WINCHESTER '73 (1950)

Between 1950 and 1955 James Stewart and director Anthony Mann made five westerns together, this first pairing finds Jimmy Stewart and his buddy Millard Mitchell on the trail of Dutch Henry Brown (Stephen McNally)...a sidewindin', bushwackin', hornswagglin' cracker croaker that really pissed off Stewart, but we don't know why.

In the opening scene they catch up with him in Dodge City, but since there's no guns allowed in the city limits, they can't kill each other.  Instead they compete in a shooting contest judged by Wyatt Earp! Grand prize: a highly-coveted "one-in-a-thousand" Winchester Model 1873 rifle. Stewart wins the gun only to have Brown and his men jump him, steal the rifle and skedaddle it out of town. From here on the story splits in two: one, the story of the rifle (and it's quickly changing owners) and the other, Stewart and Mitchell tracking down Brown.

WINCHESTER '73 is a great western and one of the coolest things about it is it's outstanding cast.  Besides the two leads of Stewart and McNally you have Millard Mitchell, Shelley Winters, Will Geer, Rock Hudson, John McIntire, Dan Duryea, Stephen McNally, James Millican, Jay C. Flippen, Charles Drake, John Alexander, Tony Curtis, Abner Biberman, James Best, Steve Brodie and more!  I mean, the whole time you're watching the film you're thinking to yourself "Holy crap!  That's Teddy from ARSENIC AND OLD LACE! Charge!!!" or "Hey, there's Rosco from "The Dukes of Hazzard".  It's a joy seeing so many familiar faces, even if sometimes it's just in the background.

Strong direction, legendary cast, impressive acting (I especially liked Shelley Winters), clever script, quick pace, beautiful scenery and cinematography.  If you're a fan of Jimmy Stewart or just good movies then you can't go wrong with WINCHESTER '73.

SINGIN' IN THE RAIN (1952)

"She's so refined. I think I'll kill myself."

One of the biggest misconceptions about SINGIN' IN THE RAIN by people who've never seen it is it's just a hundred and three minutes of people yodelin into the camera like lovesick Howler monkeys, but actually this movie is very funny and filled with clever jokes. "Cosmo, call me a cab." "OK, you're a cab."

The film opens at a big movie premiere featuring two of Hollywood's biggest stars, Don Lockwood (Gene Kelly) and Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen). The rumor mags are filled with stories about them being in love in real life, but in reality Don can't stand Lina because she's actually a vile, simple-minded snake. Don's career began with him simply helping out around the studio and Lina treated him like garbage...until he became a star. The public knows none of this and Don lets them believe the illusion. Things are going pretty good until one night at a party a girl that Don has fallen for (played by Debbie Reynolds) accidentally hits Lina in the face with a cake. Lina has her fired and Don is furious with her. This really puts a strain on their working relationship and to make matters even worse the Talkies hit and now they have to actually talk and sing in their movies! Lina has a voice like fingernails on a chalkboard so the studio, at Don's suggestion, hires Debbie Reynolds to be the singing voice for Lina. All kinds of stuff happens next.

Through all of that there is one fantastic musical number after another. Every single one is a classic, but if I had to choose a favorite my pick would be the shortest one: "All I Do is Dream of You". I'm not sure why, but I just love it to death. Woody Allen even used it in his masterful CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS. Honestly though, if you were to pick any other song I would agree with you also.

The script for SINGIN' IN THE RAIN is brilliant. There's tons of funny lines, the story is imaginative and the pacing is perfect. This movie flies by and when it's done you just want to watch it again...so naturally it didn't win shit at the Academy Awards. Nothing, not even Best Music.

I cannot recommend SITR enough. It really is one of the greatest Musicals of all time, if not the greatest and it's extremely influential. If you consider yourself a serious student of Cinema then SINGIN' IN THE RAIN is required viewing.