The Magnificent Seven
Directed by	John Sturges
Produced by	John Sturges
Written by	William Roberts
Starring	Yul Brynner Eli Wallach Steve McQueen Charles Bronson Robert Vaughn James Coburn Horst Buchholz Brad Dexter
Music by	Elmer Bernstein
Cinematography	Charles Lang
Editing by	Ferris Webster
Distributed by	United Artists
Release date(s)	October 23, 1960
Running time	128 min.
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$3,000,000
Followed by	Return of the Seven (1966)
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

The Magnificent Seven is a 1960 western film directed by John Sturges about a group of hired gunmen tasked with protecting a Mexican village from bandits. It is based on Akira Kurosawa's 1954 film, Seven Samurai. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... John Eliot Sturges (3 January 1911 – 18 August 1982) Known as The dean of big_budget action movies made during the 1950s and 1960. Sturges movies include The Magnificent Seven, The Great Escape, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Ice Station Zebra and Marooned (movie). ... John Eliot Sturges (3 January 1911 – 18 August 1982) Known as The dean of big_budget action movies made during the 1950s and 1960. Sturges movies include The Magnificent Seven, The Great Escape, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Ice Station Zebra and Marooned (movie). ... William Roberts was a British painter, born in London in 1895. ... Yul Brynner (July 11, 1920[1] – October 10, 1985) was a Russian-born Broadway and Academy Award-winning Hollywood actor. ... Eli Herschel Wallach (born December 7, 1915) is an American film, TV and stage actor. ... Steve McQueen (March 24, 1930 – November 7, 1980) was an Academy Award-nominated American movie actor, nicknamed The King of Cool.[1] He was one of the biggest box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s due to a popular anti-hero persona. ... For other persons named Charles Bronson, see Charles Bronson (disambiguation). ... Robert Francis Vaughn (born November 22, 1932) is an American actor noted for stage, film and television work, and best known as suave spy Napoleon Solo in the popular 1960s TV series The Man from U.N.C.L.E., although he continues to be a popular television actor into... James Coburn in Sam Peckinpahs Cross of Iron (1977). ... Horst Werner Buchholz (December 4, 1933 – March 3, 2003) was a German born actor, best remembered for his part in The Magnificent Seven. ... Brad Dexter born Boris Milanovich on April 9, 1917 in Goldfield, Nevada of Serbian parentage. ... Elmer Bernstein (pronounced Bern-steen[1]) (April 4, 1922 – August 18, 2004) was an Academy and two-time Golden Globe award winning film score composer. ... Charles Lang (March 22, 1902 – April 3, 1998) was a noted film cinematographer. ... Ferris Webster (April 29, 1912–February 4, 1989), an American film editor, was nominated for Academy Awards for his work on The Blackboard Jungle (1955), The Manchurian Candidate (1962), and The Great Escape (1963). ... The current United Artists logo (a variant was used during the 1980s). ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... October 23 is the 296th day of the year (297th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... See also: 1959 in film 1960 1961 in film 1950s in film 1960s in film years in film film // Events April 20 - for the first time since coming home from military service in Germany, Elvis Presley returns to Hollywood, California to film G.I. Blues August 10 - Filming of West... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Return of the Seven(1966) aka Return of the Magnificent Seven is the belated first sequel to the 1960 seminal western The Magnificent Seven. ... See also: 1959 in film 1960 1961 in film 1950s in film 1960s in film years in film film // Events April 20 - for the first time since coming home from military service in Germany, Elvis Presley returns to Hollywood, California to film G.I. Blues August 10 - Filming of West... Justus D. Barnes, from The Great Train Robbery The Western is one of the classic American literary and film genres. ... John Eliot Sturges (3 January 1911 – 18 August 1982) Known as The dean of big_budget action movies made during the 1950s and 1960. Sturges movies include The Magnificent Seven, The Great Escape, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Ice Station Zebra and Marooned (movie). ... Akira Kurosawa , 23 March 1910—6 September 1998) was a prominent Japanese film director, film producer, and screenwriter. ... For other uses, see Seven Samurai (disambiguation). ...

Plot

A Mexican village is periodically raided by a gang of bandits led by Calvera (Eli Wallach). As he and his men ride away from their latest visit, Calvera promises to return. Eli Herschel Wallach (born December 7, 1915) is an American film, TV and stage actor. ...

