» » Hard Times (1975)

Hard Times (1975) Online

Hard Times (1975) Online
Original Title :
Hard Times
Genre :
Movie / Crime / Drama / Sport
Year :
1975
Directror :
Walter Hill
Cast :
Charles Bronson,James Coburn,Jill Ireland
Writer :
Walter Hill,Bryan Gindoff
Budget :
$2,700,000
Type :
Movie
Time :
1h 33min
Rating :
7.4/10

The adventures of a drifter turned illegal prize-fighter during the Depression Era in New Orleans.

Hard Times (1975) Online

During the Great Depression, the mysterious drifter Chaney befriends the promoter of illegal street fights Speed and they go to New Orleans to make money fighting on the streets. Speed is welcomed by his mistress Gayleen Schoonoverand invites his former partner Poe to team-up with them. Meanwhile Chaney has a love affair with the local Lucy Simpson. Speed has a huge debt with the dangerous loan shark Doty and borrows money to promote the fight of Chaney and the local champion Jim Henry, who is managed by the also promoter. Casey wins the fight, they make a lot of money but Speed is an addicted gambler and loses his share in the dice table. But Doty wants his money back and Speed's only chance is Chaney accepts to bet his own money that he is saving and fight a winner that Gandil brought from Chicago. Will he accept the challenge?
Cast overview, first billed only:
Charles Bronson Charles Bronson - Chaney
James Coburn James Coburn - Speed
Jill Ireland Jill Ireland - Lucy Simpson
Strother Martin Strother Martin - Poe
Margaret Blye Margaret Blye - Gayleen Schoonover (as Maggie Blye)
Michael McGuire Michael McGuire - Gandil
Felice Orlandi Felice Orlandi - Le Beau
Edward Walsh Edward Walsh - Pettibon
Bruce Glover Bruce Glover - Doty
Robert Tessier Robert Tessier - Jim Henry
Nick Dimitri Nick Dimitri - Street
Frank McRae Frank McRae - Hammerman
Maurice Kowalewski Maurice Kowalewski - Caesare
Naomi Stevens Naomi Stevens - Madam
Lyla Hay Owen Lyla Hay Owen - Waitress

Star Charles Bronson was nearly 53 when he appeared in this movie.

In a 2006 interview director Walter Hill mentioned that he had been critical of the performance of Jill Ireland, who was Charles Bronson's wife at the time. When Hill went to Bronson's home to discuss this, Bronson wouldn't shake Hill's hand - he just showed Hill in and poured him a drink. Hill said that he would have liked to work with Bronson on other films, but that Bronson refused to work with Hill again.

The movie was shot in September 1974 in New Orleans.

Originally Chaney, who is portrayed by Charles Bronson, was supposed to be a much younger man played by Jan-Michael Vincent, who had previously starred with Bronson in The Mechanic (1972).

The most grueling filming for the movie was the climactic fight match between Charles Bronson and the fighter promoted by Michael McGuire who plays a respectable seafood merchant with a yen for sports and illegal gambling. The scene, which took more than a week to shoot, because of the fight's complicated movements, was filmed in a riverfront warehouse on Tchoupitoulas Street, a rough area where even the street-fighter played by Bronson may have feared to venture. For days on end, Bronson and Nick Dimitri would square off under the hot lights, watched intently by McGuire and his hoods, James Coburn, and Strother Martin - and a few dozen cameramen, technicians, and crew members. The first thing a visitor to that set would have noticed was the overwhelming smell of the place. To create the illusion of being a seafood warehouse, several Styrofoam oyster bins were stocked with several very real - and very odiferous - oyster shells. An attempt to cloak the fumes with a commercial disinfectant made matters worse.

Reportedly, Charles Bronson's salary on this picture was allegedly around US $1 million. Writer-director Walter Hill once said Bronson received "very close to a million" dollars for his lead role as Chaney.

Debut film as a director of then screen-writer Walter Hill.

Actor Charles Bronson did most of his own stunts on this picture.

The producers were going to release the film under the title "The Street Fighter", but when the Shin'ichi Chiba film of the same name came out first (Gekitotsu! Satsujin ken (1974)), they reverted to the original screenplay title.

The movie did $5,000,000 in rentals according to show-business trade-paper 'Variety'. This figure has widely been reported as "Hard Times" total U.S. box office. However, the true figure is in the $10-$11 million dollar range.

According to Walter Hill, Charles Bronson "was in remarkable physical condition for a guy his age; I think he was about 52 at the time. He had excellent coordination, and a splendid build. His one problem was that he was a smoker, so he didn't have a lot of stamina. I mean, he probably could have kicked anybody's ass on that movie, but he couldn't fight much longer than 30 or 40 seconds."

Charles Bronson's Chaney is a man of few words speaking barely five hundred of them in the entire course of the film.

The original cut of the movie was around two hours long. When it was cut down to around 90 minutes, several fights scenes were deleted. Some stills however, show some of the deleted fights.

