The Ox-Bow Incident (1943)

Best movie of this year hands down!

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

While its point is well taken that hot-headed vigilante justice is a more risky, if quicker and cheaper, form of justice than that achieved by jury trials, the screenplay has some significant problems, as reviewer edalweker, for example, pointed out:.....How did the false rumor that Kinkaid had been shot dead originate? This was the main reason for hanging the suspects. Certainly, the vigilantes(unofficial posse) should have checked to make sure this rumor was correct before they went out gunning for the perpetrator! The fact that one of the 3 suspects had a gun with Kincaid's name on it strongly suggested that he was killed and that the suspect, who claimed he "found" the gun, in fact had taken the gun from near Kinkaid's body. Since it turned out that Kincaid didn't die(was he wounded?), it's mighty mysterious that this suspect happened to 'find' his gun. If Kinkaid was badly wounded,"finding" his gun would be more understandable........The vigilantes had been told that some of Kinkaid's cattle had been stolen last night. A herd of Kinkaid's cattle was found near these strangers. Suspect Martin(Dana Andrews) claimed that they had bought them from Kinkaid yesterday, but hadn't been given a bill of sale. Mighty suspicious sounding!.....Thus, the vigilantes had seemingly strong suggestive evidence that these 3 had both killed Kinkaid and stolen his cattle. But, they hadn't checked out the truth of these rumors. It turned out that some of Kincaid's cattle had indeed been rustled, soon after the 3 bought their cattle, and that the rustlers had been caught, Thus, the unlikely claim that the suspects had bought the cattle without receiving a bill of sale, apparently was true. Otherwise, they might be a second group of rustlers! ....... Although many cases of lynchings involve little or no strong circumstantial evidence, this example purports to demonstrate that even multiple pieces of circumstantial evidence together can be misleading. Thus, an assumption of guilt should not be made without a thorough investigation......Of course, vigilante justice is more likely to be common where the judicial system is weak or corrupt, or too expensive and cumbersome. It was not obvious that any of these were true of this case, except that the sheriff happened to be away when these incidents supposedly happened, creating a temporary legal power vacuum......Is vigilante justice ever justified under the above conditions? I think so, but the participants should be held legally liable if they are proved wrong, and probably will be prosecuted even if they are right, if they can be identified.......I have an additional minor gripe. The character Rose Mapen should have been deleted, as she was only briefly present, and added nothing to the flow of the film. However, it was OK to mention her as the reason for Gil and Art coming to this small town, then being told she had left for San Francisco. See it at YouTube, at present.

In light of today's headlines, where political accusations and over-reaction are the norm in the news, this classic shows the horror of mob rule. We learn from "To Kill A Mockingbird" that some people are on this earth to do a dirty job. There is a dirty job hanging over the head of the character played by Fonda. His mop-up of the incident is inspiring. If movie-makers really desire to touch lives, this film has done the job. Our conscience is a prime and valuable connection between man and Heaven. The film concludes with Fonda explaining that in a memorable bar scene, in a setting unique in all of cinema. I claim Fonda made "12 Angry Men" as a counter-balance to this bone-jarring story. What do YOU think?

This movie hurts like in emotional pain when you see what men who are out of control do to other men who are innocent. We are treated to human nature at its worst where the stakes are human lives. Excellent acting and story-line of the Wild West in its raw stages where men wanted law and order but used force to bring it about sometimes incorrectly. Here we are treated to human error except for one thing. Somethings cannot be undone and that's what engages us all about half-way through and doesn't stop until we are spent. We feel the pain of the characters in this movie and go through their phases as they do. There is a mix of characters that allow us to see the story from different points of view. The ending satisfies and also has us wondering for the good as to what happens next. Good movie to eat a sandwich with as they eat meat and bread washed down by hot coffee. Enjoy Dana Andrews Henry Morgan Jane Darnell and a some other familiar faces as they take us into the Ox-Bow incident. Keep in mind that you will see why we have specific laws when it comes to handling perpetrators who are charged with a crime. You will also come to know why we take 13 years to execute a condemned man. We have to be sure

Just seen this movie, I have to say I'm absolutely delighted! The Ox-Bow Incident can be safely ranked as one of classic cinema's great movies. Praised by critics worldwide, it has still received very little public recognition and appreciation and it is about time this changed. It was never considered a success at the time of release, especially by mogul Darryl F. Zanuck who never considered a movie a success of any kind if it lost at the box-office. However, over the years it has become an artistic success with fans who appreciate good movie- making when they see it. Unlike other westerns from the golden age of cinema, this one doesn't focus on Cowboys and Indians or other such entertainment subjects, but instead the story is of a much more absorbing and long-lasting nature. It is also very nice framed(rope shots), and has a very interesting dialogue. Some elements of the movie's story may be similar to another classic about justice, "12 angry men". The movie is also having very nice cinematography, even though it is black and white. Speaking about acting, the best directed characters were for sure Jane Darwell's and Henry Fonda's. It also has a very sad plot twist at the end.I won't spoil the end but it is a little bit complicated for me. If you are looking for a nice thriller, you found it!