Guns of the Magnificent Seven (1969)

Good concept, poorly executed.

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

All that we are seeing on the screen is happening with real people, real action sequences in the background, forcing the eye to watch as if we were there.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

¨Guns of the magnificent seven¨ (Paul Wendkos,1969) with George Kennedy is a thrilling and truly thunderous sequel next to original and considered to be one of the best . Acceptable following co-produced by US/Spain and filmed in Almeria , Andalucía and Hoyo de Manzanares's Western-film town , Madrid , where were shot lots of Paella/Spaghetti Westerns in the 60s and 70s . This is the third in the original series of four "Magnificent Seven" movies , as The magnificent Seven are back and they don't aim to please . This sequel to ¨Magnificent seven¨ is well played George Kennedy as tough gunslinger named Chris who along a misfit group of gunslingers , all of them set off in rescue a Mexican revolutionary . As one day soldiers of the dictator Porfirio Diaz capture a rebel leader called Quintero (Fernando Rey) . His deputy (Reni Santoni) offers a reward to free Quintero and he sets out to look for Chris , the leader of The Seven for help . Chris is decided to take a squad and strike a blow against the Mexican army and free the captured leader of the revolutionaries . To carry out this assignment Chris has to join a misfit bunch of gunfighters . As Chris and his buddies (James Whitmore , Monte Markham , Bernie Casey , Scott Thomas , Joe Don Baker) , each of whom comes for a different reason , must free a Mexican revolutionary imprisoned by nasty Col. Diego (Michael Ansara) . All of them riding to the rescue of yet another bunch of downtrodden evil people and , at the same time , they get a chance to redeem themselves . Later on , the team develops a plan to secure an enemy attack and to pull off their mission against a fort strongly defended .Chris character was played by Yul Brynner in two occasions and one performed by Lee Van Cleef and George Kennedy . Brynner as a two-fisted Pistolero was very good ; in fact , it was Yul Brynner who approached producer Walter Mirisch with the idea of doing a Western adaptation of Akira Kurosawa's classic , The seven Samurais . Despite bearing no resemblance to Yul Brynner, including a full head of hair , George Kennedy and subsequently Lee Van Cleef took over the role of Chris Adams , played by Brynner in the first two films . Even Chris Adams' trademark dark clothing is gone , what remains is the steel resolve and affinity for cigars . Here George Kennedy as Chris is pretty well , giving a forceful interpretation . Besides , Monte Markham as well as James Withmore are unexpectedly lithe and other gunslingers are quite well defined . The remaining cast is a great help and they hold the picture together when it looks disintegrate after a promising start as did other follow-ups in the series . Wonderful ensemble cast playing unforgettable , moving roles with nice performers such as Monte Markham , Joe Don Baker , Frank Silvera , Reni Santoni and feature film debut of Bernie Casie . Being a Spanish/US co-production , there appears several actors usual in Spaghetti-Paella Western such as the Spanish Sancho Gracia , Jorge Rigaud and Fernando Rey playing his ordinary role as a good man . Rey is the only actor besides Yul Brynner to appear in two Magnificent Seven films , as he also played a priest in Return of the magnificent seven (1966) . The story is similar to previous entry , including customary outlaw band formed by an eclectic gang with diverse characters as well as speciality , as dynamite or guns . The film gets action Western , exciting riding , shootouts , it's fun and entertaining , although nothing new but displays a slight style . Despite the familiar framework of the screenplay , the interesting dialog is studded with memorably quotable lines and the flick arranges to raise some fresh entertainment from the vintage tale of the septet of Pistoleros . The movie contains some moment of violence and even touching on the relationships between the Mexican villagers and the Magnificent . Colorful as well as sharp cinematography in Panavision and Color DeLuxe by Antonio Macasoli , being filmed on location in Colmenar Viejo , and , of course , Almeria , Spain . As always , breathtaking and memorable musical score by Elmer Bernstein ; Elmer , whose score for this movie is one of the best-known ever composed , also wrote the soundtrack for the parody of this film, 'Three amigos' . The classic and stirring soundtrack helps highlight the action in the exciting climax . The motion picture was professionally directed by Paul Wendkos , whose works remain undervalued in USA . This is a decent though inferior sequel to the original and enduringly popular ¨The magnificent seven¨( John Sturges,1960) that is equally remake of ¨The seven samurais¨ (Akira Kurosawa) . After that , followed ¨The return of the seven¨(Burt Kennedy,1966), again with Brynner and and ¨The Magnificent seven ride¨ with Lee Van Cleef by George McCowan and continued with a TV series and a Television movie realized in 1998 . Although this film revisits the village from the first movie, it was shot in Spain , not Mexico and for once doesn't disgrace the original . Among the many reasons were the difficulties that occurred between the American filmmakers and the Mexican crew and government censors during the shooting of the first film .

