SPOILER WARNING: Please note that this will have a bunch of major spoilers. One of the aspects to the film I wanted to discuss most requires diving into the outcome.
Once a major genre in Hollywood history, the Western had appeared to go the way of the panda. Not quite extinct, but not voluminous in numbers. We got some good ones here and there, sure. 3:10 To Yuma got an entertaining remake. Jee-woon Kim made one of the most fun Westerns and action movies with The Good, The Bad, The Weird in South Korea. There have been a smattering of interesting additions to the genre scattered throughout the years. Yet the genre has long been replaced in pop culture. In many ways, the modern superhero comic book movie is the new Western.
The Magnificent Seven does a good job injecting what makes a good Western fun, while also updating it to fit modern cinematic sensibilities. In some senses, it pretty much is a Marvel movie - with an underdeveloped, simplified villain, plus making sure each member of the team had a specific strength. Still, the original Magnificent Seven, while a good, fun Western, wasn't exactly the high point of the genre. Few seem to really take ownership of Westerns as well, so a remake of it didn't cause much of a commotion the way that a more beloved film where fans have taken ownership like, say, Ghostbusters did.
The classic formula is in tact. Denzel Washington stars as Chisolm, a warrant officer hunting down fugitives in the wild west in post-Civil War America. He has a run in with Emma Cullen (Haley Bennett) who offers to pay him everything her town has in order to protect it from a greedy capitalist (Peter Sarsgaard) hellbent on taking their land to exploit a gold mine. Despite the odds of surviving such a job, Chisolm takes it and begins building a team that includes the classic gunslinger archetype Faraday (Chris Pratt), the former Confederate sniper Goodnight Robicheaux (Ethan Hawke), his faithful Asian companion Billy Rocks (Byung-hun Lee), the Mexican outlaw Vasquez (Manual Garcia-Rulfo), the frontiersman Jack Horne (Vincent D'Onofrio), and the lone Native American known as Red Harvest (Martin Sensmier). Together, for reasons often left unknown, the ragtag group of societal misfits ride off to defend the town of hard-workin' average folk from the oppressive greed and power of a heartless corporate shill. (It is here where I'll plug that if you haven't seen Seven Samurai, the source of The Magnificent Seven, you should. Themes that should have been more explored in the American versions actually get some time of day in Akira Kurosawa original.)
Though undoubtedly, some people on the internet who don't know what they're talking about probably complained about the diversity of characters as meaning the film exists to "further SJW propaganda," or that the "SJWs ruined The Magnificent Seven!" Ignoring that that the racial stereotypes in the film hardly fit that narrative (the diversity is a welcome sight in a Hollywood film, but it retains some of those Western stereotypes), this diversity is actually really smart for narrative and structural purposes for the film.
Coming in at just under two hours and fifteen minutes means that there isn't ultimately a ton of time to devote to each character. It focuses on primarily three characters - Chisolm, Faraday, and Emma - with some side development for Goodnight. Everyone else is pretty limited in how much time and attention they get. We get little nods to what Jack Horne's backstory might be, but they never get into detail and leave you guessing. Similarly, Red Harvest doesn't say much. We know he's essentially an outcast from his tribe, but we have no idea why. We don't actually know why Vasquez ended up on a wanted poster. And we don't even know where Billy Rocks is actually from, really. Structurally, there just isn't time to give everyone backstory, or even have the characters themselves develop. Instead, it focuses on a small number, then allows the others to shine through character interactions.
In order to quickly establish that the audience should not think this group of misfits should be able to work, they opt to go with those surface level reasons. Jack Horne once made a living collecting the scalps of Native Americans, and then enters a Native American. Chisolm is a black man wandering the wild west free, and then enters a former Confederate soldier. Faraday makes racist comments about Mexicans, so then enters a Mexican. The film doesn't delve into these conflicts much beyond that; there isn't time. Yet it functions to create an immediate and obvious division among the team, which makes it more impressive when we finally see them all working together and focusing on the job.
