One of the most beloved Westerns of all time is 1960’s The Magnificent Seven. Based on the classic Japanese film Seven Samurai, the film follows seven gunslingers and outlaws hired by a small Mexican town to ward off a villainous gang of bandits who use the town as a safe haven. Despite their varying sense of morality and righteousness, the men choose to do what’s right in order to save the town. Oh, and there’s a massive gun battle that’s really cool. So cool, in fact, that filmmaker Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, Olympus Has Fallen) has decided to remake it with his more…ahem…modern capabilities.
After being put under siege by corrupt industrialist Barholomew Bogue (Peter Sarsgaard), a young widow (Haley Bennett) goes to find gunslingers who can help defend their town. She manages to hire a team of misfits and outlaws willing to help save them from the real criminals. The original team boasted the talents of Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson, Robert Vaughn and James Coburn. This time around, we get Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D’Onofrio, Byung-hun Lee, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, and Martin Sensmeier.
I’m a bit torn on this one. Remakes are usually unnecessary, and this is a remake OF a remake. However, the action seems intense, the comedy seems well timed, and Washington, Pratt, Hawke and D’Onofrio are all incredible talents. I’m willing to give this one a chance, and who knows? Maybe this ends up being the breakout hit of the summer. The script is written by Nic Pizzolatto, the creator of True Detective, and will be released September 23, 2016, with a Toronto International Film Festival bow expected in advance . You can watch the International Trailer and the Theatrical Trailer below.
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