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Winchester '73
Studio: Universal
Year: 1950
Rated: NR
Film Length: 93 minutes
Aspect Ratio: Full Frame (1.33:1)
Subtitles: English, French & Spanish
I'm the first to admit that westerns were never
my favorite type of film to watch, and knowing that
you can certainly understand how I never readily
associated Jimmy Stewart with westerns. Upon
further research I found out that Jimmy Stewart
and director Anthony Mann teamed up several times
to make several great westerns together including
Bend of the River, The Far Country,[/i] and
Winchester '73. Mann's 1950s westerns nearly
single-handedly rescued the western genre from
oblivion. As for Stewart, it was apparently time
for an image change. Post-war audiences were no
longer content with the sort of whitebread heroes
the actor had been known to play.
The star of Winchester '73 is undoubtedly
the gun itself, a 1873 Model, 44-40 caliber rifle,
one of One Thousand grade -- a most rare and
coveted item. As the film opens in Dodge City, we
see the gun displayed in a shop window where we
learn it's a prize for a contest that is forthcoming.
In town that day are Lin McAdam (Jimmy Stewart) and
High-Spade Frankie Wilson (Millard Mitchell) who
have come to participate in the contest. McAdam's
principal opponent is Dutch Henry Brown (Stephen
McNally), a man who murdered his father in cold
blood.
Though McAdam wins the contest fair and square,
Dutch steals the rifle and for the rest of the film
we watch the gun rapidly go through several changes
of ownership, including a gun runner (John McIntire),
an Indian (Rock Hudson), a tenderfoot, and a
desperado (Dan Duryea). All of this leads to a
super-charged final shoot-out between Lin and Dutch
against a jagged landscape.
Winchester '73 is part of a 11-disc DVD
Universal Western Collection that hits
stores in early May. These classic titles range
from the late 30s through late 60s and feature
such actors/actresses as Ronald Reagan, Clint
Eastwood, James Stewart, Audie Murphy and Maureen
O'Hara.
How is the transfer?
Filmed in glorious B&W and presented in its
original full-frame ratio of 1.33:1, This is an
average looking transfer at best. I have never
seen this film before, so I am unsure as to how
bad this film has looked on previous formats, but
the print seems to be plagued with an abnormal
amount of film blemish that includes splotches,
scratches and film dirt. Contrast levels seem
to be normal, with black levels that are not
very deep. Though everyone continues to say that
"grain is our friend," I must point out that
levels are a bit high here -- especially when
moving into the interior saloon settings. By
all means, this is not a bad transfer -- however,
as a reviewer I need to point out all the faults
I see in the presentation.
The film's original mono track sounds fairly
good. The audio never reaches that high
"shrill" quality of sound. There is very little
distortion here and narely a sign of background
hiss.
Special Features
I had expected to click on Interview with
James Stewart to see some sort of early
videotaped segment featuring the actor. Instead,
the film simply began playing and I found myself
listening to what appeared to be a running
commentary interview with the actor that must
have been done prior to his death in 1997.
Stewart talks about doing Winchester '73 as
part of a picture deal that was tacked on to
Harvey. The elderly actor talks about
what it was like changing his image and doing
western fare. He certainly feels that his
characters were more vulnerable than the type of
characters John Wayne played. Stewart talks
about his string of films that he did in the 50s
as well as what it was like to take on more
physical types of roles. There's a really cool
story embedded in this commentary where Stewart
talks about his experience with horses. He
found many of them difficult to ride. During the
shooting of Winchester '73 on the Universal
lot he happened to come upon a horse that he fell
in love with. It belonged to stunt girl who
reluctantly let him ride it for the next 20 years.
Though I am careful not to label this as a
"commentary," it is an interview that runs nearly
the length of the entire picture.
The film's original theatrical trailer
is also included.
Final Thoughts
I didn't think Winchester '73 has the
depth or tension to stand amongst some of the
best westerns I have seen, but nonetheless, the
film is nicely paced, features solid performances
and features a memorable shoot-out finale! It
is certainly a film I am proud to have in my
collection.
Release Date: April 29, 2003
All screen captures have been further compressed.
They are for illustrative purposes only and do not
represent actual picture quality