Writer-director Walter Hill's story begins cryptically enough with the legend: "This story is true. The names have been changed. There is no moral'.' The tale is not set in any particular place so much as in a particular time and could very well have been filmed anywhere according to the film's production notes.

Director Walter Hill originally wanted Warren Oates to play Walter 'Speed' Weed who in the end was cast with actor James Coburn.

Chick Gandil, the gambler in the film, was also the name of one of the Black Sox players who conspired with gambler Arnold Rothstein to fix the 1919 World Series.

According to Walter Hill, Charles Bronson was easier to work with than James Coburn: "[Bronson was a] very angry guy... Didn't get along with a lot of people. The only reason I can tell you he and I got along well was he respected that I wrote the script. He liked the script. Also I didn't try to get close to him. Kept it very business-like. I think he liked that. Jimmy Coburn who everybody liked and got along well with, he and I did not get along well. I think he was not in a good mood about being in a movie with Charlie, it was second banana. He had been up there more, and his career was coming back a bit. I don't think he was wild about being second banana. But Charlie was a big star, perceived to be low rent. That was part of his anger... He thought there was a cosmic injustice when he was not a movie star at 35. He didn't get there till 45 or whatever... [However] When things had seemed to not be working well, or there was some impasse, Charlie would come down hard on my side. That was tipping point".

Walter Hill wrote and directed for scale even though "the truth is, I would have paid them for the chance."

Walter Hill thought the project could become more "up market" if he made it more like a Western and set it in the past; Lawrence Gordon was from New Orleans and suggested setting it in that city. Hill says the script incorporated elements of an earlier Western he had written, Lloyd Williams and his Brother. He wrote it in a style inspired by Alex Jacobs - "extremely spare, almost Haiku style. Both stage directions and dialogue."

Charles Bronson spent the time between camera takes either by sitting off in a corner or turning his nervous energy loose on such feats as flexing his biceps and running up the side of a wall. James Coburn, Strother Martin, and the others would drift over to where some of the technicians were watching football games on a portable television set. Finally, the actors would be gathered together for shooting, and both Bronson and Nick Dimitri were sprayed generously with water to make their fisticuffs look realistically fierce and sweaty.

The film was profitable and in 2009, Walter Hill said he was still receiving money from it.

Producer Lawrence Gordon, a native of Yazoo City in Mississippi, and who was graduated from New Orleans' Tulane University with a BBS in Business Administration, insisted that the film be set in The Crescent City. Gordon said: "I wanted the film here for two reasons. First, the background is very, very special. You get a great look from the extras and a great accent that you can't get anyplace else in the country". "And second", Gordon laughed, "I simply wanted to come back to a place I consider home".

The steamboat seen in the movie was the 'Mark Twain'. The sequence where it was filmed was shot in Cajun County, Louisiana (near Lafitte).

New Orleans landmarks featured in this movie included the Algiers Ferry, the Chalmette Railroad Yards, Chartres Street, the Cornstalk Hotel, Desire Street, the French Quarter, the Irish Channel, Jackson Street, Magazine Street, and the St Vincent de Paul Cemetery.

The home of Speed Weed (James Coburn) in this movie was actually New Orleans' Cornstalk Hotel.

In the movie's story, the way Charles Bronson's street-fighter Chaney character was said to punch was like the way a mule kicks.

The colorful Irish Channel area was utilized for a few of the more seedy locations, while the St. Vincent de Paul Cemetery on Desire Street, with its above-ground tombs, served as the forlorn setting of Charles Bronson's first meeting with Poe, the drug-addicted cut specialist played by veteran character actor Strother Martin. Even the rough-and-tumble Ninth Ward is on display, particularly the freight yard of an old warehouse on Chartres Street near the Mississippi River, where Bronson polishes off not only his scheduled opponent but also a chain-wielding poor loser who bet on the wrong fighter.

A local New Orleans dealer and restorer of antique cars provided several autos for "Hard Times," including James Coburn's beloved black 1936 Packard One-Twenty Sedan [120B] car. The dealer, Gabriel Puccio, was such a frequent visitor to the set, that he was eventually cast as a hood on the payroll of James Coburn's rival. But Puccio's interest in "Hard Times" would apparently carry over beyond the end of location shooting as he planned to display the Packard in the lobby of the New Orleans Theater where the film would be shown.

This is the third and final film that Charles Bronson and James Coburn did together, the others being The Magnificent Seven (1960) and The Great Escape (1963).

Walter Hill says his cinematographer Philip H. Lathrop was incredibly useful during the shoot:

"Before we started I was in my office later at night and Lathrop came by, noted I wasn't in a good mood. "Anything wrong?" I had never done it, worried if I will make it look alright. He immediately said "Don't worry about that. We will make a film, make the shots. If you are having a problem we will make the shots. I can already tell you you are ahead of other directors." He said "Anything we shoot we will cut together." He said "The problem that you're going to have is making everybody getting along and you getting what you want." And he was of course 100 percent right. That is the problem with direction. Beyond my first or second film, I don't think I've ever had terrible dilemmas based upon resources, but shooting and figuring out how is not a problem, never was. The problems that you have are getting everybody to be on the same page".

