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Tom Without Pity | A Major Midwestern Metropolis | 10/07/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a review for THE HIRED HAND (1971) directed by Peter Fonda. THE HIRED HAND was made as a result of the success of EASY RIDER.

Unfortunately, THE HIRED HAND did not turn out to be a big hit, in fact I guess that it was considered a failure.



A financial failure, certainly not an artistic failure.

In THE HIRED HAND Peter Fonda plays Harry Collings, a cowboy who has drifted from his wife , daughter and small ranch to roam the country with the drifting cowboy Arch Harris, played by Warren Oates. After a while they return to the small ranch seemingly because there's nothing else much better to do. After a while Hannah, played by Verna Bloom, allows Harry to stay indoors with her as he has regained her trust.



But when Arch hits the trail again Harry is forced to make a life changing deciscion regarding loyalty to family or friend.

THE HIRED HAND is a lyrically told, poetically filmed tale of abandonment, redemption and the finality of unexpressable feelings from the rather inarticualate main characters. In fact, the most articulate

element of THE HIRED HAND is the truly expresssive cinematography by Vilmos Zigismonds, and in my opinion that's what makes THE HIRED HAND so memorable.



THE HIRED HAND, some forty years after its first release, remains an unusual

visual feast framed with a patina of melancholy about its sure enough solemn

life events.



Five Stars."