Desperate, the village leaders travel to a border town to buy guns to defend themselves. They approach a veteran gunslinger, Chris (Yul Brynner), for help. He tells them that guns alone will not do them any good; they are simple farmers, not fighters. They then ask him to lead them, but Chris rejects them, telling them that a single man is not enough. They keep at him though, and he eventually gives in. He recruits men, though the pay is only a pittance. Yul Brynner (July 11, 1920[1] – October 10, 1985) was a Russian-born Broadway and Academy Award-winning Hollywood actor. ...

Brynner, McQueen, Buchholz, Bronson, Vaughn, Dexter, Coburn: The Magnificent Seven

First to answer the call is the inexperienced Chico (Horst Buchholz), but he is rejected. Harry Luck (Brad Dexter), an old friend of Chris, joins because he believes Chris is actually looking for treasure. Vin (Steve McQueen) signs on after going broke from gambling. Other recruits include Bernardo O'Reilly (Charles Bronson), Britt (James Coburn), fast and deadly with his switchblade, and Lee (Robert Vaughn), who is on the run and needs someplace to lay low until things cool down. Chico trails the group as they ride south, and is eventually allowed to join them. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Horst Werner Buchholz (December 4, 1933 – March 3, 2003) was a German born actor, best remembered for his part in The Magnificent Seven. ... Brad Dexter born Boris Milanovich on April 9, 1917 in Goldfield, Nevada of Serbian parentage. ... Steve McQueen (March 24, 1930 – November 7, 1980) was an Academy Award-nominated American movie actor, nicknamed The King of Cool.[1] He was one of the biggest box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s due to a popular anti-hero persona. ... For other persons named Charles Bronson, see Charles Bronson (disambiguation). ... James Coburn in Sam Peckinpahs Cross of Iron (1977). ... A switchblade (also known as automatic knife, switch, or in British English flick knife), is a type of knife with a folding blade that springs out of the grip when a button or lever on the grip is pressed. ... Robert Francis Vaughn (born November 22, 1932) is an American actor noted for stage, film and television work, and best known as suave spy Napoleon Solo in the popular 1960s TV series The Man from U.N.C.L.E., although he continues to be a popular television actor into...

Upon reaching the village, they begin training the residents. As they work together, the gunmen and villagers begin to bond. Chico finds a woman he is attracted to, Petra (Rosenda Monteros).

Calvera returns and is disappointed to find that the villagers have hired gunmen. After a brief exchange, the bandits are chased away. Later, Chico spies on the outlaws and returns with the grim news that Calvera and his men are planning to return.

The seven debate whether they should leave, but decide to remain. They make a surprise raid on the bandit camp, but find it empty. Returning, they are ambushed by Calvera's men, who have taken over the village. Their lives are spared, as Calvera fears others coming for revenge if the Americans are killed; they are disarmed and escorted out of the village.

All, but Harry decide to finish the job the next morning. During the ensuing battle, Harry returns to rescue Chris, and is mortally wounded. Bernardo is killed protecting some children he had befriended; Lee and Britt are also slain. Seeing the gunmen's bravery, the villagers grab whatever they can use as weapons and join the battle. The bandits are routed. Calvera himself is shot by Chris; puzzled, he asks why a man like Chris came back, but dies without receiving an answer.

As the three survivors leave, Chico decides to stay with Petra. Chris and Vin ride away, pausing briefly at the graves of their fallen comrades. Chris observes, "Only the farmers won. We lost. We always lose."

Cast

• Yul Brynner as Chris Adams
• Steve McQueen as Vin
• Charles Bronson as Bernardo O'Reilly
• James Coburn as Britt
• Horst Buchholz as Chico
• Brad Dexter as Harry Luck
• Robert Vaughn as Lee
• Eli Wallach as Calvera
• Rosenda Monteros as Petra
• Whit Bissell as Undertaker
• Vladimir Sokoloff as "Old Man"
• Jorge Martínez de Hoyos as Hilario
• Rico Alaniz as Sotero
• Natividad Vacío as Tomas

