/oxbo.html\">FilmSite.org Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/434290\/the-ox-bow-incident#articles-reviews?articleId=93512\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Don&#8217;t let&#8217;s go off half-cocked and do something we&#8217;ll be sorry for &#8212; we want to act in a reasoned and legitimate manner, not like a lawless mob.&#8221; Synopsis: Two drifters (Henry Fonda and Harry Morgan) join a vengeance-hungry posse eager to hang three men &#8212; Dana Andrews, Anthony Quinn, and Francis Ford &#8212; who find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Anthony Quinn Films Dana Andrews Films Falsely Accused Henry Fonda&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5088\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5088","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5088","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5088"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5088\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":64056,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5088\/revisions\/64056"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5088"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5088"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5088"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}