A group of seven honorable gunslingers unite to help defend a town
from a ruthless band of thieves led by a maniacal robber baron. WESTERN
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The Magnificent Seven (2016)Directed by Antoine Fuqua
Written by Richard Wenk and Nic Pizzolatto Starring Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D'Onofrio, Byung-hun Lee, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Martin Sensmeier, Haley Bennett, Peter Sarsgaard, Luke Grimes Remake of 1960's The Magnificent Seven |
These days, Hollywood maintains a certain trend that seems to work for them more often than not. This trend is remaking anything that people cared enough about to watch at some point and with this film, they actually went full Inception and remade a remake. When the early reviews came out and said The Magnificent Seven was mediocre at best, I figured it was because remakes often falter and are rarely worth watching a second time. This film is the exact opposite. This updated version of the western classic is a remake that's worthy to call itself The Magnificent Seven, as it is wildly entertaining and arguably one of the best films of the year.
The best thing about the original was always the coming together of classic actors in a great ensemble. This film replicated that perfectly, bringing together a perfect assortment of character actors in an ensemble with great chemistry and excellent development. As the film progresses, you learn more about each of the seven leads and you care about what happens to them. That's something a lot of remakes exclude. There's rarely any reason to care about the characters and if anything does happen to them, it feels predictable. Not this time. The third act feels like a culmination of every character's actions and you feel like you're right there in the thick of it with them. The Magnificent Seven doesn't feel like a remake and I think that's its biggest strength. Antoine Fuqua and the writers clearly put a lot of love and care into the film and the finished product shows that. This is the rare sort of remake that I believe surpasses the original and stands on its own as a great movie. I thought it was nothing short of fantastic and hope it rakes in an impressive return, regardless of the critical backlash it didn't deserve. |