The Magnificent Seven
"What ever they were in life, here, at the end, each man stood with courage and honor. They fought for the ones who couldn't fight for themselves, and they died for them, too. All to win something that didn't belong to them. It was - magnificent." - Emma Cullen
release year: 2016
genre: western
viewing setting: home Bluray 12/22/16
synopsis: Under attack from a land baron, the residents of a small town hire seven men to help them defend themselves.
impressions: This was fine as a standalone western, but as a remake, it wasn't as good as the 1960 original. And that's the problem with remakes: you can remake a bad movie as a better version, but when you remake a classic, you've got a good chance of falling short. This one lacked some key elements of the original (multiple bandit attacks, the gunfighters bonding with the townspeople, the townspeople changing their minds) but was still entertaining. It just can't be held up and compared to the original. There were, of course, plenty of gunfights and action scenes, and some humorous moments.
acting: Denzel Washington is the leader, and does what has to be done. Chris Pratt is a reckless youngster. Ethan Hawke is a reluctant sharpshooter. Vincent D'Onofrio is a big old bear of a mountain man. Byung-hun Lee is the knife guy. Manuel Garcia-Rulfo is a Mexican bandit. Martin Sensmeier is a lethal Indian. The prominent townspeople are Haley Bennett as a brave woman who can shoot, and Luke Grimes as a young guy who wants to see justice done. For the bad guys, they're led by Peter Sarsgaard, who's quite evil.Jonathan Joss is an evil Indian.
final word: Good western, average remake.
back to the main review page