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Post by mikef6 on May 16, 2017 19:40:09 GMT
The Magnificent Seven / Antoine Fuqua (2016). One thing you can say for the new “Magnificent 7” is that they didn’t slavishly stick to either the plot of “Seven Samurai” nor the 1960 American western of the same title, yet they carefully reference the older oater in several places as a tribute. On the other hand, the new film is made up of bits, pieces, and huge slabs of more modern westerns, viz. strong echoes from “Django Unchained” (a faux western from 2012) and “The Salvation” (2014) with its plot of the cruel rich man who controls a town with terror. I might even mention “Mad Max: Fury Road” as an influence because of Seven's portrait of the Old West as almost a post-apocalyptic wasteland ruled by a cruel warlord and his army of unquestioning henchmen. In the 1960, the team leader, Chris (Yul Brynner) is given no definite motivation for helping the villagers. Even though he and the new leader, Chisolm (Denzel Washington), share the same response (“I’ve been offered a lot for my services but never Everything”), Chisolm is given a concrete revenge motive for his actions which robs the remake of a most of its myth-making ability. The finale is, pardon the expression, overkill. To wit, the town defended by the 7 is attacked by an army of 200 mercenaries who are battled endlessly as an impossible body count keeps going up and up. The actors playing the 7 try hard to create colorful characters but only Vincent D'Onofrio’s huge mountain man with an unexpected high-pitched voice succeeds entirely. Ethan Hawke comes in second as a famous and feared gunfighter who is starting to believe that he has already killed enough men. There is not much here for anyone looking for anything resembling a classic American western. This film will delight fans of the modern “action” film. I can’t find much positive to say.
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Post by FilmFlaneur on May 17, 2017 9:53:41 GMT
The Magnificent Seven / Antoine Fuqua (2016). One thing you can say for the new “Magnificent 7” is that they didn’t slavishly stick to either the plot of “Seven Samurai” nor the 1960 American western of the same title, yet they carefully reference the older oater in several places as a tribute. On the other hand, the new film is made up of bits, pieces, and huge slabs of more modern westerns, viz. strong echoes from “Django Unchained” (a faux western from 2012) and “The Salvation” (2014) with its plot of the cruel rich man who controls a town with terror. I might even mention “Mad Max: Fury Road” as an influence because of Seven's portrait of the Old West as almost a post-apocalyptic wasteland ruled by a cruel warlord and his army of unquestioning henchmen. In the 1960, the team leader, Chris (Yul Brynner) is given no definite motivation for helping the villagers. Even though he and the new leader, Chisolm (Denzel Washington), share the same response (“I’ve been offered a lot for my services but never Everything”), Chisolm is given a concrete revenge motive for his actions which robs the remake of a most of its myth-making ability. The finale is, pardon the expression, overkill. To wit, the town defended by the 7 is attacked by an army of 200 mercenaries who are battled endlessly as an impossible body count keeps going up and up. The actors playing the 7 try hard to create colorful characters but only Vincent D'Onofrio’s huge mountain man with an unexpected high-pitched voice succeeds entirely. Ethan Hawke comes in second as a famous and feared gunfighter who is starting to believe that he has already killed enough men. There is not much here for anyone looking for anything resembling a classic American western. This film will delight fans of the modern “action” film. I can’t find much positive to say. I thought the new film perfectly acceptable, although of course it suffers from the existence of some very illustrious predecessors, which place it in the shade. |
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Post by koskiewicz on May 17, 2017 17:07:33 GMT
...ho hum...!!!
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Post by taylorfirst1 on May 20, 2017 4:01:51 GMT
Forgettable. Perfect example of modern over the top film making. Watch this and the 1960 original side by side and you quickly realize that less is more.
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