Many scenes in "Hard Times," from the opening scene where Charles Bronson jumps off a freight car near the Chalmette Railroad Yards, to the startling sight of Bronson with his wife & co-star Jill Ireland walking down Magazine Street in their costumes of the 1930s, are recognizable local sites of New Orleans in the American state of Louisiana.

No film shot in New Orleans would be complete without a few glimpses of its famous French Quarter. "Hard Times" features the usual quota. The Cornstalk Hotel, a familiar sight to Quarter residents, appears in the background when Charles Bronson tells Jill Ireland the nature of his profession - street-fighting - and also as the residence of the slick gambler-promoter played by James Coburn. Another scene shot in the Quarter is that in which Coburn makes the mistake of trying to thrash Bronson for making a play after Coburn's girl, a charge as ill-conceived as Coburn's lunges at the powerful street-fighter.

The film's production notes state that the seamy side of contemporary New Orleans was not glossed over, but rather celebrated in a bordello sequence shot in the city's Jackson Street. Naturally enough, the residence was not really used for such goings-on, although one crew member allegedly claimed that "about 80% of the girls employed as atmosphere extras were the genuine article". The press kite goes on to say "interiors, by the way, were shot elsewhere and it would not be fair to reveal where".

Walter Hill considered Mickey Rooney for the role of Spencer "Speed" Weed.

Charles Bronson received top / first billing on this picture, James Coburn received second billing.

'DVD.net.au' reports that "Obtained by producer Lawrence Gordon in March 1974, 'Hard Times' was an original screenplay by Bryan Gindoff and Bruce Henstell; financed independently by tax shelter dollars, production on the film commenced later that same year, with shooting conducted on location in New Orleans, Louisiana. The film project was renamed 'The Street Fighter', however, in a surprising irony, its name was reverted back to its original title, when Gordon and Hill discovered, whilst their film was still in production, that a martial arts epic was due to be released - Shigehiro Ozawa's Gekitotsu! Satsujin ken (1974)."

This movie is equally well-known in English speaking territories under two different titles: 'Hard Times' and 'The Streetfighter'.

This movie was retitled 'The Streetfighter' for its original UK theatrical release so that it wouldn't be confused with Charles Dickens 'Hard Times' story of the same name. This was despite the fact that there apparently hadn't been a filmed version of this Dickens novel for sixty years, since Hard Times (1915). However, Hard Times (1977), a new version, was made and released within a couple of years of this film debuting.

The nick-name of James Coburn's Spencer Weed character was "Speed".

According to cinematographer Philip H. Lathrop, more than a few difficulties had to be surmounted in order to shoot on actual sets rather than on a soundstage. Lathrop said: "It's a wholly different type of treatment because you're working on actual sets and you have to invent a lot of different things that you need not do in the studio, where you can remove a wall or have lights above on the scaffolds. But it gets done".

Walter Hill wrote one draft, then rewrote it "five or six times before I finally got it. But I did get it and I knew it. I knew it was going to get an actor and get made."

The film's closing credits declare: "The producer wishes to thank the office of the governor of the State of Louisiana, the office of the mayor of the city of New Orleans, the New Orleans Police Department, and the state of Louisiana Department of Employment Security for their cooperation."

One of two Charles Bronson movies that have an title which is also the name of a piece of literature but is unrelated to that literary property. "Hard Times" aka "The Streetfighter" [See: Hard Times (1975)] is also the name of a 1854 Charles Dickens novel called "Hard Times" whilst St. Ives (1976) is also the name of a 1897 Robert Louis Stevenson short story named "St. Ives". The latter's full title is "St. Ives: Being The Adventures of a French Prisoner in England".


User reviews

Akir

Akir

Of all the movies I have seen Mr. Bronson in "Hard Times" stands out to me. He should have been given an Oscar for this time piece.

We currently have Spiderman,Batman and Superman etcetera, as the contemporary super heroes of our day. Charles Bronson as Chaney outdoes them all without ever leaving the ground. You feel when watching this movie that you are right there in New Orleans. Charles Bronson as Chaney is hard as nails and yet you feel as if he could be your best friend. If you needed bullies to be knocked down you would want Chaney on your side.

Many times I have heard the question "what is a real man?". Chaney is I think the perfect picture of what a real man is, or at least the way most good men would want to be. Chaney is fearless,shrewd,compassionate.I could go on and on. Oh he also like the ladies.

