Actuakers One of my all time favorites.

Pluskylang Great Film overall

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Dana An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

rodrig58 Beautiful music signed Bruce Langhorne. Otherwise, the film does not say much. Because it's not happen much. And what is happening, is not at all justified. Why is shot Dan Griffen (Robert Pratt), the young companion of Harry Collings (Peter Fonda) and Arch Harris (Warren Oates)? Nobody knows. Then, why is taken prisoner Arch Harris? I wonder if the writer Alan Sharp knew. I doubt it. Warren Oates is a very good actor. But here he does not have much to do. Peter Fonda is just the son of his father(Henry Fonda, for those who don't know) and the brother of his sister(Jane Fonda). I think he wanted to look like Clint Eastwood in those movies with dollars, but without being a Western. All the fault of the same Sergio Leone. But, how many people know or realize that?

Wizard-8 The early 1970s certainly were a time when Hollywood took some big chances, and "The Hired Hand" is one example of this. While westerns before it had been fast-paced and action-packed, that is not the case with this movie. It is quite slow at times; for example, it takes more than a third of the movie before Fonda's character first arrives at his wife and daughter's home. But while the movie is slow, it is very captivating all the same. The cinematography is beautiful; shot after shot looks gorgeous. And you can feel the run- down and primitive environment these characters are living in. There is also some good acting, primarily Oates and Bloom. Fonda is only adequate, though that may be that being also in the director's chair, he had to concentrate more on that instead of his performance. Another flaw is that I don't think there are enough scenes between Fonda and Bloom to explain how their relationship is rekindled after so many years of being apart. But the good stuff manages to outweigh the flaws, in my opinion. As for you, dear reader, I don't know for sure what you would think of the movie. If you like westerns and are in a patient mood, the odds are better that you'll like this sleeper of a movie.

zetes Peter Fonda directs and stars in this small Western. He and Warren Oates play wanderers who lose their companion to an accidental shooting. They get revenge on the shooter by shooting him in the feet and then try to retire on Fonda's ranch of Fonda's ex-wife (Verna Bloom). Fonda hasn't seen the woman in a decade or so, and at first agrees to pretend to be a stranger to their young daughter. Unfortunately for him, it turns out Bloom has been something of a slut in the intervening years, taking her hired hands as lovers. Now she's starting to make eyes at Oates. So Fonda asserts his manliness and rejoins the family for good. Everything goes to Hell when the man they shot in the feet finds them. The story's pretty thin, but not bad. It has several very impressive elements, though. Fonda's direction is surprisingly fine. He would go on to direct two more films, neither of which are well regarded, but he showed a lot of promise here. I especially love his use of cross-fades and still frames. Okay, that's probably somewhat due to the editor, but Fonda had to have a say in that. It effects the film's mood too much to be due to just the editor. The cinematography (by Vilmos Zsigmund, who also photographed Altman's McCabe and Mrs. Miller the same year) is beautiful, and the mournful guitar score (by Bruce Langhorne) is achingly gorgeous.

FightingWesterner This downbeat, salt-of-the-earth western drama is a meditation on forgiveness and the meaning of friendship, as well as a great showcase for Fonda (who makes his directorial debut), Warren Oates, Verna Bloom, and Vilmos Zsigmond, whose impressive cinematography is almost the fourth star of the movie.Fonda's character is an interesting one. His inability to express himself forces the viewer to learn about his character almost solely through his reactions to the people around him.One complaint though, is that I wish that the character's relationship with his daughter was fleshed out a bit more. As it stand, their interaction was a little superficial. There should have been a scene where he really tries to talk to her.Warren Oates was an excellent actor and always a joy to watch, especially in a western picture. For another western in the same art-house vein, I'd also recommend 1967's The Shooting, where Oates stars alongside Fonda's old pal Jack Nicholson.