Winchester '73 (1950)

Disapointment

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Here's what happens: you get a Jimmy Stewar bio on Kindle- next thing you know, you are on Amazon, hunting down the DVD titles they discuss extensively in the book, movies you haven't seen since the 25 cent cinemas decades ago.This was wonderfully filmed in black & white (still popular in 1950) with style & 'framing' by Director, Anthony Mann, who collaborated with Stewart on several post-war flicks that helped Jimmy get his film career back on track after 4 years (WWII) in the Armed Services. The entry is enhanced by a superb voiceover track of Stewart being interviewed about the scenes (and his career) for the later Laserdisc release. Make sure the copy you order has this feature. Stewart was a fine raconteur, giving lots of background on this film (his horse, Pie & his training at handling the rifle) and others (he relates how Hitchcock shot a scene in a later movie, scrapping 2 pages of dialogue Jimmy had struggled to memorize, doing it in pantomine instead).Great contributions from some fine character actors (Dan Duryea is a loonie criminal) are rendered, with a young Rock Hudson kicking in as a warring Indian chief. A young, (thin) Shelley Winters adds the brief romantic aspect quite capably (unrecognizable from Poseidon Adventure). Above all, Jimmy stretches a bit in his role as a wronged brother who also starts a quest to re-acquire the prized rifle stolen abruptly from him at the outset of the story.

. . . during this strange story, and the McAdam brothers each have two turns handling it. If the star of WINCHESTER '73 actually was a "perfect" or "one-in-a-thousand" or "1-in-10,000" or "1-in-20,000" rifle when it rolled off Winchester's assembly line (all of which claims are made here), it certainly was NOT by the time it got bent in a wrestling match, used for a ski pole by a losing contestant falling off a horse in a rifle joust, left in a burning house, and flung off Lover's Leap by a fratricide victim. About all this shooting iron would be good for by the time Jimmy Stewart reclaims it would be to keep the stuffed animals dangling from a Crooked Carnie's shooting gallery booth. As if Rock Hudson sporting war paint isn't bizarre enough, how about Mr. Stewart's "a-boy-named-Lynne" character allowing Dutch's gang to ride off with BOTH the hijacked gold shipment AND the Tascosa Wells Fargo Bank depositors' life savings just so that he could engage in brotherly (tough) love? I'd re-watch HIGH NOON or even STAGECOACH (John Wayne's Dagwood Bumstead buttons and all) rather than view WINCHESTER '73 again.

All Five of the Director Anthony Mann/James Stewart Westerns are Excellent Films and there is no need to point out which one is the Best because that would be a very Personal Opinion. This One was the First and it Started the Quintet and helped Reinvent the Western in both Style and Description. The New Wave of the Westerns were Called "Adult...Psychological...Complex", hardly Terms that Prior could or would be used to Describe this American Film Form.Fact is, that Anthony Mann was Overlooked for Decades and it wasn't until the Film School Generation brought the Director to Light and the Acclaim He Deserved. This is a Great Western that may be a bit Heavy on the "Gun-Culture" Gooeyness and the opening Shooting Contest may be Guilty of unneeded Name Dropping, after Things get Going the Movie is Stunning and Riveting in its Action Scenes like the Visceral Indian Attack and the Shootout at the Homestead. These are Violent and Gripping in a way that No Western had done in Terms of Style and Content.The Script is Crackerjack with the way Cowpokes of the Old West Spoke in Short, Choppy Sentences that were Unschooled, but Profound. There are many Quotables and the Characters are Interesting and Dynamically Portrayed. Shelley Winters is a Stand Out as a "Dance Hall" Girl and is Witty as well as Worldly. Dan Duryea is a Heartbeat away from Overripe Playing a Heartless Psychopath, and Millard Mitchell as a Talky Sidekick is Very Good. The Rest of the Supporting Players are all On Their Game.The Climax doesn't Disappoint and the Ricocheting Bullets are, again, Filmed with a Flare with Audio and Visual Effects that Looked and Sounded New and Different. Overall this one is Essential and Seminal in the Western Pantheon. One of the Best.

WINCHESTER '73 (1950) - To be honest, my first Mann/Stewart film was THE NAKED SPUR which I have now seen twice and just can't bring myself to like or appreciate as a whole. So with a little bit of trepidation I moved backwards in the Mann/Stewart library since I wasn't able to record them in order. Within the first scene of Stewart's, I knew that I had the potential to like this film very much. Within 5 minutes I did.Lin (Stewart) and High Spade (Mitchell) have an easygoing friendship that's apparent from the start. From the time they enter Dodge City for the rifle contest it is clear they are after Dutch Henry Brown (McNally) and that all 3 have a past connection. This puzzle isn't solved until some time later. Instead, the groundwork is laid by Mann to connect the prize Winchester '73 and its succession of owners. That's where the real fun begins until the story is weaved back around once again to the conflict between Lin and Dutch Henry.I can only imagine what moviegoers must have thought upon first seeing this film. Everything works. The cast, the story, the right amount of action, the touch of romance, and the exciting conclusion. Lin is a man on a mission, yet he is quite charming during his coincidental meetings with Lola (Winters), and he and High Spade are always quick to help others. Yes, there is danger and lots of it. McNally is the uptight one in this film and clearly bad to the bone. Dan Duryea is bad, but he's so good at being bad and seems to have a good time as he takes nothing too seriously. Tony Curtis and Rock Hudson have small roles, and it's fun to see them before they hit the big time.I need to evaluate my westerns before I commit to how high, but this one is clearly high on my list from one viewing. My opinion of Mann/Stewart westerns has just been polarized from not so great to awesome. THE NAKED SPUR was more of man's internal struggle with himself while WINCHESTER '73 is more of man vs. man. I know I prefer this film because I love a good storytelling experience and to be completely entertained. Mann, Stewart, and the rest all deliver that and more in WINCHESTER '73.