Wednesday, June 14, 2017

Movie review: The Magnificent Seven

 
 Seven gunslingers in the old west come together in this remake of the 1960 Western classic to help save a small town from a ruthless gold tycoon and his army.

Denzel Washington (Chisolm), Chris Pratt (Faraday), Ethan Hawke (Goodnight), Vincent D'Onofrio (Jack Horne), Byung-hun Lee (Billy), Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (Vasquez), Martin Sensmeier (Red), Haley Bennett (Emma), Peter Sarsgaard (Bogue).

The Magnificent Seven is a classic old west tale of revenge meeting desperation. Chisolm had his family taken from him by Bogue, a gold tycoon who is now terrorizing a small town. Emma sets out to find gunslingers who can protect the town. When the two meet Chisolm sees an opportunity for revenge while Emma sees a savior for her town. From there the film is a story of survival with a lot of bullets.

Acting was well done with Washington delivering a solid performance. Hawke was entertaining and enjoyable as well. D'Onofrio was unusual as usual and fit his role perfectly, as did Lee. Bennett was well cast and delivered well, as did Sarsgaard as the antagonist.

Camera work, sets, and backgrounds were good with a solid, realistic feel. Use of natural scenery was used well. Action scenes, stunts, and effects were all well done, fitting the film, and feeling fairly realistic. Dialogue has nice depth and moved the story along at a good pace. Sound and soundtrack were solid.

While this remake might not have quite the grit as the original, the story is consistent, technical work is well done, and acting is enjoyable. If you are a fan of the original, or enjoy a good western, give this one a shot.

Audience age limits in this one are due to large amounts of graphic violence and foul language. Teens and above should be fine with this one.

Released: 2016
Reviewed: 5.26.17
Star rating: 4 out of 5
Genre: Westerns, Action & Adventure, Action, Adventure, Classic Remakes

copyright ©2017 Dave Riedel

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