THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN

Denzel Washington   Chris Pratt   Ethan Hawke   Vincent D’Onofrio   Haley Bennett  

Peter Sarsgaard   Byung-hun Lee   Manuel Garcia-Rulfo   Martin Sensmeier

          A motley group of seven men recruited one by one by a Kansas Warranty Officer Chisolm (Washington) band together to rescue a farming town from the evil miner Bartholomew Bogue (Sarsgaard), who wants their land and is willing to give them only a pittance for it and simply kill them if they refuse.  Chisolm is retained by Emma Cullen (Bennett), whose husband was one of those killed, but he agrees only after she gives him a significant bit of information. 

          Gradually, Chisolm meets up with a few malcontents who join him for one reason or another:  card shark/gambler/trickster Faraday (Pratt), haunted sharp shooter Robicheaux (Hawke), tracker-with-a-tomahawk Horne (D’Onofrio), knife-wielding assassin Billy Rocks (Lee), Mexican outlaw on the run Vasquez (Garcia-Rulfo), and Comanche arrows and bullets sharp shooter Red Harvest (Sensmeier).  These guys are not only colorful in their backgrounds, they bring much of the humor of the movie (sometimes a bit corny), presumably to balance the extreme violence shown in the film.  All these actors are superb in their roles, and elevate the film above the mundane script.

          Chisolm sends the cowardly sheriff (Dane Rhodes) to take the message to Bogue that the townsmen will not give up without a fight, and that he and his men will be defending them.  When Bogue learns there are only seven defenders, he thinks it will be a piece of cake.  His lackeys put together a small army, and head toward the town.  But Chisolm is a strategist who is able to anticipate his enemy’s maneuvers, and has made detailed plans involving explosive booby traps, trenches, placements of shooters, and even weapons training for the locals.  The battle that ensues is bloody and long, complicated by a ferocious weapon mercilessly fired by Bogue.

          This remake of two earlier films considered masterful, one in 1954 (Seven Samurai) by Akira Kurosawa, legendary Japanese filmmaker, and one in 1960 (The Magnificent Seven) by John Sturges seems unnecessary.  There could have been more updates, such as modernizing and making more realistic—even for the 19^th Century—the Bennett character Emma.  For example, she defended the town admirably and saved Chisolm’s life, but he didn’t even thank her; instead, he took her gun away from her.  The filmmakers made sure that we would see her cry more than once, just to emphasize once again the stereotypical female.  Here’s a thought:  Include her and call the film The Magnificent Eight. 

          Musician James Horner should be acknowledged for his contribution to this film.  He had made considerable progress on the score, but died before the work was completed, so Simon Frangien was enlisted to complete it.  Mauro Fiore’s cinematography does justice to the exquisite western landscape, and his filming of the action scenes is artistic, as is the usual for him.

For western fans not bothered by mediocre remakes, this will hold your attention.

Grade:  C                                 By Donna R. Copeland

SOUTHPAW

Jake Gyllenhaal     Rachel McAdams     Forest Whitaker     50 Cent     Miguel Gomez

Redemption comes at last when a slow learner finally masters his destiny in Southpaw.  It’s a hard-won battle every step of the way.  Billy “The Great” Hope (Gyllenhaal) is boxing at the top of his game after he and his wife Maureen (McAdams) have crawled up from an orphanage, always sticking together.  Then tragedy strikes—helped along by hotheaded Billy—and he begins to lose everything that is meaningful to him.  At rock bottom, he looks to Tick Wills (Whitaker) a former trainer who owns a gym, but is rejected because he appears not to be willing to make changes.  When it looks like this will be his only chance, he agrees to start at the bottom and see if he can work his way up to the point where he regains custody of his daughter.

           This is a brutal film (rated R for its violence) with long, bloody boxing scenes and agonizing sequences, so not for the faint of heart or those with weak stomachs.  Gyllenhaal bulked himself up for the role, and adapted his ordinarily clear voice to curt mumbles and grumbles to fit the character.  Just as much a star, Whitaker delivers philosophical truths (“Stopping punches with your face is not defense”) quick, targeted comebacks, and behavioral conditions that will be essential to Billy Hope’s rehabilitation and ability to fight strategically.  McAdams is well cast as a loving wife who takes care of her husband as much as she can.  Young Oona Laurence as the Hopes’ daughter Leila deserves recognition for her portrayal of a grief-stricken child who faces overwhelming losses.

           Director Antoine Fuqua realizes writer Kurt Sutter’s script in well-paced, believable sequences, and he works closely with his colleague in other films, Mauro Fiore, to produce stunning camera work, alongside an inspiring musical score. The film is dedicated to its award winning musician and popular film composer James Horner (Titanic, Avatar, A Beautiful Mind), who was killed last month in a plane crash.

           The film is a bit slow to get started with its real drama beyond the fight sequences (and some of the fights occur before you get a chance to invest in the characters), and the struggles between the Hope couple are excruciating to sit through.  A good bit of it is watching the wife trying to rein in her drug-addled, fight-obsessed husband, often to no avail.  I think trimming some of these scenes would have made this a better film.  When it moves into showing the psychology of Billy Hope and his rehabilitation and relationship with his daughter, it becomes much more engaging.

Redemption for a slow learner.

Grade:  C+                          By Donna R. Copeland