Wonderful character development!

Waste of time

Brilliant and touching

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

Harry (Peter Fonda) returns home to his wife and farm after drifting with his friend Arch (Warren Oates) and has to make a difficult decision regarding his loyalties.Due to the huge financial success of "Easy Rider" (1969), which Fonda co-wrote, produced and starred in, Universal Studios gave him full artistic control over "The Hired Hand", his debut as a director. (Universal also did the same for Dennis Hopper with "The Last Movie" that year.) How interesting that Fonda went or a more conventional western rather than a personal, boundary-pushing film.Upon release, the film received a mixed critical response and was a financial failure. In 1973, the film was shown on NBC-TV in an expanded version, but soon drifted into obscurity. In 2001, a fully restored version was shown at various film festivals, gaining strong critical praise, and it was released by the Sundance Channel on DVD. It is now considered a classic Western of the period.My suspicion is the "classic" status is largely because of the names attached. Both Fonda and Oates are cult figures and the cinematographer went on to be rather important. The film, in and of itself, does not really stand out for me. I suppose the idea of a woman doing what she had to do is a bit more frank than usual, which deserves praise.... but otherwise.

The Plot:Harry Collings returns home to his farm after drifting with his friend, Arch. His wife, who had given up on him, reluctantly allows him to stay, and soon believes that all will be well again. But then Harry has to make a difficult decision regarding his loyalties and priorities.OO, so this is a VERY 60s/70s movie. It was billed as a hippie western before it was re-discovered. The version I saw was Fonda's version which is about a half hour shorter than the TV version. Interestingly, for some reason Fonda cut this film twice. First time i know of where the director wanted his movie shorter than the Man did!It's probably a good thing too because it's a very slow plodding atmospheric film that would likely be very boring with a 2 hour running time!It's a very slow movie and it doesn't really built. Further, lot's of it contains some scene that are rather laughable.I just don't think this is a classic western. It's more of a curio piece for the late 60s/early 70s. I was rather bored watching it.

Released in 1971, "The Hired Hand" was Peter Fonda's first stab at directing (he only directed two more films). The story involves Fonda going back to his wife and homestead after several years absence; he brings his buddy Warren Oates along with him. His wife, Verna Bloom, isn't so interested anymore with being his wife (and who can blame her?) so she hires him and Oates on as ranch hands, hence "The Hired Hand." Speaking of Verna Bloom, she's not made out to be very attractive in the film; she just comes across rather bland and plain. One could argue, of course, that this adds to the realism of the picture; after all, would you likely catch a bodacious goddess living alone in the Western wilderness for very long? I only bring this up because Verna appears one year later in Clint Eastwood's "High Plains Drifter," wherein it is revealed that she is actually quite a fair-looking woman. Who knows, perhaps it's simply because she has her hair down in the latter film.In any event, "The Hired Hand" is a quiet, highly believable picture that boldly sneers at Western film conventions. Yes, you'll see a couple of gun fights, but they're realistic in tone and unconventional to the Western genre.This may make the film boring to some, but not to me. Truth be known, I like a variety of Westerns, everything from "Shane" to "The Missing" and everything in between. The only Westerns I don't like are ones that have that goofy, unrealistic vibe, like some spaghetti Westerns (I'm not talking about Western comedies here; I love "The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox")."The Hired Hand" probably won't blow you away or anything; it's a low-key, adult-oriented film. I saw it last December for the first time and, somehow, various sequences have just stayed with me; like they're burnt into my psyche. It's somewhat haunting. If this sounds like your cup of tea, don't miss out.The film runs 90 minutes and was shot in northern New Mexico (Cabezon, Chama & Santa Fe). GRADE: B-

A visually splendid western by Peter Fonda who uses the marvelous landscapes with great skills ;his characters move in a very precise space and the fade in fade outs are worthy of George Stevens ;the three leads (the director ,Warren Oates and Verna Bloom),sparing of gestures and words ,give impressive restrained performances ;except for the "prologue" and the "epilogue" ,violence is almost absent -Peckinpah's fans should move on- and you could almost call "the hired hand" (a very adequate title)a pastoral western ,where nature itself becomes a true character (it predates " Jeremiah Johnson" ).Verna Bloom is a very modern woman in the macho world of western (compare her to the girl who gives water to the prisoner);she acts like a man ,without overlooking her daughter's education .She is much older than her husband ,which is almost incredible in a western.And for once the gossips in town are accurate .Peter Fonda would like to settle down and live a peaceful life between his wife and his daughter,not just be a "hired hand" .But the hand on fate is on him again;it's a character who reacts to events but is not able to initiate them.In a way ,he is still a teenager who needs to be part of a pack. Restored in 2001,the pictures are a feast for the eye.