The Magnificent Seven (1960)

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

Director:

John Sturges

Writer:

William Roberts (screenplay)

Stars:

Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

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

Storyline

A bandit terrorizes a small Mexican farming village each year. Several of the village elders send three of the farmers into the United States to search for gunmen to defend them. They end up with seven, each of whom comes for a different reason. They must prepare the town to repulse an army of thirty bandits who will arrive wanting food.

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Plot Keywords:

friendship | showdown | arizona territory | reference to tombstone arizona | mercenary | 

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Taglines:

They were seven - And they fought like seven hundred!

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Official Sites:

MGM - Former Official Site.

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

12 October 1960 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Magnificent Seven

Filming Locations:

State of Morelos, Mexico

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$4,905,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Mirisch Company, Alpha Productions, Alpha

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Eli Wallach wore a silk shirt and sported gold rings and teeth because he "wanted to show what the bandit did with his loot." He also used the silver-trimmed saddle that Marlon Brando had used in One-Eyed Jacks (1961).

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Goofs

Chris tells Harry Luck that the job pays a gold eagle plus room and board. But the payment offered was $20. An eagle was the $10 gold coin; the $20 gold coin was the "double eagle."

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Quotes

Village Boy 1: If you get killed, we take the rifle and avenge you.
Village Boy 2: And we see to it there's always fresh flowers on your grave.
O'Reilly: That's a mighty big comfort.
Village Boy 2: I told you he'll appreciate that!
O'Reilly: Well, now don't you kids be too disappointed if your plans don't work out.
Village Boy 1: We won't. If you stay alive, we'll be just as happy.
Village Boy 2: Maybe even happier.
Village Boy 1: Maybe.

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Crazy Credits

And Introducing Horst Buchholz

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Alternate Versions

The German theatrical release differs from the German VHS video in the scene where the magnificent seven have been taken by surprise and have to put down their weapons on the table. Chico is the last one and stands in enragement. In the theatrical version he then nevertheless unstraps his belt like the others. In the VHS video version Chris jumps at Chico just in that moment when he wants to pull the gun. Chris takes his gun and puts it on desk. Then Chico unstraps his belt.

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Connections

Referenced in Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)

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Soundtracks

The Magnificent Seven Theme
Written by Elmer Bernstein

User Reviews

A good western thriller with superb star cast.

I saw this film umpteenth number of times in the late 80s n early 90s on a VHS. Revisited it recently on a DVD after watching the remake (Denzel Washington one). Well this movie itself is a western remake of Kurosawa's Seven Samurai. As a fan of western films n being a big fan of Mcqueen, i enjoyed it more than Seven Samurai. The film is an engaging n adventurous western, awesomely directed by John Sturges. The story is simple, poor farmers hire seven gunslingers to protect them from a small army of bandits.

Yul Brynner is full of attitude n terrific as the leader of the seven. Steve McQueen really shines as the right-hand man. Charlie Bronson in his leanest physique wearing a stylish full sleeves tshirt n denim shirt. James Coburn is cool but very deadly with his knife than guns. His body language speaking louder than any of his lines. Robert Vaughn as the man who loves to live life king size n who's fightin his inner demons. Brad Dexter is the big muscular guy with a good sense of humour. And then there is Eli Wallach as the bandit leader. Watch out for Wallach's statement on generosity. The film has a lot of great scenes involving the action and shootouts that is engaging to watch. The Magnificent Seven is not complete without mentioning Elmer Bernstein's legendary score.