Day 223: The Magnificent Seven (1960)

I am once again going down my list of films to watch, but today’s film is on the list for a separate reason. When I heard that they were remaking The Magnificent Seven, I told myself that I had to watch the original before seeing the remake and so here it is for today’s film. Every year, a village in Mexico is terrorized by the thief Calvera (Eli Wallach) and he steals their crops and kills any villager that dares stand up to him. That is until one day when three of the villagers come to America to hire a gunman by the name of Chris Larabee Adams (Yul Brynner) to help save the village. Adas will then go ahead and hire six of the best gunfighters around to help him out and form the Magnificent Seven which is made up of Vin Tanner (Steve McQueen), Bernando O’Reilly (Charles Bronson), Lee (Robert Vaughn), Harry Luck (Brad Dexter), Britt (James Coburn), and Chico (Horst Buchholz). The film also stars Rico Alaniz (The Life and Legend Of Wyatt Earp) as Sotero, Jorge Martínez de Hoyos (The Professionals) as Hilario, Rosenda Monteros (She) as Petra, Robert J. Wilke (High Noon) as Wallace, and the film was directed by John Sturges (The Great Escape).

I am going to be the first to admit that I am not a huge fan of Westerns, but there are exceptions to the rule that make me change my mind. After all, westerns are basically American folklore hence a reason why they were so popular at one time or another. The Magnificent Seven is definitely the exception to the rule as it was definitely one of the best westerns I have ever seen besides Tombstone. Yul Brynner is at his absolute best as he commands the screen while newcomer Horst Buchholz provides with plenty of moments of laughter that keep us going throughout the film with naive personality. Eli Wallach should also be mentioned into the conversation as he plays the antagonist of the film and a very good one to boot. One of my favorite scenes is in the beginning of the film because it helped set the tone for the rest of the film. It’s the scene where Yul’s character first meets Steve McQueen’s as they do the impossible by taking the body of an Indian through Boot Hill. It just shows how daring they are and how willing they are to do the right thing. The story was excellent and very well written and the cinematography was good as well as they captured all of the action. If you are a fan of westerns then this is one you have to check out because it’s hard to find the flaws of the film. I am going to give The Magnificent Seven an A for a final grade. Now, we wait until September 23RD for the remake to come out.