Additionally, some might cry about how "all the white guys die!" In regards to the team itself, sure. Faraday, Goodnight, Jack Horne, and Billy Rocks are the members who don't survive the final assault. Before crying foul, there are two things to consider. First, all the white men from the "seven" might die, but there are other white characters that do make it. Teddy (Luke Grims) gets injured, but he makes it. Plus, the entire town was white, and many survive their last stand. Second, and more importantly, it makes for more effective emotion-driving. Given the nature of Hollywood, where white actors are given many more opportunities for leading roles, they recognize that the audience might take more to the actors they recognize. Outside Denzel, that means Chris Pratt, that means Ethan Hawke, that means Vincent D'Onofrio. Pratt plays his typically charming character, so they know people will likely take a liking to him. Similarly, D'Onofrio has emerged lately as a powerhouse actor many have been sleeping on. With the minimal screen time, he makes his character surprisingly endearing. And Ethan Hawke's character is the only one on the team with real conflict. Killing off characters that neither get much screen time, nor are portrayed by recognizable, fan-favorite actors would not have had the same kind of immediate emotional resonance as killing off the often-beloved actors who get more attention.
It makes for a better film than the original, frankly. (Granted, the original wasn't exactly "amazing" itself.)
In terms of its Western roots, it does a great job doing the slow build up to one crazy, prolonged action sequence. Most of the film comprises of the team's assembly, but concludes with one long, awesome action scene filled with plenty of drama. For anyone who prefers their characters being vulnerable, plenty of them get injured and killed here. There are some cinematic missteps, of course. Sometimes, it is interrupted by an unfortunate, corny looking slow motion shot, for example. But it's largely an edge-of-your-seat type scenario. (The experience reminded me a bit of how I felt watching all of Mad Max: Fury Road.)
One perhaps cheesy aspect that I admittedly can't tell if it works or not is how each character gets a specialty. Goodnight Robicheaux, for example, is especially gifted with a rifle. Billy Rocks (being Asian, no doubt) is good with knives. Jack Horne, being the biggest brute of the bunch, is great with an ax and performs more melee type attacks. Faraday, as the quick handed card playing gambler, is a quick draw and great with pistols. Red Harvest, on account of being Native American, primarily uses a bow and arrow. It's ultimately kind of silly, but it gives it that more modern Hollywood feel. After all, if the Western essentially were the precursor to the modern superhero genre, then it's only fair for this Western to take some elements from the new king of the summer.
The slow build, adrenaline-pumping conclusion is executed really well, doing exactly what you want a good Western to do. It's fun action with some really enjoyable performances and characters. Not everything works, of course. The final bit with a weird shot of CGI headstones feels a bit tacked on, and the last line is corny as heck, but then, it is a big budget Hollywood film. After a summer of nothing but tedious, mind-numbing slogs, it was nice to get something that has a solid structure, doesn't want you to completely tune out but doesn't make you think too much, that's just entertaining.
This might also be a case where the lack of entries in the genre works to its advantage. Superhero films, for example, are a dime a dozen at this point. When every other film seems to be bad, and you get maybe seven or eight of them in the year, you just don't feel like seeing them. What really is different about any of them, at this point? The Magnificent Seven, despite taking some cues from that genre, actually does feel relatively fresh as a result of not having many Westerns coming out in the years prior.
REDUCTIVE RATING: Pretty Good!
(Scale - Terrible..., Pretty Bad, It's Fine, Pretty Good, Amazing!)
Coming in at just under two hours and fifteen minutes means that there isn't ultimately a ton of time to devote to each character. It focuses on primarily three characters - Chisolm, Faraday, and Emma - with some side development for Goodnight. Everyone else is pretty limited in how much time and attention they get. We get little nods to what Jack Horne's backstory might be, but they never get into detail and leave you guessing. Similarly, Red Harvest doesn't say much. We know he's essentially an outcast from his tribe, but we have no idea why. We don't actually know why Vasquez ended up on a wanted poster. And we don't even know where Billy Rocks is actually from, really. Structurally, there just isn't time to give everyone backstory, or even have the characters themselves develop. Instead, it focuses on a small number, then allows the others to shine through character interactions.
