Winchester '73

First Stewart/Mann Teaming a CLASSIC!
Winchester '73 is one of the most enduring and popular films of James Stewart's career, for several reasons; it was the first of five teamings with brilliant, underrated director Anthony Mann, who retooled Stewart's drawling, 'aw-shucks' persona into a laconic, edgier, more flawed hero; it featured a brilliant cast, including Shelley Winters, Dan Duryea, Stephen McNally, John McIntyre, and, in VERY early appearances, Rock Hudson and Tony Curtis; visually, it is spectacular, one of the most beautiful Black and White films ever made, with deep-focus photography highlighting rugged Arizona settings that literally leap from the screen; and, most of all, it is a terrific variation of 'Cain and Abel', told through the premise of the search for a 'one-of-a-kind' rifle Stewart wins in a competition, then loses through treachery. It's the kind of film that offers new insights each time you view it, as the actions and motivations of 'good' brother Stewart and 'bad' brother McNally become better...

Anthony Mann creates a classic
The story goes that in 1950 Jimmy Stewart was looking around for something a little different for himself, something where he could play a character less folksy and warm. He sure did find it in this film, as well as all the other magnificent westerns he did with gritty, noir director, Anthony Mann (T-Men, Raw Deal, Railroaded, etc). This is the first of their collaborations.

When the film was first shown to test audiences, there were titters in the crowd when Jimmy Stewart's name appeared in the credits. "Mr. Smith" in a western? Shooting people? Please. By the end of the film, the tittering was all done and Stewart had established himself as a viable western hero (although in truth the magic of these Mann/Stewart westerns is that the characters Stewart plays are hardly "heroic." They are usually driven, neurotic men, nearly shifty-eyed, with a mean streak a mile wide - bitter men, and always very, very angry and eager to kill.

The basic set-up of this film is...

Cain and Abel
Along with a handful of other titles, this film is right at the summit of the great American Westerns ever made. It came entirely out of the blue as well. It was James Stewart's first serious Western (omitting "Destry Rides Again") and displayed a side of his character his Air Force buddies may have known about but precious few other people did. When Stewart threatens to break Dan Duryea's neck in a bar fight movie audiences must have been seriously taken aback. Doubly shocking is the fact that Stewart is out to gun down his outlaw brother for the murder of their father. Nor was Anthony Mann, the director, known for his Westerns, but this masterpiece simply could not be improved. The show is littered with great performances, especially John McIntire as the gun dealer, and Stewart sidekick Millard Mitchell, who made a huge impact in Hollywood during a very short career. Mitchell also appeared in "Twelve O'Clock High", "The Gunfighter", and...

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