this be a story of the winchester rifle model 1873 the gun that win the west to cowman and outlaw and peace officer or soldier and the winchester 73 be a treasured possession . an indian would sell his soul to own one . winchester 73 be the first collaboration between director anthony mann and actor james stewart and a duo that would go on to create a run of superior western that add a new and psychological depth to the genre . the story see stewart a lin mcadam pursue the man who kill his father . rid into dodge city with his trusty friend and johnny williams { millard mitchell } and lin run into dutch henry brown { stephen mcnally } and the man he want . but with wyatt earp { will geer } have take all the gun from those enter the town and both men be unable to have the shoot out that they be ready for . the men instead square up in a competition to win a winchester 73 rifle and a competition that lin eventually win . but before he can leave town with the magnificent prize and dutch ambush him and steal the rifle and skip town fast . a lin set off in hate fill pursuit of both man and rifle and the rifle will change hand a number of time and with each time add another dimension a the day of reckon for all approach . very much a benchmark for what become know a the so called psychological western and winchester 73 be basically a story of a decent man drive to borderline insanity by an event in his past . tho shot in black and white { the only one of the duo westerns that be } the landscape be still breathtaking feast for the eye . the tone be set with the opening scene a lin and johnny on horseback and and in silhouette and amble over a hillside a they make their way to dodge city . it just the start point that would see mann use his vista a a way of run concurrent with his character emotional state . stewart give one of his fine and most intense performance a mcadam and prove once and for all that he be one of america fine and most versatile actor . the support cast isn not too bad either . shelley winter be excellent a the sole female in amongst the machismo and while mitchell and mcnally and geer and the always great dan duryea add further class to proceeding . there even bit part for tony curtis and rock hudson in here and tho the latter play an indian brave be a stretch too far . originally the film be a project for fritz lang and who even have the script ready to run . but lang walk away from it and something that prove to be a blessing for western fan . for as great a a director that lang be and with mann direct { and with a new script from borden chase and robert richards in hand } it set the wheel in motion to alter the course of the genre . not only with the further effort that mann and stewart produce and but also in who they influence . the like of budd boetticher and nicholas ray and sam fuller be all take note and and gleefully for the western purist and they follow suit and carry the psychological torch still far . a big hit at the box office back on release and winchester 73 be a magnificent film that still pack a punch in the modern age . 9 . 5/10 .