Swedish director Jan Troell had a surprise art house hit with The Emigrants (1971) and The New Land (1972), starring Max Von Sydow and Liv Ullman as a farmer and wife bound for Minnesota in pioneer days. Ms. Ullman's progress in Hollywood was slowed by ill-considered projects like a musical remake of Lost Horizon (1973). The actress and director re-teamed for Zandy's Bride (1974), an even harsher pioneering story heavy on realism but lacking in audience appeal. Working in English, Ullman plays Hannah Lund, the mail-order bride of Big Sur farmer Zandy Allan (Gene Hackman). Hannah hopes for companionship, but the belligerent Sandy sees her as a piece of property purchased to produce male sons. He tells his bride, "I got the right," as a prelude to a wedding night rape. Their relationship does not improve, as Zandy is consistently cruel and bitter to the sweet-natured Hanna, at one point driving his oxen through her vegetable garden out of pure meanness. Their lonely existence is troubled by cattle rustlers, and an attack by a bear. After Zandy is caught in bed with a local Spanish girl (Susan Tyrell) they part company for a time. Despite its historical authenticity and fine supporting cast (Eileen Heckart, Harry Dean Stanton, Joe Santos) most critics found Troell's film a drawn-out sulking contest. Warners cut it by a full 22 minutes before its wide release. It later ran on television under the title, For Better or for Worse.

By Glenn Erickson