The Magnificent Seven

The residents of the small town of Rose Creek are desperate: Ruthless Bartholomew Bogue (Peter Sarsgaard) threatens to kill anyone who won't sell him his land for a song. His wealth allows Bogue to gather around him an army of cold-blooded mercenaries, whose fingers are very loose on the trigger. In desperation, the residents of Rose Creek turn to legendary bounty hunter Sam Chisolm (Denzel Washington), who is not intimidated by any adversary. With Josh Farraday (Chris Pratt), Goodnight Robicheaux (Ethan Hawke), Jack Horne (Vincent D'Onofrio), Billy Rocks (Byung-Hun Lee), Vasquez (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo) and Red Harvest (Martin Sensmeier) at his side, seven outlaws, gamblers and gunslingers are now to take on an entire army. But Chisolm has a plan - which, however, could turn out fatal not only for Bogue.

With The Magnificent Seven, Antoine Fuqua has directed a remake of a remake of a classic samurai film. The 1960 Western version of Akira Kurosawa's The Seven Samurai (1954) is one of the absolute masterpieces of the American Western, with its legendary theme music, fantastic landscape shots, and fight scenes that were spectacular for their time. The film has often been quoted or satirized. In addition, there was an attempt in 1999 to implement the material as a television series - but with rather modest success. Now director Antoine Fuqua is attempting a new interpretation. And it is quite respectable.

Because instead of directing a clear remake, Fuqua has given the story a new polish and thus put his own stamp on it. The oppression and brutal eviction of people from their land by a powerful businessman who wants to exploit the area known for its gold deposits cannot be denied a certain topicality. Since this is not the first time Bogue has taken what he wants at any cost, only to enrich himself at the expense of others, it also gives some of the men who oppose him a very particular motivation.

Besides that, the film is also very well directed in terms of craftsmanship. The landscapes are beautifully captured, the music - the final work of the much-too-early deceased James Horner - is very atmospheric, and the actors are well-cast throughout. However, some of the characters remain too pale to make a lasting impression alongside the big four of the Magnificent Seven - Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke and Vincent D´Onofrio. In addition, there are some extreme lengths, especially in the middle part, which make it clear that the film could have used a little more speed and a little self-deprecating humor well. Even the extremely leaden and bloody finale doesn't help much to make up for that.

So the remake of The Magnificent Seven is not a perfect, but an extremely entertaining Western, which is perhaps not quite in the league of its 1960 predecessor, but also does not have to hide from a comparison. If you like westerns and if bloody shoot-outs don't scare you off, you should definitely buy a ticket for the ride with Dezel Washington and Co. through the prairie. With small deductions absolutely worth seeing!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp