MovieChat Forums > Winchester '73 (1950) Discussion > Winchester '73 Vs. Lord Of The Rings

Winchester '73 Vs. Lord Of The Rings

posted 17 years ago by j-pudwill
9 replies | jump to latest

Can anyone watch these two films and not see the similarities?

Or are my medications just starting to take effect?

[–] stevefrommelbourne 17 years ago

Hi mate,

Yep I see the parallels with the central object - the "ring" in LOTR, and the Winchester: both brings the keeper potential good luck but inevitably their luck turns bad until a new owner is found. It's a long bow to draw, but I thought the same. We must be on the same medication, j-pudwell! LOL

[–] j-pudwill 15 years ago

Sorry to get back to you so late.

My meds were still in effect.

I hope you don't mind sharing yours. ;-)

Keep on seeing the obvious that others find invisible, Steve!

I'm right there with you.

Your delusional American comrade in arms,

JP

[–] kimpunkrock 17 years ago

I sort of see the similarities but it is a reach.
Winchester 73 is an awesome movie-I like it better than LOTR, but then again I hate newer movies.

kim

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/index.jsp?cid=186977

The Truth is out there.

[–] adamyshoe 16 years ago

I think the reason you see such similarities is that both movies address very universal myths that are part of every culture: the good brother vs. bad brother, the "magical" object that gives some sort of "power" to the possessor, the protagonist's long quest for that object. I got the sense when watching "Winchester '73" that it was a very mythical story, where many of Stewart's other Westerns did not have as universal plots.

[–] Miz072 15 years ago

I can barely see it. It's a major reach.

The big similarity I saw was to The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence. Specifically the scene where Waco Johnnie Dean tells Steve to make him coffee, in an apron. Nearly identical scenes between that and when Liberty trips Ransom Stoddard when he's wearing an apron waiting tables.

[–] sjl004 15 years ago

Ha! I said that to my girlfriend during the coffee hold-up with Waco and Steve! She thought I was nuts!

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Click trailer,watch&vote plz

[–] dalbrech 13 years ago

Actually El Cid, which Anthony Mann would direct ten years after Winchester 73 is a film that Peter Jackson admits was an influence on LOTR. He cheerfully admits to borrowing some of the shots of the Siege of Minas Tirith from the Siege of Valencia in El Cid.
And the similaraties between the Death of Boromir and the Death of the Cid are pretty strong.
I'll Teach You To Laugh At Something's That's Funny
Homer Simpson

[–] Bluecher 11 years ago

There are many more references to classic westerns in LOTR, i.e. Stagecoach, Rio Bravo, The Searchers...
Peter Jackson is a thief!

"Oh, what have I drunk?" - Socrates

[–] DarthBill 9 years ago

The influence of the western is every where. Just look at the classic Star Wars trilogy - while it may be better known for stealing from Akira Kurosawa & Flash Gordon, one can't deny that Han Solo feels very much like an old west gunslinger, with Lando Calrissian as the slick river boat gambler.