I have seen this movie more times than I can count and I know I will watch it again. Whenever I recommend a Bronson flick this is the one. The rest of the cast was chosen to perfection, I could mention each. Just see the film you will not regret it.
felt boot

felt boot

Some consider Hard Times' Chaney to be Bronson's most fitting role, while others have found him offering nothing he had not previously done on screen…

But, for the most part, Hill's "Hard Times" brought new attention to Bronson and brought him respect from unexpected quarters… It also brought back Jill Ireland, as his romantic interest, and witnessed, in Bronson, a decided physical alteration appropriate to the film's time and place… The actor's somewhat graying hair was cut quite short… And, of course, his well-toned and defined musculature was, at fifty-four, still carefully enough maintained to go on public display, for the role…

Weaving outstandingly well into the plot, James Coburn and Strother Martin proved their pleasant personalities in their good acting...
Talvinl

Talvinl

Just a few days ago I saw HARD TIMES again, after I had seen it already twice some 10 to 20 years down the road. I did remember that I liked it a lot then, but I was not prepared to see how great it actually is! This is one of the movies that gets better with every viewing (liek THE OUTFIT with Bob Duvall)!! Glorious, just perfect and that in EVERY DEPARTMENT!! The OPENING SCENE is so beautiful, it makes you fall on your knees! A long shot of a slowly arriving train in beautifully landscape and run-down buildings of New Orleans, SUPERBLY shot in first rare camera-work, THE MAN standing framed in the door of one of the trains' wagons, the music (and what music, DeVORZONs probably best score, still unreleased = a shame!) starting slowly and you immediately realize here's a drifter, a taciturn MAN arriving in town. Charlie looks sad, run down, tired, WITHOUT mustache, not having had much luck in live. These are just the first 3 or 4 minutes, but one probably never will forget them. GREAT! Like many of the directors, who started their work in the 70ies, Walter HILL is no exception to the "rule", that most of them (if not all of them) made their BEST picture within their first 3 movies released (Carpenter: ASSAULT, Spielberg: DUEL & SUGARLAND EXPRESS, Coppola: THE CONVERSATION, M. Ritchie: PRIME CUT, John Boorman: POINT BLANK, ...): Wlater HILL made HARD TIMES as his debut and although he made some nice pictures later-on, none of his later pictures (the DRIVER, which is # 2 included) could beat HARD TIMES. It's - like EMPEROR OF THE NORTH POLE - a really beautifully shot study of depression-era America.

Bronson's muscles are - THE MAN being in his mid-50ies then !! - just unbelievable, slim, trim, knock-out hard, every ounce hardened flesh (check out CHATO'S LAND, too!), his acting is 100% on target (he does not look "bored", how some stupid critics wrote, but the way unlucky-in-life depression-era people would most likely look: sad), he is the ideal man for this role, and that just a year after he made DEATH WISH, which proves he was not out for an easy follow-up movie and certainly far away from getting as type-cast as Golan & Globus made him from Death Wish II (1982) onwards (sigh & weep).

JAMES COBURN is great, too, maybe slightly overdoing his sleaziness, but great nevertheless. Jill Ireland has her usual bit-part, she's fine & OK, but not outstanding, whereas nearly all the other character parts are just that: outstanding! Nobody plays himself into the foreground, but everybody fits his part 100%. You'll hardly find any other movie, where the whole cast is as great as in this one.

The STORY is simple but true! I just can't stand those fancy elaborated twist-here twist-there stories , straight forward simple but high-crafted storytelling, one of THE craftsmanship's of US cinema in the 40ies to 60ies (Ford, Mann, Huston) is brought here to another peak! The Camera-work is outstanding, too,a s is Barry DEVORZON's superb bluegrass/jazz/hillbilly score (release it, please!), which is probably just half an hour of music, but certainly deserved a full or at least half-CD release.

In short: BREATHTAKING and certainly one of Charlies best movies of the 70ies (when he made all of his best movies), truly at the same level as MECHANIC & CHATO'S LAND, beating (a little) BREAKOUT and MR. MAJESTYC.

10 out of 10! Go and see yourself!
Vivaral

Vivaral

I first saw Hard Times with my Father when it was title "Streetfighter". I was 16 years of age.

Ever since then I would have to say that it still is my favourite Movie, mainly because of the character that Charles Bronson portrays. The Movie basically begins with Bronson (Chaney) stepping of a freight train. If you study his face before he steps of the train you can basically see the hard if not troubled life he has lived up to that moment. One wonders how many of these situations that is about to confront him, has he already been through.

Throughout the film Bronson portrays a loner who knows what he has to do and he does it with complete style. Chaney is a man on a mission and James Coburn (Speed) is the perfect person to assist him. Although he does not show hard earned money enough respect, Speed does know how to make it and he see's Chaney as his biggest chance.

Strother Martin is perfectly casted as Poe, Chaneys mender, although most of the time Poe is never required.

The fight scenes are brilliant and can be watched time and time again, mainly due to Chaneys style, confidence and skill. The last two fights really show his skill, not only as a hitter but as a blocker and tactical fighter.

The final match-up draws out to be a fight of complete tactics with many moments of respect shown between the two fighters.

The "In-betweens" are very interesting and fall into place around Chaneys lifestyle.

