Hard Times

In the years before his death, Charles Bronson had been typecast and spent a lot of time making movies that weren’t very good. It’s easy to forget that he was a talented actor that was in some excellent films, including The Magnificent Seven and Once Upon a Time in the West.

Hard Times is a thoroughly enjoyable film that seems criminally unknown these days. Featuring Bronson at his best as a quiet tough guy, a varied and likable cast, and direction from Walter Hill (The Warriors, 48 Hours, Undisputed), this is a fight film with a simple but engaging plot and fights that still stand out today. It’s still fairly rare to get a film with a good story and good fights, which makes Hard Times well worth a look.

Bronson may have been typecast as the strong but silent type, but there was a reason; he was really good at it. He looks muscled, gristly, and tough, and he’s very believable as a Depression-era bare-knuckle fighter. And that’s the basis of the plot—Chaney  (Bronson) arrives in New Orleans, broke, and sets out to make enough money to get by. Mostly by knocking people out.

Things get a little more complicated when he hooks up with Spencer 'Speed' Weed (James Coburn—In Like Flint, Payback), who offers to be his manager and set up fights. Speed’s gambling and money problems become an issue later on, but Coburn lends complexity to a role that could have been clichéd and irritating. Speed may be a bit of a loser, but he’s also a charming con man with a quick wit. Speed also provides Chaney with a drug-addled broken-down cutman/ex-doctor named Poe (Strother Martin). Another clichéd role, Martin manages to imbue it with infinite sadness, quiet wit, and great likeability.

There’s also an effective and understated romance subplot with Jill Ireland playing Bronson’s romantic interest—a woman with her own not-quite-legit way of making money. Add in some good villains and fights, and you have a recipe for success. As I mentioned earlier, the fights in Hard Times are very good. Most of them feature bare-knuckle boxing, but it's mixed in with some vicious dirty infighting and even a small dash of martial arts at the end. The fights are all brutal, hard-hitting, and believable. Impressive stuff.

Hard Times is a film that could have been a complete failure if the clichéd characters hadn’t been perfectly cast, or if the fights hadn’t been good. Fortunately they’re both excellent. Highly recommended to action fans who like a solid story along with their fisticuffs.