Continuing my series where I review a movie from each year since 1940, is 1943's The Ox Bow Incident starring Henry Fonda.
My classic movie diary so far..
1940: Rebecca
1941: Citizen Kane
1942: There Was A Father
The Ox-Bow Incident follows the story of two drifters who join a posse of men determined to catch the killer of a local farmer whose cattle has also been stolen. When the posse encounter three men, the mob must decide if they should lynch the potential suspects with the little evidence they have against them.
The themes of the The Ox-Bow Incident felt reminicent of another Henry Fonda movie, 12 Angry Men. The two films deal with the average citizen taking justice into their own hands with the former portraying the power of a mob mentality and the latter juggling the idea of prejudice in a group dynamic. In both cases, Fonda stands up against the majority, where their actions may cause the execution of innocent people.
However, where 12 Angry Men (and indeed other stories about standing up for what is right) takes a positive and inspiring stance on the power of an individual to make a change in the world, The Ox-Bow Incident is a much more sombre story, focusing more on themes of guilt and the violence of a mob mentality.
The run-time of the movie is short but the story packs in a lot of commentary on the nature of justice, morality and courage. In truth, westerns are not my favourite genre however this film, whilst being told in the aesthetic of a western, goes against the expected 'hero conquers all' narrative. In fact, I truly was not expecting the conclusion of the film to hit as hard as it did.
"Law is a lot more than words you put in a book, or judges or lawyers or sheriffs you hire to carry it out. It's everything people ever have found out about justice and what's right and wrong. It's the very conscience of humanity."
All in all, this was a film that was very thought-provokng and I can see myself watching it again to better appreciate the themes of the story without having the expectation of traditional western movie tropes.
Other movies from 1943...
Heaven Can Wait- this was a sort of 'It's A Wonderful Life' crossed with 'Gone With the Wind' story and I found myself getting more invested in the characters as the film went on. Though parts of the story drag, I found this to be an entertaining watch overall.
Shadow of a Doubt- I really want to rewatch this Hitchcock thriller now that I am more familar with his filmography. The story is about a young girl who discovers that her beloved Uncle Charlie might be a serial killer. Though it's not my favourite from the director, I still enjoyed this compelling mystery, especially its intriguing premise.
Thank you for reading this article- the next in my series of classic movie reviews will be 1944's Laura. If you want to know when it posts, follow me on Instagram (cinematicwallflower) or Twitter (@filmdomblog).