The setting of the Movie is perfect, and the remainder of the cast play their parts precisely.

I think Chaney is the type of person most men would want to be. Strong, confident with no strings attached. Look carefully at the condition of Bronson's physique at age 54!

I wonder if Poe and Speed do go back and take care of Chaneys Cat!
Abuseyourdna

Abuseyourdna

With this, his first directing job, Walter Hill showed his tendency for archetypal characters (see the later "The Driver" - where the characters didn't even have proper names - and, of course, "The Warriors"). Here, Bronson is 'The Fighter'...Coburn is 'The Hustler'...Martin is 'The Addict-Medic'...and so forth. Bronson's final opponent is simply named 'Street' while the big guy who damages The Hustler's automobile with a big hammer is just called 'Hammerman.' They all present striking, impressive figures; you don't easily forget any of them. They stride or shuffle through a page of history, in this case Depression-era New Orleans, nicely atmospheric as shown here. Times are hard. People need to be hard, as well. One way to make good money is in pick up fights, street fights in warehouses, on docks or, in one case of rich atmosphere, in the bayou.

Chaney, aka The Fighter, as played by Bronson, true to director Hill's method of archetypes, first appears on a slow moving train from places unknown. We never learn anything of his past history, even though there's about 50 years worth there. We learn only of his incredible hitting ability in the current time frame of the story's progression. In a way, Bronson was born to play this role: he's certainly not a young man here but he looks so tough we have no trouble believing he can wipe out men 20 years his junior. With the archetype of The Fighter, the story plays out like some Depression times fable, the tale of a mystery man or warrior arrived in a city to astonish all the onlookers with his formidable fighting abilities. The fights themselves are quite memorable; the viewer has the good fortune to witness these with the shouting hordes of betting men from the safety of a couch at home. We're a part of the spectacle, a guilty participant in a brutal spectator sport, a much more gritty version of modern boxing, and we wouldn't have it any other way.

The rest of the cast is super: Coburn was never better as Speed 'The Hustler' and Chaney's front-man/manager. It's mostly through him that we hear all the phrases and quips common to those places & times, and Coburn delivers them all with a gusto & panache few are capable of. You really believe he was born as the 19th century was ending, grew up in the twenties and adjusted to the Depression accordingly. You'll always remember his retorts to the bayou residents and his last insult about fish to Gandil, the bigshot. Speed and Chaney need each other and their relationship is another strong point; Speed is all about the money, sure, but you sense he has a strong admiration for Bronson's power and quiet nobility (this is confirmed at the end). As Poe, Strother Martin created & added another indelible character to the long list on his resume. Other actors would've been saddled with some of the odd dialog he has to deliver, but he just breezes through it like a song. Glover (Crispin's dad) is also very good as a loan shark, as is McGuire as the rich Gandil. Mention should also be made of the top two fighters (Tessier & Dimitri). The film needed characters who could pose a threat to Chaney and these two looked just as tough. Now if only Chaney would explain more about those 'in-betweens'... but he doesn't say much.
Ferri - My name

Ferri - My name

Charles Bronson heads a wonderful cast which includs James Coburn as "Speed", a fast talking, fast moving promoter and Strother Martin, who was studying to be a doctor, but in his third year of medical school, a black cloud appeared on campus, and he left under it. Times were hard when Bronson, a bare knuckle street fighter arrived in New Orleans, with 8 bucks in his pocket, and an undisclosed past. The movie is genuine, with bare knuckle action and drama. I've lived in New Orleans and know the city and it's people. Everyone should see this movie and enjoy the characters as played by the three main stars. When Charles Bronson(Cheney) leaves town in the end, James Coburn (Speed) and Storther Martin look at each other and say "He sure was something". Yes he was and so was this movie..
you secret

you secret

This is one of my favorite films. There is a quality about it that touches the soul. Charles Bronson, James Coburn and Strother Martin are superb. Coburn is the character. The story is great, the acting is great and the music is great, particularly the closing piece of blue grass. I saw Hard Times when it first came out and it never left me. I'm not even sure why. Perhaps because all the characters, even the antagonists are depicted as real humans and not caricatures. For example, the loan sharks mean business but aren't bloodthirsty. They want their money and do what they have to to collect. Interestingly they seem genuinely pleased with the resolution of their problem. Even the film's "heavy" has the decency to pay due homage to the skill of his nemesis. And once business is concluded personal relationships are renewed. In my mind this is a true classic.
Uylo

