"I seek righteousness. But I'll take revenge."- Emma Cullen
The Magnificent Seven is a good old classic western. In the original film from 1960, we are introduced to seven cowboys who help a Mexican village from a group of Mexican outlaws. This past year there was a remake of this film. It had the same idea of there being seven men who are exceptional at what they do, which is killing, and surviving the wild west. But instead of helping a Mexican village, they are helping a small town called Rose Creek that's being overrun by a corrupt man trying to mine out all the land around it. They are hired by Emma Cullen, who seeks help after her husband was killed by Bartholomew Bouge, aka the man trying to take all their land. But it’s the same impossible task, seven men versus an army. Allow me to introduce these men who are hired for this impossible task. By the way Spoilers are ahead.
1. Sam Chisolm
First, we're introduced to the bounty hunter known as Sam Chisolm, who is played by Denzel Washington. In the first scene, we see Chisolm walk into a bar and start talking to the bartender. That feeling, where you know something's up but you don't know what exactly, pops up. Next thing you know he's shooting five others in the bar including the bartender. Chisolm then must explain to the sheriff that he is licensed bounty hunter and the bartender was a wanted man. As he starts riding out of town Emma Cullen and another townsperson from Rose Creek, come running up asking for his help. Because they, know like we do that if anybody can help its him. From then on out we see Chisolm start recruiting others for this impossible task, thus being dubbed the leader of this group. To sum up Chisolm is man making money by collecting bounties. You just had better hope you’re not on his list.
2. Josh Faraday
Next is Josh Faraday, played by Chris Pratt. We're introduced to him during the scene in the bar with Chisolm. Now while Chisolm is there to get a bounty, Faraday is sitting in the corner gambling with a couple of others. After having a quick conversation with Chisolm, after all the shooting of course, he heads out with his winning just to run into two brothers. Apparently, these brothers weren't too happy to lose their money to him. Even though they had the drop on him he manages to get away by killing one and shooting the other in the ear. After this skirmish, Faraday tries to buy back his horse. Chisolm buy’s it back for him with a price. To come help him with this impossible task. Faraday is a gambler, alcoholic, ladies’ man who says what he's thinking crude or not. But he's still one hell of a shot.
3. Vasquez
After getting Faraday on board Chisolm sends him to go and get an old friend of his while he goes and gets Vasquez. Now Vasquez is a Mexican outlaw, played by Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, who has a bounty of five hundred dollars on his head. He also happens to be on Chisolm's list. The scene we're introduced to shows Chisolm walking into an empty cabin. Well empty except for the dead man lying in the corner. While Vasquez appears behind him having taken hostage Emma Cullen who stuck with Chisolm. Chisolm makes a deal that if Vasquez comes and helps him with this job, that he’ll let him go. More specifically he won’t be one of the people after his bounty. As you can imagine Vasquez says yes and joins him.
4. Billy Rocks
When Chisolm sends Faraday out to find his old friend he sends him to find Goodnight Robicheaux, who happens to be paired up with Billy Rocks, played by Byung-Hun Lee. In the scene, we see Billy in a shooting contest with another man. The goal to shoot the glass bottle before the other man. Billy is declared the winner but his opponent disagrees and then challenges him to a shootout. Billy then removes his hat, guns, and gun belt. When they’re called to shoot, Billy pulls a hairpin from his hair hitting his opponent first and killing him with it. Now Billy is also good with pistols and rifles, but as you can see he's a man to fear when it comes to knives.
5. Goodnight Robicheaux
Goodnight Robicheaux is the man Chisolm sent Faraday to find in the first place, who is played by Ethan Hawke. After Billy wins the shootout Robicheaux walks around the spectators collecting money from bets placed on the fight. When he reaches one of the spectators they mention how their sorry for disrespecting him for betting against his man. We find out why after Faraday states that Goodnight was a sharp shooter dubbed the 'Angel of Death' for the congressional army. He was one of the best. Yes, he's a great shooter but he's also a man who is struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder from the civil war. Even with that I don’t suggest you ever being considered his enemy, because his nick name is ‘The Angle of Death’.
6. Jack Horne
After getting Goodnight, Billy, and Vasquez to join the group meets up and heads toward the last known whereabouts of Jack Horne, played by Vincent D'Onofrio. The best way to describe Jack Horne is by a statement Faraday makes," I believe that bear was wearin' people's clothes." We see two brothers telling the group that they have Horne's rifle after killing the man, by bashing his head with a boulder. In the next second we see one of them get a tomahawk to the chest and Horne chasing down the other one to bash his head in with the butt of his rifle. Horne's style is more up close and personal when it comes to fighting. He's a hunter who's just trying to mind his own business. At first when Chisolm tries to recruit Horne we see him walk away, but later on we discover that he's been tracking the group for two days and plans to help them after all.
7. Red Harvest
Finally, we meet Red Harvest, played by Martin Sensmeier. The reason Jack Horne reveals himself, for tracking the group, is because he saw Red Harvest is tracking them as well. Red Harvest is a Comanche warrior without his tribe. He tells Chisolm that the elders of his tribe said his path was different. Red Harvest a loner to sum up. When we first see him he's riding his horse covered in war paint, carrying a dead deer on it, and he's also covered in war paint. Chisolm then goes forward and explains to him that they're going to stop wicked men, which Red Harvest agrees to join them in doing. Red Harvest wasn't originally part of Chisolm’s plan, but he makes an excellent addition to the group.
That's the group then. You have a bounty hunter, gambler, wanted man, assassin, sharpshooter, hunter, and Comanche warrior. All of which team up to stop Bartholomew Bouge from destroying Rose Creek. Who also has an army of two hundred men, while they only have seven plus a small group of farmers who have never shot at something that can shoot back. Or at all.
The film is not exactly like the original one from 1960, but it’s still a great film. If you've seen the original Magnificent Seven, which is great by the way, don't expect the same thing. What this film does is take that original idea, seven men with incredible skills fighting a force much bigger than their own, and puts a new twist on it. To sum up the film it’s the western version of the avengers so to speak. It's a classic western, with plenty of action, and a little bit of humor, great characters, and great actors portraying them. It also has a great soundtrack and during the credits plays the theme from the original movie. I felt a little nostalgia come up when it started playing. Is it the best movie of all time? No, but to be honest I don't even know what I would consider to be the best movie of all time. Magnificent Seven is a fun movie to watch. I grew up watching old westerns with my dad, more specifically John Wayne westerns, and this film gives me that same nostalgic feeling. If Hollywood decided to keep remaking western films they need to stick with this director, Antoine Fuqua. He did a fantastic job and I wouldn't trust anybody else with this genre. The film is now available to rent, so I highly recommend renting it whenever you have the chance to. My final words are: enjoy the show.