Yul Brynner (July 11, 1920[1] – October 10, 1985) was a Russian-born Broadway and Academy Award-winning Hollywood actor. ... Steve McQueen (March 24, 1930 – November 7, 1980) was an Academy Award-nominated American movie actor, nicknamed The King of Cool.[1] He was one of the biggest box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s due to a popular anti-hero persona. ... For other persons named Charles Bronson, see Charles Bronson (disambiguation). ... James Coburn in Sam Peckinpahs Cross of Iron (1977). ... Horst Werner Buchholz (December 4, 1933 – March 3, 2003) was a German born actor, best remembered for his part in The Magnificent Seven. ... Brad Dexter born Boris Milanovich on April 9, 1917 in Goldfield, Nevada of Serbian parentage. ... Robert Francis Vaughn (born November 22, 1932) is an American actor noted for stage, film and television work, and best known as suave spy Napoleon Solo in the popular 1960s TV series The Man from U.N.C.L.E., although he continues to be a popular television actor into... Eli Herschel Wallach (born December 7, 1915) is an American film, TV and stage actor. ... Whit Bissell (born 29 October 1909, died 5 March 1996) was an American character actor. ...

The Seven and the Samurai

Modeled on Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai, this American remake preserves the important scenes and themes of the original, with a few alterations. Akira Kurosawa , 23 March 1910—6 September 1998) was a prominent Japanese film director, film producer, and screenwriter. ... For other uses, see Seven Samurai (disambiguation). ...

Notable changes include:

• In order to gain permission to film in Mexico, changes had to be made to make sure that Mexicans were portrayed favorably. In the original, the village patriarch tells his scouts specifically to hire samurai to defend the village. This was originally to have been carried over, but the Mexican government thought it made it appear that Mexicans were unable to defend themselves. Therefore, it was changed so that the patriarch tells the scouts to buy weapons. It is upon their first meeting with Chris that he tells them they will need hired guns. As in the original, the hired guns teach the villagers how to defend themselves as well, and the villagers take a strong active role in the fighting.

• A scene in which the villagers capture and then torture to death one of the bandits is omitted entirely.

• In the original, most of the seven have never met before. Prior to meeting for their job, Kambei only knew Shichiroji. In this film, Chris Adams seems to know most of his comrades except for Vin, Chico, and Bernardo (who was recommended by Harry).

• Chris Adams's introduction is markedly different from Kambei's. In the original, Kambei makes his first impression on the farmers by pretending to be a monk in order to rescue a child taken captive by a bandit. In this film, he and Vin come to the farmers' attention by taking a dead Native American to be buried at a local cemetery, over the objections of some local townspeople. Though a very different introduction, each is suited to its respective culture.

• Katsushiro, the aspiring young samurai, and Kikuchiyo, the would-be samurai whose hatred for the farmers hides a painful past, are combined into the single character, Chico. Unlike Kikuchiyo, Chico is not killed at the climax of the film. Chico is given Kikuchiyo's pivotal moment halfway through the film, in which he chastises the farmers for reacting to the samurai with fear, yet still expecting to receive their protection.

• In the original, the samurai make a pre-emptive strike against the bandits campsite, losing one of their own in the process. Thus, when the bandits attack the village, the samurai are short one man, and three more are killed in the battles. In this version, that attack takes place after Calvera's band have been driven off, and they find that the camp is abandoned.

• The bandit leader Calvera plays a much larger role than any of the unnamed bandits in the original.

• As in the original, only three of the seven survive. Chico or Katsushiro falls in love with a farmer's daughter, thus fulfilling her father's greatest fear and alienating her from him. Once the fighting is over, the farmer's daughter refuses to return Katsushiro's affections. In this one, Chico stays behind to be with her. This sets the scene for the first sequel, Return of the Seven, which begins with Chico being shot and wounded after pulling his gun and belt out of a linen chest.

• Both films end with the leader of the Samurai and the town patriarch agreeing that while the samurai or gunfighters have fought bravely, only the farmers will truly be able to reap the benefits of the sacrifice. Those who have died cannot enjoy the fruits of their labor, and those who lived must move on with their lives.

Return of the Seven(1966) aka Return of the Magnificent Seven is the belated first sequel to the 1960 seminal western The Magnificent Seven. ...

Production

Filming began on March 1, 1960, on location in Mexico, where both the village and the U.S. border town were built for the film. The first scene shot was the first part of the six gunfighters' journey to the Mexican village, prior to Chico being brought into the group. is the 60th day of the year (61st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ...