Uylo

A depression era drifter (Bronson) gets involved in the world of street fighting for big bucks. Good vehicle for Bronson who, like Eastwood, can say more with a look than with 20 words. He's the epitome of a hard edged, down but not out, tough guy. James Coburn plays his seedy, gambliholic, money hungry, 'manager' to the hilt. If you're looking for an actor who can make it look easy, watch Coburn in this film. Strother Martin plays a mulatto, hop-head Doctor (kicked out of Med school) they hire to treat Bronsons wounds. This is a man's movie. And the grit is captured perfectly by Director Walter Hill who would go on to direct 48 HRS. Throw in love interest (and Bronson wife) Jill Ireland, New Orleans and The Mob and you've got one hellava film. Don't look for any phony special effects which would have to be included for today's audience, just good acting, plot and grit.
thrust

thrust

This is one of the best Charles Bronson movies I have ever seen. Bronson is very effective as the stranger who comes and boxes for James Couburn (in another great role). Strother Martin is great as the opium taking doctor (on one episode of "King of the Hill", in there way to New Orleans, the Hills meet a man that is an obvious impersonation of Martin's character). It's hard to believe that not many people have heard of this movie. It has a great story, great performances, and atmosphere that shows Depression era Lousiana under great direction of Walter Hill, who also wrote the adapted the script. If you can find this movie, watch it.
Coiril

Coiril

Great role for Bronson.

Compare Bronson's fighting style with almost any other fight movie like Kirk Douglas in 'Champion' or Stallone in the 'Rocky' series. Bronson slips and ducks his opponent's punches like a real fighter does, putting as much effort into not getting hit as he does hitting the other guy. Any fighter taking the hits that most movie boxers take would be unconscious or dead in a matter of minutes, and even sluggers like Rocky Marciano and George Frazier were constantly moving, never offering a good target.

This depression era movie is similar in flavor to the Lee Marvin Ernest Borgnine vehicle 'Emperor of The North'. Both movies have unsentimental, tough, taciturn heroes who communicate more with glances and gestures.
Enone

Enone

Hard Times is one of Charles Bronson and Walter Hill's best films. This movie is rugged and has a great feel. Bronson looks in great shape in the film and the direction from Hill is terrific. In the genre of street-fighting pictures, this one ranks as one of the best.
Hamrl

Hamrl

A desperate hobo boxes to make some extra money in the Depression. No love story, no cute little kids, no happy ending, no redemption. Just a hard man doing what he has to in order to survive. But on his terms.

To understand why HARD TIMES is a masterpiece, compare it to other films from around this time.

BONNIE AND CLYDE, THE STING, and PAPER MOON were all massive box office hits, set in the Depression. All three movies "strain" for a sense of desperate characters in a dog-eat-dog world, but every one of them cops out with Hollywood glitz and glamor. Here's giggly Warren Beatty pretending he knows what it's like to be poor. And here's Faye Dunaway, the dead-end girl, wearing scrumptious couture while she robs banks. Here's Robert Redford, the ultimate preppy blonde pretty boy, delicately hobnobbing with down-to-earth "Negroes" and glowing with his own virtue. Here's Ryan O'Neil, tough as nails and a real fighter, but hey, it's okay -- he's got a cute little girl along for the ride! One close up of Charles Bronson's face takes you to a place no other Depression picture dares to go. The ugly violence and the hopelessness in this film are so real that they actually build up the character even more than Bronson's natural authority and physical presence. It's the perfect vehicle for the perfect star.

Bronson is enough -- but there's so much more. James Coburn as the manager Speed, so dishonest yet completely likable and in his own way a real hero. Maggie Blye and Jill Ireland, both sexy and authentic as Depression women -- Jill too sickened by failure to ever love again, Maggie too aware of how short life is to ever let a minute go by without a laugh. Either one of them could wipe the floor with "Bonnie" from Bonnie and Clyde. Strother Martin as Poe, the dope addict cut man who adds his own humor, sadness and resignation to a movie utterly packed to the brim with memorable characters.

This is the most powerful and honest movie ever made about hard times.
Umsida

Umsida

In addition to Hoosiers, The Natural, & It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, there are but a handful of movies i will pause to watch, no matter how many times i have seen it, and no matter how far into the movie it is, (when on occasion i find myself flipping through channels.) Hard Times is on that list.

To me it is a "semi-realistic" depression-era fantasy in which i can have fun pretending i'm Charles Bronson, and when it's over i feel like i've won something from the school of "hard knocks", (pun intended)...

The end credit musical composition by Barry Devorzon is exquisite and i have searched high and low for years in an attempt to attain it, (without success).
Longitude Temporary

Longitude Temporary

No question about that. Great period piece with fantastic action fight scenes and terrific finale. James Coburn is beautiful as an incredibly sleezy frontman for Bronson's stoic warrior. The only downside to this film is Bronson's fanatical obsession with employing his wife, Jill Ireland, in some elevated role in which she typically doesn't belong. A very tiresome habit and a major distraction in this movie, otherwise flawless. 9/10
Cyregaehus

Cyregaehus

I'm a Charles Bronson fan and I've seen almost all of his movies when I was a kid. Now , that I collect my favorite movies on DVD , I started to purchase some of his movies... then I saw for sale Hard Times. Never seen it , I bought it , watched it and loved it ! The thing is , that I saw it a week ago and simply can't get it of my head , I just want to see it again. I wasn't expecting this to happen to me , not with this movie , but it did. At the beginning I thought it was a little bit strange since I've watched so many great films and that never happened. Is this one greater ? I've seen Charles Bronson pulling off some great performances but in this one he's just magic.
Wymefw

