The Magnificent Seven review

[Westside Steve]

The Magnificent Seven

 

MGM

 

PG 13. 133 min

 

 

 

 

 

I've probably mentioned this before but was reminded of it when I heard some friends bellyaching about movie remakes, The Magnificent Seven among others.

 

First of all I certainly understand that a great and a classic film is that way for a reason comma popularity not the least of which. But these aren't sacred tablets, they are just movies. Name recognition is often enough to score a few bucks at the box office or as the exact same plot under another name might go unnoticed. And let's face it folks there aren't that many brand new stories out there waiting to be told. Anyway I've got no problem with a reboot of the classic and even if it doesn't hold up against the original it can still be fun. This one is most definitely still fun. It's not groundbreaking it's not oscar-worthy but it's sure as hell a wild-ass shootout between some good guys and some really really bad guys. No frills very little psychology no whining none of that.

 

I was tempted to compare this flick to a deadly serious BLAZING SADDLES in which the black guy and his cohorts take revenge against Harvey Korman and the evil people that want to take over the town. But I can't. One of the cool things about this one is there's absolutely no racial overtone here. Denzel Washington as the gunslinger/lawman with a secret grudge could be anybody, it just so happens that he is one of our best and most charismatic actors.

 

Peter Sarsgaard is Bartholomew Bogue, a wealthy and ruthless industrialists bound and determined to get all the homesteaders to sign over their land to his mining company. Of course his methods of negotiation are well-known and include murder rape torture and all that bad guy stuff.

 

Right from the beginning he and his dirt balls shoot up the church and kill a few townspeople, just to piss us off.

 

Soon after this outrage a rough and tough hombre by the name of Chisolm (Washington) comes to town on the trail of a galoot that goes by the name of Powder Dan, and dispatches him with extreme prejudice. Meaning he shoots the bastard. Well one of the town's windows (Haley Bennet from just down the road in Stow Ohio) takes up a collection and offers him every penny that the remaining townspeople can scrape together if he would be so good has to put together a team and drive the outlaws out of town.

 

For reasons we find out later he accepts this proposition and sets up to form himself a posse, seven in total, made up of of dangerous men with various and sundry talents and abilities. A charming gambler, a sharpshooter who seems to have lost his nerve, a giant ex Indian fighter, a ninja (Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D'Onofrio, Lee Byung-Hun) and a couple others.

 

Well they kill the hell out of Mr. Boguse Desperado and one might guess that success is in hand. Not so fast there compadre, the snake in the grass has unlimited money and unlimited evil doers with which to form a veritable army.

 

I will let you guess who winds up winning this war but what I will tell you his that if you enjoy seeing bad guys getting shot left and right this is a film you will enjoy. There is even a slow-motion sequence as a tip of the cowboy hat to Sam Peckinpah.

 

Many of the aspects of the climax come to pass not because they are expected but because of the fact that they had to be. We'll discuss that later but that's where you find Chisholm's secret motivation. I don't think it's a spoiler to say that it ain't the money. Frankly it isn't great art but I loved every minute of it.

 

A-

 

 

WSS

 

 

 

 

 

Westside Steve Simmons

[Tour2ma]

Cool...

 

This was the one summer "remake" I had hopes of being decent.