In order to quickly establish that the audience should not think this group of misfits should be able to work, they opt to go with those surface level reasons. Jack Horne once made a living collecting the scalps of Native Americans, and then enters a Native American. Chisolm is a black man wandering the wild west free, and then enters a former Confederate soldier. Faraday makes racist comments about Mexicans, so then enters a Mexican. The film doesn't delve into these conflicts much beyond that; there isn't time. Yet it functions to create an immediate and obvious division among the team, which makes it more impressive when we finally see them all working together and focusing on the job.
Additionally, some might cry about how "all the white guys die!" In regards to the team itself, sure. Faraday, Goodnight, Jack Horne, and Billy Rocks are the members who don't survive the final assault. Before crying foul, there are two things to consider. First, all the white men from the "seven" might die, but there are other white characters that do make it. Teddy (Luke Grims) gets injured, but he makes it. Plus, the entire town was white, and many survive their last stand. Second, and more importantly, it makes for more effective emotion-driving. Given the nature of Hollywood, where white actors are given many more opportunities for leading roles, they recognize that the audience might take more to the actors they recognize. Outside Denzel, that means Chris Pratt, that means Ethan Hawke, that means Vincent D'Onofrio. Pratt plays his typically charming character, so they know people will likely take a liking to him. Similarly, D'Onofrio has emerged lately as a powerhouse actor many have been sleeping on. With the minimal screen time, he makes his character surprisingly endearing. And Ethan Hawke's character is the only one on the team with real conflict. Killing off characters that neither get much screen time, nor are portrayed by recognizable, fan-favorite actors would not have had the same kind of immediate emotional resonance as killing off the often-beloved actors who get more attention.
It makes for a better film than the original, frankly. (Granted, the original wasn't exactly "amazing" itself.)
 |
| Note: Chris Pratt might be too sexy for his own good at this point. His Marvel contract has him way too ripped for everything now. I miss Fat Pratt... |
In terms of its Western roots, it does a great job doing the slow build up to one crazy, prolonged action sequence. Most of the film comprises of the team's assembly, but concludes with one long, awesome action scene filled with plenty of drama. For anyone who prefers their characters being vulnerable, plenty of them get injured and killed here. There are some cinematic missteps, of course. Sometimes, it is interrupted by an unfortunate, corny looking slow motion shot, for example. But it's largely an edge-of-your-seat type scenario. (The experience reminded me a bit of how I felt watching all of Mad Max: Fury Road.)
One perhaps cheesy aspect that I admittedly can't tell if it works or not is how each character gets a specialty. Goodnight Robicheaux, for example, is especially gifted with a rifle. Billy Rocks (being Asian, no doubt) is good with knives. Jack Horne, being the biggest brute of the bunch, is great with an ax and performs more melee type attacks. Faraday, as the quick handed card playing gambler, is a quick draw and great with pistols. Red Harvest, on account of being Native American, primarily uses a bow and arrow. It's ultimately kind of silly, but it gives it that more modern Hollywood feel. After all, if the Western essentially were the precursor to the modern superhero genre, then it's only fair for this Western to take some elements from the new king of the summer.
The slow build, adrenaline-pumping conclusion is executed really well, doing exactly what you want a good Western to do. It's fun action with some really enjoyable performances and characters. Not everything works, of course. The final bit with a weird shot of CGI headstones feels a bit tacked on, and the last line is corny as heck, but then, it is a big budget Hollywood film. After a summer of nothing but tedious, mind-numbing slogs, it was nice to get something that has a solid structure, doesn't want you to completely tune out but doesn't make you think too much, that's just entertaining.
This might also be a case where the lack of entries in the genre works to its advantage. Superhero films, for example, are a dime a dozen at this point. When every other film seems to be bad, and you get maybe seven or eight of them in the year, you just don't feel like seeing them. What really is different about any of them, at this point? The Magnificent Seven, despite taking some cues from that genre, actually does feel relatively fresh as a result of not having many Westerns coming out in the years prior.
REDUCTIVE RATING: Pretty Good!
(Scale - Terrible..., Pretty Bad, It's Fine, Pretty Good, Amazing!)
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