The Magnificent Seven (DVD) - Magnificent Action, Mediocre Story

Genre Action, Adventure
Director Antoine Fuqua
Producer Roger Birnbaum, Todd Black
Actors Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke
Where we got our copy Ster-Kinekor Entertainment
Reviewed on DVD
Available on DVD, Bluray

Khanival

Published April 5, 2017

Continuing the trend of Hollywood reboot reviews I’ve been doing lately, I’ve been placed in a position to do one that didn’t get as much hype as the other reboots at the time. I was lucky (or unlucky) enough to see this in the cinema late last year when it was released, and I’m back here again, watching it for the second time and seeing what else it has to offer on DVD. I love old traditional Hollywood cinema, and I kind of like old shoot-em-up Westerns. Plus, I love what Tarantino has done recently with the genre in his last two films (‘Django Unchained’ and ‘The Hateful Eight’, which are masterpieces in my opinion). Also, having studied film, everyone will know the original idea of The Magnificent Seven comes from Japanese director Akira Kurosawa’s ‘Seven Samurai’, which is still one of the most influential films of all time.

Hearing that Training Day’s Antoine Fuqua will be in the director’s chair, with Denzel Washington as the lead cowboy and Ethan Hawke still unsure if he’s a sheep or a wolf , slightly piqued my interest. And then came along the very diverse cast that was chosen to represent the Seven (which I’ll get into later) that really made me leap onto my own figurative horse and go along for the ride.

The Breakdown

In an old Western mining town of Rose Creek, where common, hard-working, God-fearing “American” people reside, fear and panic strikes. The land is overtaken by a capitalist and industrialist mining magnate by the name of Bartholomew Bogue (a Cyril Ramaphosa of the Wild West, if you will, played by Peter Sarsgaard), who gives the townspeople a week to clear out, while slaying a few who stand in his way and burns down the local church while at it. These actions give way to Emma Cullen (Haley Bennett), the wife of a slain townsman, to gain her vengeance and try and ensure that nobody takes “their land” (you’ll see the irony in this statement later).

So, she begs for the help of warrant officer Sam Chisolm (Denzel Washington), to help save the town. They go on a journey recruiting a team of misfits that will help in ensuring the safety and protection of Rose Creek. They find the help of a gambling womanizer in Joshua Faraday (Chris Pratt), a legendary sharpshooter with PTSD named Goodnight Robicheaux (Ethan Hawke), Billy Rocks (Byung-Hun Lee), an Asian master at fighting with sharp objects, especially knives, a Mexican outlaw named Vasquez (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), a very weird sounding old man called Jack Horne (Vincent D’Onofrio with seriously the strangest voice ever) and, wait for it, a Native American warrior known as Red Harvest (played by Martin Sensmeier. This is where the irony comes in from earlier. A Native American helping a bunch of European Americans get THEIR land back. Let that sink in.)

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And so the Magnificent 7 was formed. The people of Rose Creek and the Seven team up to train, gather together, plan and fight for honour and justice in the West against the tyrant Bartholomew Bogue.

Khanival Thinks That…

Technically, Antoine Fuqua and his team have done marvellously. The built sets are the typical old Western cinematic style, with very little to no CGI being used either. Everything is as practical as it should be in a Western, with real horses and explosions with dynamite being used for effects. The good old shoot-em-up action sequences and stand-offs are superb and you really feel that’s where its strength lies. A large part of it occurs in the third act, which is probably the best part of the film.

The music score also has a lot of meaning, as it was the last score that the late and great composer James Horner had done before he died. Surprisingly, he had written quite a few pieces before the film had even started filming, all inspired from reading the script. He is paid tribute greatly throughout the film through its wonderful score.

Unfortunately, the film is brought down by its weak story line and predictable plot. There aren’t that many high stakes and you really feel more interested in each character and their own personal stories, rather than the one that you’re confronted with. You only really feel much connection and interest in Ethan Hawke and his PTSD issues, who’s trying to hold up his image as a sharpshooting cowboy legend.

The Magnificent 7 is well executed and enjoyable at times, and so it should be, with its large budget and stellar cast. But it also doesn’t seem to do anything new with the Western format either. As much as it keeps with Western genre traditions, it ends up just being a bland remake.

Sideshow Attractions (Special Features)

Directing The Seven – Antoine Fuqua talks in length about how he took on the role as director in such a big franchise, how he’s been a huge fan of Kurosawa and Westerns and working with such a talented cast.

Rogue Bogue – Peter Sarsgaard’s villainous role is broken down here, as he discusses how he and director Fuqua would work together on the character.

The Seven – This insert takes a look at the wonderful cast, with the director and producers discussing how they went about selecting the actors for their roles.

Magnificent Music – An homage is paid to the late great composer James Horner, who did the score for the film.

Continuing the trend of Hollywood reboot reviews I've been doing lately, I've been placed in a position to do one that didn't get as much hype as the other reboots at the time. I was lucky (or unlucky) enough to see this in the cinema late last year when it was released, and I'm back here again, watching it for the second time and seeing what else it has to offer on DVD. I love old traditional Hollywood cinema, and I kind of like old shoot-em-up Westerns. Plus, I love what Tarantino has done recently with the genre in his last two films ('Django Unchained' and 'The Hateful Eight', which are masterpieces in my opinion). Also, having studied film, everyone will know the original idea of The Magnificent Seven comes from Japanese director Akira Kurosawa's 'Seven Samurai', which is still one of the most influential films of all time. Hearing that Training Day's Antoine Fuqua will be in the director's chair, with Denzel Washington as the lead cowboy and Ethan Hawke still unsure if he's a sheep or a wolf , slightly piqued my interest. And then came along the very diverse cast that was chosen to represent the Seven (which I'll get into later) that really made me leap onto my own figurative horse and go along for the ride. The Breakdown In an old Western mining town of Rose Creek, where common, hard-working, God-fearing "American" people reside, fear and panic strikes. The land is overtaken by a capitalist and industrialist mining magnate by the name of Bartholomew Bogue (a Cyril Ramaphosa of the Wild West, if you will, played by Peter Sarsgaard), who gives the townspeople a week to clear out, while slaying a few who stand in his way and burns down the local church while at it. These actions give way to Emma Cullen (Haley Bennett), the wife of a slain townsman, to gain her vengeance and try and ensure that nobody takes "their land" (you'll see the irony in this statement later). So, she begs for the help of warrant officer Sam Chisolm (Denzel Washington), to help save the town. They go on a journey recruiting a team of misfits that will help in ensuring the safety and protection of Rose Creek. They find the help of a gambling womanizer in Joshua Faraday (Chris Pratt), a legendary sharpshooter with PTSD named Goodnight Robicheaux (Ethan Hawke), Billy Rocks (Byung-Hun Lee), an Asian master at fighting with sharp objects, especially knives, a Mexican outlaw named Vasquez (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), a very weird sounding old man called Jack Horne (Vincent D'Onofrio with seriously the strangest voice ever) and, wait for it, a Native American warrior known as Red Harvest (played by Martin Sensmeier. This is where the irony comes in from earlier. A Native American helping a bunch of European Americans get THEIR land back. Let that sink in.) And so the Magnificent 7 was formed. The people of Rose Creek and the Seven team up to train, gather together, plan and fight for…

Movie Review: The Magnificent Seven (DVD) – Magnificent Action, Mediocre Story

2017-04-05

Khanival

Wild, Wild West But Not Much Else

Total - 6.5

65 6.5

The Magnificent 7 is a great action packed reboot in the Western genre, with a brilliant cast, but it fails to use these seven magnificent stars to tell a better story.