Needless to see….it was amazing.
In recent years, westerns have become a bit of a lost art form. Last year I tried to get excited for The Revenant and The Hateful Eight, but both were more about their respective stars (Dicaprio's quest for Oscar gold and Tarantino being Tarantino, respectively) than they were about being westerns. Before that we had…what…3:10 to Yuma? Open Range? The Unforgiven?
Not exactly Jeremiah Johnson, McLintock! and The Sons of Katie Elder.
To combat that, Hollywood has finally seen fit to return to the western well by remaking inarguably one of the best the genre has ever produced, The Magnificent Seven.
For those unfamiliar, this was a bit of a reimagining of the old Japanese move The Seven Samurai. What ensued was a mythical adaption featuring Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson and James Coburn, all pretty much at the height of their powers. (Come on…I wasn't even born until the 80's, and even I know that's a murderer's row if there ever was one)
Like I said, without question one of the best westerns ever made, which begs the question, in a world where we get a new Spider-Man reboot every four years, what the heck took almost sixty years to get this back on the big screen?!?
This time out, the powers that be have amassed a pretty solid crew, putting Antoine Fuqua at the helm (Training Day, End of Watch), Nic Pizzolatto writing (True Detective), and a cast featuring Denzel, Chris Pratt, and a slew of amazing character actors.
Lord knows there are very few things that will get me to the multiplex on an opening day during football season, but you better believe I will be rolling out in force for this one.
“I seek righteousness…but I'll take revenge.”
Hell yea….
