Hard Times (aka The Streetfighter, 1975, U.S.A.)

Writer-director Walter Hill’s debut film, Hard Times (1975), stars the legendary Charles Bronson as a laconic street fighter who joins forces in Depression-era New Orleans with a fast-talking promoter (James Coburn) and a drug-addicted cut man (Strother Martin) to make some hard-earned cash in the illegal fight game. With its clean narrative, detailed period setting, superb cinematography by Philip Lathrop, and striking action sequences (elegantly edited by future director Roger Spottiswoode), Hard Times is an exhilarating jump-start for one of the 1970s’ most influential filmmakers.