Classics: The Magnificent Seven (1960)

The opening theme of “The Magnificent Seven” is timeless. It instantly connects you to the wild west and the nostalgia of when westerns flourished in Hollywood.

In present day, westerns are few. And it’s sad to see the television show “Hell on Wheels” come to an end. But currently a remake of “The Magnificent Seven” is out in theaters and in the spirit of this 2016 remake, I chose to revisit this film.

Let’s talk cast:

Chris Larabee Adams: Yul Brynner
Vin Tanner: Steve McQueen
Bernardo O'Reilly: Charles Bronson
Lee: Robert Vaughn
Harry Luck: Brad Dexter
Britt: James Coburn
Chico: Horst Buchholz

The Story

When a poor Mexican down becomes prey to a group of bad cowboys, a few of the townsfolk seek help. They offer to pay gunslinger Chris to take care of the baddies once and for all. And in the wild west, that usually means a sort of hit men as it were.

Chris can’t do it alone. So he enlists others to help for a total of seven. He first teams up with Vin.

It was a joy seeing these two actors on screen. They were so young, brimming with talent. Yul Brynner played the role with gravitas. While Steve McQueen has a slickness to him, which helps make him memorable since he doesn’t have as much screen time as Yul. And the contrast between the two work well. 

The first half of the movie is about the team, about the seven coming together and teaching the town how to shoot guns. Because let’s face it, once the mission is complete, these townsfolk may have to fend off the next group of baddies that mosey on their way… after all, this is the wild west.

The only weak spot for me was Chico. A young man, overflowing with too much pride… So much so, that it feels unbelievable or overacted. Though as the story progresses, he tones down—thank goodness because he plays a big part in this movie since he’s given the love story. This segment was a bit predictable, but sweet at the same time.

I would have also liked to see a bit more Charles Bronson. Though, he made the best of what he had. Even if Steve McQueen did a better job of capitalizing on his limited scenes with cool quirks like playing with his hat.

The fight scenes are well done. It’s not just a shoot ‘em up. There’s strategy involved.

All in all, this classic will continue to live on. Great characters and fun interactions punctuated with exciting action sequences of horse riding and gunslinging.


 Score: 8.75/10 

 

REVIEW X-Men: Apocalypse

Dazzling visuals are the cherries atop a a well made dramatic cake that successfully blends an assortment of characters while sifting in some well timed humor without overdoing it.

“X-Men: Apocalypse” begins in the past, introducing us to Apocalypse, the first mutant. It then shifts to the present, which is ten years after the previous installment.

The film has a lot of eggs, yet manages to neatly fold them all together.  Many of the characters start off separated with their own lives and are then united in a way that makes sense to the story and the characters. Their introductions are unique from each other, maintaining a freshness that kept me engaged.

Professor X maintains his school with the new addition of a young Jean Grey, nicely played by Sophie Turner from Game Of Thrones. Her powers are strong and she can see the future, but has some issues with control. We soon meet Cyclops. And thankfully, he is treated with more regard than in the original trilogy. We watch him come into his powers, which forces him to move into the academy. The relationship between him and Jean is believable, using their concerns over what their powers can do to others as a connection that felt real and natural.

Magneto has been living in Poland but bad things happen, as they tend to do with this tragic character. And he ends up ethically lost.

His story was the most compelling and the film did a good job of keeping Magneto on that gray edge, which has always made him a fascinating counterpart to Professor X.

Coming into the film, I was the most interested in seeing how Quicksilver and Nightcrawler would work within the team and it didn’t disappoint!

Quicksilver had one of the best scenes.

I liken it to his scene in “X-Men: Days of Future Past”. He didn’t just bring the speed, he brought humor with him as well.

As for Nightcrawler, the effects of the remnants of smoke he left behind every time he jumped was very well handled.

The scene between Angel and Nightcrawler was handled very well and highlighted the development with which the film was willing to give to the non leading roles, particularly for Angel. It doesn’t take a tremendous amount of time to have an effective subplot as the film proved here.

There was a lot to love about this film, but it’s not perfect. One of the weak spots is Apocalypse. He’s an intimidating figure and has amazing powers that were eye popping to watch.The things he can do with sand… And I love the etchings on his face. 

His interactions with other characters were intriguing particularly with Professor X. But I still felt like I didn’t really know him. X-Men always does such a tremendous job with their characters, especially the villains; but this time it felt a little flat. I knew what his goal was, but I really wasn’t as sold as to why he just couldn’t “get along” so to speak. Though with so much to cover, it’s difficult to give Apocalypse his full attention.

And I’m still not sold on Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique. But I did enjoy her scenes with Nghtcrawler.

Tone

The serious tone makes the story feel real and more like a sci-fi film. The coloring was fantastic and added to the gravitas. And there were times when the scenes had a level of violence that treaded on the dark side, blood and all.

Visuals

But the story really excels in the special effects and its impact on the enormity of what was happening. I loved how things disintegrated. Watching the world wither away was spectacular. Though at times it felt redundant. Seeing it a couple of times was awesome, but after a while, I got the point. And I would have liked to have seen more from Magneto in the final act but I loved the team work. This is the kind of movie that needs a theatrical watch.

All in all, “X-Men: Apocalypse” was a treat with rich characters and stunning visuals. I really want to continue with this new group of X-Men and hope they stay together for the next installment.


Score: 8.75/10