Wymefw

Hard Times is my favorite Charles Bronson film and one of my all time favorite movies. Ideally cast with Bronson as Chaney a mystery man who reveals little of himself while knocking out opponents in bare knuckle brutality, James Coburn co-stars as the cocky and irresponsible Speed who manages Chaney,Strother Martin plays Poe his cut man,and Michael McGuire is a sinister gentleman sportsman who may or may not have been one of the Chicago Black Sox of 1919, and of course Jill Ireland as the world weary Lucy and there is not a false note in any of the performances. Walter Hill's direction is brisk and he keeps the story moving. The cinematography is excellent. You really feel like you are immersed in seedy, dingy Depression era New Orleans.

Bronson has fewer then 500 words of dialog but his eyes , his facial expressions, his way of holding his head and his body actions tell his story. Chaney shows up out of nowhere and seems a bit to old to fight bare fisted. He's from the north and he came to make some money is all he will say about himself. Chaney is a role Bronson was born to play.I really am not a boxing fan but Hard Times really pulled me in. It's a great film and tells a wonderful story
Stan

Stan

A Great All Action Movie, Realistic, and a real pleasure to watch. Absolutely Fantastic. With Charles Bronson as Chaney' the Street Fighter, James Coburn as his manager, Always trying to pull a new money making' Trick to help his gambling habit, and Charles' own wife Jill Ireland as his Love interest, playing a down and outer' down on her luck' She played a great part. The great supporting cast, included, Nick Dimitri as Street, The Champion they brought down from Chicago to beat Chaney, although it didn't end up like that, after another great action encounter with no crowds, Just Money on the fight, Chaney takes him out. Bob Tessier as Jim Henry, Who was a hard head butting' Roughhouse' till Chaney beat him in one of the highlights of the film, great action, and very realistic too.Real Tough Guys, and Ideal for this sort of film. Strother Martin as Poe, the Cut Man' an ex' medical student with a bad drug Habit. All in All' Unmissable, Even Today.
ladushka

ladushka

Bronson was a legend to many people all over the world, including myself. And I have always harbored warm feelings for Coburn, perhaps I see a lot of my personality mirrored in his acting. The fights were terrific. I spent the whole film waiting for the big brawl that we knew was going to take place. It was well worth the wait. And to be honest, I wasn't sure what was gonna happen there. That aura of the unknown did a nice job of capping off the ending. I loved Bronson, and I loved Coburn. And I was very sad when they both passed away. They were two talented actors and good men. I've never heard an unkind word towards either. Bronson's wife has a small and relatively insignificant role as well. She was beautiful.
Wafi

Wafi

Saw this movie when it first came out and I loved it. I watched it again last night and my opinion has not changed at all. It's just a fabulous movie and definitely my favorite Bronson flick. Fine work from Bronson, James Coburn and Strother Martin. The dialog is sharp and the fight scenes are excellent. This is no "Rocky" fantasy, but a tough look at a brutal game. The film really conveys what a desperate place Depression-era America was. The final fight scene is great. No roaring crowds, no dramatic music, just two tough guys pounding away at each other. Coburn is great and Strother Martin has some of the best lines in the picture. ("Some are born to fail...") Also we get to see some great New Orleans locations,which are painful to look at now in light of the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina.
Kamuro

Kamuro

Four years before he displayed his brilliance in "The Warriors" (1979), Director Walter Hill came out with this true gem of a movie.

**SPOILERS AHEAD**

Charles Bronson is one actor who knew how to make the most out of what he had. Throughout his career, he played a modern day vigilante(Death Wish), a confused romantic lead(From Noon 'til Three), and a tough as nails fighter in this film.

This role was a natural for Bronson. From the opening scene, where a simple guitar intro symbolizes the no strings attached life of a drifter, Charles (As Chaney) appears on board a train bound for New Orleans. Every hardship of the Great Depression seems to be etched into his face, and he has the faraway look of a man who has lost all of his dreams except for the one to survive.

He accidentally stumbles into a world of pick up fights, where money is made on bets. James Coburn plays "Speed", a small time hustler who lives by his wits and the luck of the draw. Chaney convinces Speed they can make some fast money. And he soon proves that he has the power in his fists to back it up.

Speed's main nemesis is a brutal street fighter by the name of Jim Henry. Bald, muscular and tattoed, Jim likes to take pain as well as dish it out. He is the best, because nobody ever beats him. Chaney has a huge fight with Jim that goes beyond money. It is a matter of pride, since both men are determined to prove they are champions. Henry loses the brutal battle against Chaney within a cage. Shortly thereafter, Jim's mentor, a rich socialite, offers $5000 to buy half of Chaney's talent. Chaney refuses, and is forced (mainly through Speed's losses at gambling and over due debts to thugs) into one final confrontation with "Street", a fighter from Chicago.

