Known as ‘The Streetfighter’ in the UK and elsewhere, Hard Times was director Walter Hill’s debut and was to be the only time he and Charles Bronson would work together.

The trailer can be watched on YouTube.

Writer Josh Olson adds a commentary on the great Trailers From Hell site.

George Roy Hill‘s ice hockey comedy was critically panned on release but quickly grew into a cult classic and is considered by many to be the best sports/comedy movie ever made.

This Japanese poster is actually a combination of two of the American one sheets and a promotional still from the film. The artwork by Craig Nelson on the Style A one sheet is combined with the sketch-style artwork (credited to ‘R.G.’) on Style B. The photo of Paul Newman appears to have been taken from this still and his lower half has been illustrated to extend it downwards.

You can watch the original trailer here.

A unique design on this Japanese B2 for the 1969 take on the true story of the infamous Wild West outlaws Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, here played by Paul Newman and Robert Redford in arguably their greatest screen roles. George Roy Hill would later go on to direct the pair again in the equally brilliant con men caper The Sting (1973).

The film follows the pair as they rob from money trains with varying success (a botched effort can be seen on the poster) and are forced to flee America after a posse of bounty hunters are unleashed to track them down. Arriving in Bolivia with the Sundance Kid’s lover, Etta Place (played by the gorgeous Katharine Ross), the duo try to make an honest living working as security guards. It’s not long before a violent incident sends them back to their old ways and on a collision course with destiny. The film features arguably the most famous freeze-frame ending in cinematic history.

A number of excellent posters for the film can be viewed here. The original trailer is on YouTube.

This was cult director Walter Hill’s debut feature film and starred action legend Charles Bronson in one of his more memorable roles. A mysterious drifter named Chaney (Bronson) arrives in New Orleans and has a chance meeting with Speed (James Coburn) an organiser of illegal bare-knuckled boxing matches. Chaney asks Speed to set him up with a fight and he quickly proves himself as a fearsome boxer. He also meets and begins a relationship with Lucy Simpson (Jill Ireland – Bronson’s wife at the time) but it’s not long before Speed’s chaotic nature and addiction to gambling begins to threaten more than just their partnership.

This was to be the only time Hill and Bronson would team up together with the director later recalling “We had kind of a falling out over the film. He thought I’d been a little too… how do I put this? Too draconian in my editing of his wife’s scenes.”

The film was originally released as Hard Times in the US.

The trailer can be watched on YouTube. Writer Josh Olson adds a commentary on the great Trailers From Hell site.