Movie · 2016 · Adventure, Action, Western · 2h 12m · PG-13 · English
Curator score: 2.9/10 (452.5K ratings)
Justice has a number.
Overview
Looking to mine for gold, greedy industrialist Bartholomew Bogue seizes control of the Old West town of Rose Creek. With their lives in jeopardy, Emma Cullen and other desperate residents turn to bounty hunter Sam Chisolm for help. Chisolm recruits an eclectic group of gunslingers to take on Bogue and his ruthless henchmen. With a deadly showdown on the horizon, the seven mercenaries soon find themselves fighting for more than just money once the bullets start to fly.
Ratings
Curator score: 2.9/10
IMDb: 6.9/10
Letterboxd: 3.18/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 64%
Metacritic: 54
TMDB: 6.5/10
Director
Antoine Fuqua
Production
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Columbia Pictures, LStar Capital, Village Roadshow Pictures, Pin High, Escape Artists
Cast
Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D'Onofrio, Lee Byung-hun, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Martin Sensmeier, Peter Sarsgaard, Haley Bennett, Matt Bomer, Luke Grimes, Jonathan Joss, Cam Gigandet, Sean Bridgers, Dylan Kenin, Kevin Wayne, Carrie Lazar, David Kallaway, Alix Angelis, Billy Slaughter
Curator Review
Verdict
A sturdy, crowd-pleasing western with strong star power, polished action, and a likable ensemble, but it mostly trades on familiar beats rather than reinventing the genre. The final showdown delivers, even if the character work and emotional stakes are thinner than the film wants them to be.
Best for
Viewers who want a slick modern western with lots of gunplay
Fans of ensemble action movies with clear heroes and villains
Anyone looking for an easy, entertaining remake rather than a deep revisionist western
Skip if
You want a fresh or subversive take on the western
You need rich character development or moral complexity
You are tired of remake-by-numbers storytelling
Overview
This remake works best as a polished piece of Saturday-night entertainment. The cast has easy chemistry, the action is cleanly staged, and the film knows how to build toward a big, satisfying shootout. It also benefits from a strong sense of momentum, rarely lingering long enough for its familiar plot to feel sluggish.
Worth noting
What it does not have is much surprise. The movie leans heavily on archetypes, and while that can be part of the pleasure of a western, here it keeps the drama from fully deepening. The villain is effective enough, but the script is more interested in assembling the team and moving them into position than in making each member feel essential.
Bottom line
Still, there is a straightforward appeal to the whole thing: handsome production values, a confident lead performance, and enough action to justify the ride. If you want a modern western that plays like a muscular old-school studio adventure, this gets the job done, even if it rarely rises above competent.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Ellie ✨ (4★) · 944 likes
broke: calling heath ledger and jake gyllenhaal in brokeback mountain "gay cowboys" as an overdone joke
woke: calling lee byung-hun and ethan hawke in the magnificent seven "gay cowboys" because they are, indeed, gay cowboys
Josh Lewis (2★) · 879 likes
More like Vincent D'Onofrio and the average six.
Todd Gaines (4★) · 615 likes
The Magnificent Seven surprised me. It pays homage to Seven Samurai and the the 1960 version of The Magnificent Seven, but it does it in a way that's not so obvious. This is a fresh reboot with its own story.
This isn't a Denzel driven story, it's an ensemble cast, with each of the Seven, having more than one moment to shine. I didn't want any of them to die. Denzel was born to be a cowboy. Of course Fuqua… more
Joan (1★) · 516 likes
i only watched this so i can bond with my father
Ellie ✨ (4★) · 367 likes
billy's final fucking words are "oh, goody" and tvtropes wants to tell me they're "heterosexual life partners"????? no bitch they're married
2012 · Drama, Western · 2h 45m · R · Curator 9.4/10 (5M ratings) · Where to watch: fuboTV, Paramount Plus Premium, Peacock Premium, Starz, Philo, Peacock Premium Plus
A revenge western with bigger personality, sharper satire, and more explosive set pieces.