Vin: You know the first time I took a job as a hired gun, fellow told me, "Vin, you can't afford to care." There's your problem.Chris: One thing I don't need is somebody telling me my problem.Vin: Like I said before, that's your problem. You got involved in this village and the people in it.Chris: Do you ever get tired
of hearing yourself talk? A solid Western remake of Kurosawa's Seven Samurai. It takes, for its time, a big name cast and put them all together for a movie about codes of honor, reflection, as well as gunfights and macho coolness. Strong chemistry from within the cast, some solid gunplay, and a good amount of fun.A bandit, played by Eli Wallach, 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 over 100 bandits who will arrive wanting food.The seven includes: Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Robert Vaughn, James Coburn, Brad Dexter, Charles Bronson, and a new kid who really wants to be a good cowboy.The film does a good job at taking on the challenge of competing with a film as legendary as Seven Samurai and making it its own. While it follows most of the same beats, this is still a good western take on that story.It helps that the cast is great. Brynner and McQueen fighting for lead status. James Coburn being incredibly cool. And particular notice from me goes to Charles Bronson, who is really effective at imbuing his character with pathos.As this is a Hollywood western, there's no Ennio Morricone to be found this time around, but the legendary score by Elmer Bernstein is more than enough to satisfy me. It all goes really well with a lot of very good filmmaking at play here.Great film all around.Calvera: What I don't understand is why a man like you took the job in the first place, hmm? Why, huh?Chris: I wonder myself.Calvera: No, come on, come on, tell me why.Vin: It's like a fellow I once knew in El Paso. One day, he just took all his clothes off and jumped in a mess of cactus. I asked him that same question, "Why?"Calvera: And?Vin: He said, "It seemed to be a good idea at the time."
October 11, 2006
