First and foremost: the hype generated through these Amazon reviews is completely warranted. This is a great exercise in Justice, Civility and Lawlessness (with a moral twist, of course).

While it can be said that the film is a bit short on character development, this matter is neither here nor there, for this is not a character study but a study of mob mentality. The characters and their traits are quickly established then pushed into the central conflict: whether the accused is guilty or innocent. It can be argued that the various characters represent the hypocrisies within the viewer: Do we succumb to the power of revenge or empower our sense of justice?

The movie may seem a bit predictable but who hasn't said that about the majority of contemporary movies today? In my opinion, this is one of the lost classics, a film forgotten in the midst of Henry Fonda films like 'My Darling Clementine' or 'Once Upon A Time In The West'. A great, great movie - not to be missed!

This film was made in 1943 and stars the young Henry Fonda and Harry Morgan. Dana Andrews stars as does a very young Anthony Quinn. The performances here are very strong, especially from Fonda, Andrew and Quinn. Harry Morgan was the same in 1943 as he was in Mash in the `80's. I was particularly surprised by Dana Andrews; he was very effective as the rancher about to be hanged. I had always thought of him as a kind of lightweight but this film changed my mind.
It was easy to see the future stardom of these three actors from the film. The film itself is a western, but not your usual kind of western. This one is very dark and for the era, not very romanticized. These were real cowboys living the dangerous life of the frontier and some paid the price with their lives.
There was very little law and order and even less justice.
I can recommend this film strongly especially for the serious amateur of films around this time. I wasn't even born yet!

The majority is not always right - as this classic western makes clear. Peter Fonda does an excellent turn as one of only seven who stand in the minority against a mob determined to exact revenge - even if that means taking revenge on the wrong parties.

Great movie to remind us that might does not make right, and it is good to be in the minority when it comes to standing up for justice.

Wonderfully directed by William Wellman in 1943, this is perhaps the darkest of all "Films Noire." I cannot imagine another film that would be more appropriately filed in black and white. It is one of the most heart-wrenching of all western movies, in that the viewers can clearly see the tragic direction the story inexorably moves in.

As others have synopsized, two drifters (Henry Fonda and Harry Morgan) are caught up in a scenario that mixes cattle rustling, murder, and the exacting of blind "justice." Portraying drifter Gil Carter, Fonda's performance is typical of the masterful, low-key portrayals by the actor, such as in "Twelve Angry Men," where he stands out as the lone voice for true justice. Unfortunately, the ending is much different in "The Oxbow Incident." The story in perhaps the thematic predecessor of Clint Eastwood's "Hang "em High," where an innocent man is hanged by a group of "good citizens" who actually epitomize mob mentality, except once again, the ending is quite different.

The is film blends all of the variables that together constitute virtually a perfect film, where it integrates those described above with the omni-present quest for power, the arrogance that almost always accompanies it, the ignorance that pervades mob mentality, and the over-riding theme that in life, things do not always turn out right.

While the story moves rather quickly, the most meaningful and powerful vignettes slow to a pace that emphasize their impacts. Yes, there is a sense of justice at the climax, where the film's focus of power and arrogance, Major Tetley, is dealt with appropriately. But "the" scene that is not to be missed is the moment where Fonda reads to the lynch mob the farewell letter written to his wife by Dana Andrews' character, Donald Martin.

Seriously, this is one of the most powerful films of its era, and still stands out as one of the best ever. The film reiterates human qualities that cross all generations.

Have you ever thought you knew what the right thing to do was, but couldn't convince others of your reasoning?

"The Ox-Bow Incident" could be best described as a western disguised as a morality play on mob justice, or vice versa. It definitely is a film which is based on not the traditional western format of "shoot em up" but rather takes a philosophical approach to what mob justice really entails, and what its consequences are.

Two men, Carter (Henry Fonda) and Croft (Harry Morgan), come into town and get themselves entangled with a group going out to find the murderer of a man in the local town. While the two feel reluctant to go out and be a part of this, they are urged on by another man, Davies, to go and make sure that the criminal or criminals will get a fair trial. Because the sheriff is not around, one deputy decides to "deputize" all the posse going out to find the killer, giving them the power to act as a majority. As the posse crosses a patch of area, they spot three men who they believe to be the killers. Rather than being judicial, one of the men, Tetley, becomes the ringleader of mob justice, wanting to hang the men on the spot. From here, the story becomes a dilemma in morals, where those who feel the men deserve a fair trial counter against those who feel that justice is "slow and careless." Carter emerges as one of the voices for the three men, who he feels deserve some form of fair justice.

As one reviewer alluded to, this is not a film that wastes words or time. Each scene of the film is concise and important to the eventual outcome of the story. Henry Fonda is a great leading character in the film, despite not getting as much of a role as one would assume. However, after the highest point of the film, and especially during the film's final fifteen minutes, Fonda's role really shines.

This is a unique look at the idea of mob justice played out on a Western scene. As far as the extras, what I really liked was the biography of Henry Fonda as Hollywood's Quiet Hero, detailing his many roles on screen and off screen. It really shows the talent of this actor, and the integrity he brought to his many roles in such films as The Grapes of Wrath (where he plays Tom Joad) and Twelve Angry Men (where he plays the man who has to convince eleven other jurors of a man's innocence).

Over all, this is a wonderful, profound film, with "no fat" extras.