THE INCIDENT

The Incident (1967), directed by Larry Peerce and written by Nicholas E. Baehr, is an excoriating look at the average New Yorker’s failure to get involved even when confronted by the most egregious and unfair form of sudden violence. Shot in brilliant quasi-documentary style by Gerald Hirschfeld, it focuses on a nightmare subway trip and a group of passengers terrorized by a pair of punks (Tony Musante and Martin Sheen, giving stunning early performances); the victims include veterans (Thelma Ritter, Jack Gilford, Jan Sterling, Gary Merrill) and an array of newcomers (Beau Bridges, Ruby Dee, Brock Peters, Robert Fields, Donna Mills).