HARD TIMES – The Blu Review

No one could touch Charles Bronson in terms of global popularity throughout the 1970’s and HARD TIMES was his best film from that decade (my favorite for cinema, the only films from the ‘70s I would personally rate above HARD TIMES are TAXI DRIVER, TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE, and THE GODFATHER). Walter Hill, in his 1976 directorial debut, made a remarkably earthy and entertaining film about illegal bare-knuckle fighting in Depression-era New Orleans. HARD TIMES, whose succinct tag line read “New Orleans 1933, in those days words didn’t buy much”, perfectly exploits Bronson’s granite presence and is a concise, almost mythical celebration of men who only communicate with their fists. Bronson is Chaney, a hardened loner who hops off a freight train in New Orleans where he tries to score some quick cash the only way he knows how-with his fists.

The fight scenes in HARD TIMES, which seem authentic rather over-choreographed, are expertly staged and framed by Hill, especially the films centerpiece; an underground cage match between Bronson and a grinning goon named ‘Skinhead’ played by Robert ‘Mr. Clean’ Tessier. Supporting vets Strother Martin, James Coburn, and Ben Johnson all act up a storm but it’s Bronson, whose expression never changes, that commands all the attention. Bronson’s Chaney is a man of few words and no past and it’s perhaps his most fitting role. Acclaimed in 1976, HARD TIMES is the perfect Charles Bronson movie for people who claim not to like Charles Bronson movies and even critics who had previously overlooked Bronson’s abilities were impressed.

I saw HARD TIMES in 1976 when it was new, riding my bike at 14 to the Des Peres 4 theater with some friends. In the summer of 1978 I attended wrestling camp at the University of Missouri and one night for entertainment, we were screened a 16mm print of HARD TIMES. I have an 18-minute Super-8 condensed version of the film that I’ve shown at my monthly Super-8 Movie Madness show. It’s printed on black-and-white stock and dubbed into German, but it always gets the crowd worked up.

The 2.35:1 1080p transfer of HARD TIMES is immaculate and looks as good as the film ever has, doing justice to Philip Lathrop’s outstanding cinematography. The image is incredibly sharp. The blood and sweat of the boxers comes across nicely and there isn’t a bad looking sequence in the picture. The colors are strong and feature some thick, deep blacks, supplemented with lighter-washed-out tones (stylistically representative of the Depression). The enhanced resolution gives the fighting matches more bounce and with the 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio surround mix, you can almost feel Bronson’s bare fists pounding the bones of his opponents. Barry De Vorzon’s folksy score sounds terrific as well.

If I have a complaint, it’s with the extras on the disc. Aside from a trailer, there aren’t any. A dream release would have deleted scenes. I know Hill shot a lot more footage including a fight with black actor Frank McRae (photos from that excised fight scene are printed in the HARD TIMES paperback tie-in) and I read in an interview with actor Bruce Glover in Shock Cinema magazine that Hill’s original cut ran just over two hours (as opposed to the 94 minutes it clocks in at). Hill is notoriously reticent about discussing his films (he’s never done a commentary) and I wonder where these lost scenes are.

Inside the keepcase alongside the disc is a booklet of liner notes that offer welcome perspective and history on the movie nicely written by Julie Kirgo.

This Blu-ray presentation from Twilight Time is being issued in a limited edition of 3,000 copies, so those who are interested are well-advised to visit the Screen Archives website to confirm that it is still available. Some knuckleheads on ebay are trying to get $60 for it, but I ordered mine from Screen Archives last week for the retail price of $29.99 and it was in my mailbox two days later. Hurry up and grab your HARD TIMES Blu-ray before they’re gone or Charles Bronson will kick your ass.

my Charles Bronson HARD TIMES resin model kit painted by Dan Jorgenson  – editor of Kitbuilders Magazine