The Magnificent Seven (1960)

Director:

John Sturges

Writer:

William Roberts (screenplay)

Release Date:

23 October 1960 (USA)

Genre:

Western | Adventure | Drama

Tagline:

They were seven - And they fought like seven hundred!

Plot:

An oppressed Mexican peasant village assembles seven gunfighters to help defend their homes.

Plot Keywords:

Village | Bandit | Showdown | Farmer | Peasant

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Yul Brynner	...	Chris Adams
Eli Wallach	...	Calvera
Steve McQueen	...	Vin
Charles Bronson	...	Bernardo O'Reilly
Robert Vaughn	...	Lee
Brad Dexter	...	Harry Luck
James Coburn	...	Britt
Horst Buchholz	...	Chico
Jorge Martínez de Hoyos	...	Hilario (as Jorge Martinez de Hoyas)
Vladimir Sokoloff	...	Old man
Rosenda Monteros	...	Petra
Rico Alaniz	...	Sotero
Pepe Hern
Natividad Vacío	...	Miguel (as Natividad Vacio)
Mario Navarro	...	Boy with O'Reilly

Runtime:

128 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Canada:G (Nova Scotia/Quebec) | Australia:PG | Australia:PG (TV rating) (2005) | Netherlands:6 (DVD rating) | USA:Approved (certificate #19668) | West Germany:12 (f) | Brazil:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M (TV rating) | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

Churubusco Studios, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico

Company:

Mirisch Corporation, The

Trivia:

According to the DVD notes, both John Ireland and Sterling Hayden were approached for the role of Britt.

Goofs:

Continuity: During the final battle we see Bernardo slumping off a roof, onto a clay-tiled awning, and then crouching behind a brick wall. We next see him when he shoots a guy who is about to mount a horse. The guy ends up with blood only on the back of his shirt. If Bernardo shot him in the back we should see either Bernardo, the clay-tiled awning or the short brick wall in the background. If Bernardo shot him from any other angle there should be blood on the front or sides of the guy, not just on the back.

Quotes:

Vin: Twenty dollars? You must be living in style.
Lee: Yes... I have the most stylish corner of the filthy storeroom out back. That and one plate of beans. Ten dollars a day.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "ReBoot: Icons (#3.5)" (1997)

Well done remake of Kurosawa's classic.

SEVEN is one of the better Westerns to come out for the aging genre. Also, for any genre, it has much better characterization; from the cowboys, to the farmers, and even the outlaws themselves, everyone gets their own fair share of camera time to make MAGNIFICENT SEVEN a classic in its own right.

Outlaws steal from a small Mexican farming town every once in awhile. Since the authorities do nothing, the farmers enlist the aid of seven gunmen to solve their problem.

Compared to THE SEVEN SAMURAI, I would have to say MAGNIFICENT is less dark and reflective. An outlaw such as Calvera is hard to hate seeing him as a character on screen. Also, a better motive to explain why the outlaws continue their attack on the village is shown here, as opposed to Kurosawa's classic, where the raiders relentlessly never gave up, not once thinking (or admitting) the village is well fortified and they were not going to win. The scene and spirit of the old west, combined with the philosophies of the far east, have made a fine movie.