Since I can’t find a video of Moviedrome presenter Alex Cox introducing actor Peter Fonda’s 1971 directorial debut The Hired Hand, I have once again relied on a link to Cox’s intro transcript of it via moviedrome.tumblr.com (read here). The episode’s original airdate was July 3, 1988 (read here). Along with director Monte Hellman’s 1966 film The Shooting, The Hired Hand can best be described as an Acid Western (read here). Read the link, but the one thing I can tell you that everybody else familiar with the term has noted is that Acid Westerns are characterized by their dreamlike pacing. Sadly, Cox does not think that The Hired Hand is a classic. The film garnered mixed reviews at the time so it is probably not much of a surprise. Nevertheless, by 2001, it’s critical standing had improved with some critics giving off the vibe that it is a misunderstood masterpiece of the Western genre (read here). Here is Cox, in his own words, about his problems with the film – the camerawork is all bleary and there are long transitions and the people don’t say much. It’s not as good as The Last Movie, it doesn’t have Hopper’s madness or breadth of vision. Once again, read here. Okay, first of all, maybe The Hired Hand was not intended to have The Last Movie’s (directed by Dennis Hopper) madness or breadth of vision. Coincidentally, both films came out in 1971.  For the record, I personally believe that The Last Movie is a bigger achievement by comparison, but The Hired Hand is still brilliant in it’s own ways. I appreciate the film’s bleary cinematography (courtesy of the late great Vilmos Zsigmond); it is not only beautiful, but it is appropriate for the film’s dreamy quality. Same thing goes regarding the film’s long transitions and the limited qualities of it’s characters. To be fair though, Cox did single out actor Warren Oates for praise. According to Cox, If one asked actors Hopper, Harry Dean Stanton and Ed Harris to name the best American actor living or dead it is quite likely that they are not going to say Marlon Brando. They’ll tell you it’s Warren Oates. Read here once again. I too am a huge fan of Oates as an actor. Here are two links below – one for the film’s original theatrical trailer in 1971 and the other for the 2001 Restored Director’s Cut.

Here is the youtube link below for the film’s 1971 original theatrical trailer

Here is the youtube link below for the film’s 2001 Restored Director’s Cut trailer