The Magnificent Seven

I have to admit, the 2016 remake of The Magnificent Seven worked for me. I ended up giving it four stars, and honestly, I’m going to skip over the usual gripes I have with modern Hollywood and just say this was a solid blockbuster. Sure, the lineup of the seven is a pretty on-the-nose mix of white, Black, Asian, and everything in between, and yes, the political correctness is off the charts—but let’s not dwell on that. What the director nailed was the action and the atmosphere. It’s a simple, no-fuss, entertaining ride, and I had a lot of fun with it. It doesn’t feel like a lazy cash-grab remake, but more like a tribute to the original legends, and the cast definitely delivered. They worked so well together, making it a joy to watch—except for the villain, who felt like a bit of a one-dimensional idiot. But if you know the original, you’ll know he gets his just desserts in the end, and trust me, it’s worth sticking around for. All in all, a fun buddy-action flick, which Hollywood doesn’t churn out like it used to. Definitely a nice surprise. (14/03/2021)

The title makes the film a disservice than anything else. For example, many viewers would have taken it better to call it "Fast and Brisk", and without the inevitable (whether greater or lesser) disappointment that the duo of absolute classic movies of the silver screen, which have survived and will survive for decades, is remade in the form of an disposal relaxing movie that will soon be forgotten. On the other hand, there is the not inconsiderable fact that although it is a western second-rate one-time watch, it is a surprisingly fun and properly driven Western second-rate one-time watch, which is not afraid to use the screen to the fullest. In other words, it is consumable and unnecessary, but not bad. And in purely genre moments (graded tension before the first big shootout, etc.) it will keep you entertained. That´s for sure. (26/09/2016)

From the very beginning I was against a remake, but in the end I took pity on it because Pizzolatto wrote the screenplay, although clearly some cuts have been made, some motifs are not developed at all and so it certainly isn’t one of the strengths of the entire project. Capitalism presented as a villain, gradual recruitment and even the diverse seven somehow work. But the massacre in the finale is this year’s action treat. The cast is pleasant, Pratt is really fine. It can’t compete with the original, but I understand the idea of giving the Magnificent Seven a modern overcoat. So far, so good. (27/09/2016)

I decided to watch this as a classic western and forget that it’s a remake, but it wasn't much help. As usual, the Americans made it politically correct, so the magnificent seven were missing only a Jew and an Arab to make them complete. The brave Indian doesn't hesitate to put his own life on the line so that the enemy doesn't take the land the settlers took from the Indians. In fact, the whole thing looked like a United Nations meeting. I did like the film quite a bit in the first two thirds, but it quickly lost momentum with increasing poignant scenes and booming epic music. I was only pleased with Vincent D'Onofrio, Ethan Hawke, and Haley Bennett. (16/01/2017)

A decent and restrained remake of an immortal classic for today's times, bigger, noisier and more ethnically colourful, i.e. politically correct in the way that is befitting and appropriate in every other great film today. Washington pulls it off by walking, looking, and occasionally tossing in a morsel of wisdom, Pratt pulls it off by making wisecracks, and D'Onofrio plays the bear. The rest are essentially extras, which is a shame in the case of Hawke. It should be noted that the execution is also interesting. It’s top-notch, of course, with a fairly weird mix of classic, almost absurd shootout scenes where the good guys shoot in all directions and the bad guys fall like flies, plus well-shot fights mostly with bows, knives, etc. If it was R-rated with more catchphrases, it would have been exactly what everyone wants these days. But Fuqua had too much respect for the original and in his delivery it is both good and bad. (22/09/2016)