The last fight will not only settle all of Speed's financial woes, it will also spare him from the beating of his life at the hands of Jim Henry. Chaney takes a few falls, but wins in the end. And, in spite of his success, Chaney leaves New Orleans behind with no renewed dreams or plans for the future. He simply says he's heading North, and disappears into the night. This is a wonderful film...one that I've enjoyed time and time again.
Uyehuguita

Uyehuguita

Bronson teamed with James Coburn in the ensemble casts of two other great films: "The Magnificent Seven," and "The Great Escape." Of all the films Bronson has made, "Hard Times" is by far the best, and probably the only truly "serious" film. Framed in the gritty reality of the Great Depression, with great background music --1930's string band--Bronson found the role of a lifetime. I rate this film an 8 out of 10.
GODMAX

GODMAX

.....when Bronson died a year and a half or so ago, no one seemed to bother mentioning this in his obits. Sure you heard about Death Wish or the Dirty Dozen or whatever, but this one--just gets filed under the 'routine Bronson vehicle' tag ala 'Breakout'. Which is a shame.

Rarely was he this good in anything--focused, believable, solid. You can half-ways even buy his beating Robert Tessier in a fight despite Tessier's obvious looming over Bronson by half a foot or so.

Scenery, setting, casting-Coburn, Strother, etc-all top notch. I also am always happy to see Tessier show up, be it in this or the Longest Yard or whatever, he was a pretty effective villain.

Check this out if you like Bronson or fight flix. Very well done.

***1/2 outta ****
Geny

Geny

Walter Hill has a way of stripping action movies down to the bare minimum, both in terms of dialogue and story. There is hardly a story here at all. Broke drifter rides the rails into depression era New Orleans, and starts winning his way through the local bare knuckle boxing community. Simple. In Hill's hands, it's a masterpiece, and a large part of that is down to Bronson who was such an all encompassing screen presence. Bronson was 54 when this was filmed, but physically he looked about thirty, and he carried the fight scenes off with a certain style that even stands up today. His fight with Jim Henry (Tessier)is equally as good as the final battle with Street, and there are a several other good set piece fights as well as these two. Coburn deserves a mention as his wheeler dealer opportunistic fixer, and he steals a few of the non fight scenes, but Strother Martin as the opium addicted cut man, Poe, is equally deserving of praise "You are not, Mr Chaney, what Speed unfortunately refers to as a bleeder". Bronson moves through the film with a reserved laconic nonchalance in the non action scenes, but comes to life when he starts throwing punches. There's some funny and quotable dialogue, a scene where some less than sporting southern redneck gentlemen are given their come-uppance at Chaney's hands, and a no frills ending that makes you wish there was a Streetfighter II. But that would have spoiled things. Watching this is a great way to spend an evening, and this could be Charles Bronson's finest hour.
Ť.ħ.ê_Ĉ.õ.о.Ł

Ť.ħ.ê_Ĉ.õ.о.Ł

This great looking, rather downbeat slice-of-lowlife action picture shows us the grim, dusty Depression era in suitably unglamorous, bled out colors and starkly realistic sets. Everything seems faded, flaking paint, cracking, on the verge of breaking apart - much like America itself at the time. Charles Bronson drifts into New Orleans and joins the underground bare knuckle boxing scene. The laconic Bronson, who has about a hundred words of dialogue in the whole picture, hooks up with fight manager James Coburn, who talks about a hundred words a minute. The contrast between the two extends beyond the verbal - Coburn jangles about energetically, while Bronson is a study in stillness. No wasted motion, no baggage. You get the feeling he could tote his whole world around in one pocket. When Coburn tells him that he lost his fight contract gambling, Bronson looks at him and says one word: "Dumb." It's a stunning under-performance. Coburn is the rushing river and Bronson is a rock. Jill Ireland, Bronson's real-life wife and frequent co-star, appears as a pretty woman who wants more out of life than what the aging, drifting Bronson can offer. Their relationship and chemistry is wonderful, and sad as it quickly becomes obvious that whatever they might have together is temporary. Once again, as everything seems to in this picture, this resonates with the temporary and unstable nature that everything seemed to have during the Depression. It was a dark time, and the Depression colored everything around it, and the picture reflects this in all of its tiny details. Great period film-making, great dialogue and terrific performances all around.
Windbearer

Windbearer

This is the earliest bloodsport type movie I know. The fighting scenes weren't that good as in nowadays movies, of course, actually it was just a simple fist fights. But they were very intense, because you could newer be too sure who will win, since this isn't one of those movie which is only about fighting, it's about a plot, so even the main guy can lose. Charles Bronson was real tough in this film. His character doesn't look like one of those who spend many hours in gym, he looked like one of those who get their strength in natural ways, like hard working or something like that, though I liked Once Upon A Time In West more, in this film he looked tougher.