After the let-down that was Return of the Seven, it's good to know that the Magnificent Seven are in safe hands again. Dropping Yul Brynner and bringing on Georege Kennedy to pay Chris was a risky move, but it pays off. He may not look anything like the Chris from the previous two films, but Kennedy brings confidence and gravity to the role that strangely deserted the ill-at-ease Lee Van Cleef when he played him the for the final sequels, The Magnificent Seven Ride. There is a Zapata-like plot with Chris freeing a Mexican revolutionary, but to be honest, that's about it for Spaghetti Western influences. A Euro-Western it might be labelled, but it's closer to John Wayne than Clint Eastwood. So, don't expect a bloody, gritty Spaghetti with priests ears being cut off and forced to eat it, but an enjoyable Sunday afternoon western that, while it isn't as good as the original and not a violent, savage and sickening death of beating in sight, as you get in the really good Spaghetti Westerns, it can be liked and remembered with fondness.

That's right: a solid dud. Lame story, by and large amateurish acting, moving slowly to a predictable end. Kennedy is a nice guy and an alright actor, but in this case he is a total miscast. Our George is not exactly the type of hero who's going to take violent matters in his own hand; a middle-aged husband with a brood, a neat job and a mortgage is more like it. I can think of a few others who would have been more suited for the job: Clint Eastwood, Steve McQueen, Rod Steiger, Lee van Cleef. Anyway, half-way through I could hardly wait for this thing to finish. This movie is light years removed from the original. The only thing it has in common is the number 7 and the soundtrack. Pfff...yawn.

"When love congeals it soon reveals the faint aroma of performing seals" wrote Lorenz Hart who knew a good few things about love,the movies and even performing seals for all I know.Certainly a seal - like aroma pervades this truly terrible rip - off (sorry,sequel) to a much - loved original.Any remaining goodwill is soon dispersed with the appearance of George Kennedy (with a laughable syrup) as a narrow - eyed cigar chomping "Chris".He is squeezed into trousers at least two sizes too small which has the effect of making his bum resemble that of a less than athletic hippopotamus and has trouble bending down - let alone running.He recruits a crew of second - rate (James Whitmore always excepted)TV actors to rescue Fernando Rey who would quite like to escape from a Mexican prison and who can blame him? Bernie Casey plays a "Blaxploitation"dude a hundred years before his time ,is handy with a Gatling gun and often artistically covered with sweat but - like the others - dies with a whimper rather than a roar. The only other even vaguely interesting figure is Joe Don Baker as a disabled ( or crippled - as he delicately puts it)Confederate Civil war vet who,like Chris,can hardly hobble and it is hardly a surprise that he is less than adept at dodging bullets when the time comes. George Kennedy only seems happy when he is leaning against a doorway/hitching post/adobe wall lighting a cigar and narrowing his eyes - he does a lot of that. In the circumstances it is almost a blasphemy to use Elmer Bernstein's iconic music and it only serves to underline how far down the path of mediocrity "Guns of the Magnificent Seven" has wandered. A lot of Mexican soldiers are slaughtered at the end - a large proportion of whom are,for some reason not wearing a shirt.Kennedy and Whitmore ride off into the sunset.Hopefully the next time he tries recruiting mercenaries at a hundred bucks a pop he will go for quality rather than quantity.