The film shares three of its stars (Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson and James Coburn), its director and producer (John Sturges), its composer (Elmer Bernstein), and an uncredited screenwriter (Walter Newman) with The Great Escape (1963). Walter Newman was born in New York City on 11 February 1916. ... The Great Escape, written by James Clavell, W.R. Burnett, and Walter Newman (uncredited), and directed by John Sturges is a popular 1963 World War II film, based on a true story about Allied prisoners of war with a record for escaping from German prisoner-of-war camps. ...

Cinematographic process

Further information: CinemaScope

The cinematographic process used in this film was anamorphic. This process was first developed in the 1940s but did not become widely used until the 1960s. In essence, a film with an anamorphic aspect ratio appears wider (more panoramic) than when shot and projected at a ratio of 4:3 (width:height), which had been the industry standard until wide-screen formats gained popularity. This change was largely intended to give the cinema a look that would further distinguish it from -- and give a competing edge over -- television (which used the 4:3 format). A Fox logo used to promote the CinemaScope process. ... Anamorphic widescreen is a cinematography and photography technique for capturing a widescreen picture on standard 35mm film. ...

Sequels, television series

The film's success inspired three sequels:

• Return of the Seven (1966)
• Guns of the Magnificent Seven (1969)
• The Magnificent Seven Ride (1972)

None of these were as successful as the original film. The film also inspired a television series, The Magnificent Seven, which ran from 1997 to 2000. Return of the Seven(1966) aka Return of the Magnificent Seven is the belated first sequel to the 1960 seminal western The Magnificent Seven. ... Guns of the Magnificent Seven (1969) is the second sequel to the seminal western The Magnificent Seven ( itself based on Kurosawas Seven Samurai). ... The Magnificent Seven Ride is a 1972 western film and is the third and last sequel of the 1960 western, The Magnificent Seven. ... The Magnificent Seven was a TV series based on the 1960 movie, which aired between 1997 and 2000. ...

Score

The film's famous main theme is by Elmer Bernstein. The score was nominated for an Academy Award in 1961. Elmer Bernstein (pronounced Bern-steen[1]) (April 4, 1922 – August 18, 2004) was an Academy and two-time Golden Globe award winning film score composer. ... Academy Award The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent and most watched film awards ceremony in the world. ...

Later, the theme was used in commercials for Marlboro (before the cigarette ad ban) and Victoria Bitter beer. The theme was cheekily included in the James Bond film Moonraker (also from United Artists). Other uses include a passage on an album by the rock band Yes in the early 1970s, in the 2005 film The Ringer, as entrance music for the British band James, as well as certain episodes of The Simpsons that had a "western" theme (mainly in the episode entitled "Dude, Where's My Ranch?"). Marlboro logo Marlboro is a brand of cigarette made by Altria. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Flemings image of James Bond; commissioned to aid the Daily Express comic strip artists. ... Moonraker is a 1979 spy film. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For The Legend of Zelda episode with the same name, see The Ringer (episode) The Ringer is a 2005 comedy starring Johnny Knoxville, Katherine Heigl, and Brian Cox with cameos by Terry Funk and Jesse Ventura. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Simpsons redirects here. ... Dude, Wheres My Ranch? is the eighteenth episode of The Simpsons fourteenth season. ...

Pop-culture references

• The film's concept is parodied in (¡Three Amigos! (1986), starring Chevy Chase, Steve Martin and Martin Short), as three Hollywood western actors who are hired by poor Mexican villagers to protect them from bandits.

• Robert Vaughn (Lee) later played the recurring character Judge Oren Travis in the television series The Magnificent Seven (1998).

• Vaughn would also would play the character Gelt in Roger Corman's 1980 film Battle Beyond the Stars, essentially The Magnificent Seven given a science fiction makeover. The character is clearly an update of Lee from the earlier film, even to the extent that much of Gelt's dialogue is carried over, near-verbatim, from The Magnificent Seven.

• Stephen King's Dark Tower series is acknowledged by the author to have been influenced by Sturges' film, as well as its antecedent Seven Samurai. In particular, the fifth book in the series, Wolves of the Calla, borrows heavily from the themes and plotlines from the films. In this book the town defended by the series' "gunslingers" is named "Calla Bryn Sturgis" in homage to both John Sturges and Yul Brynner.

• The final episode of the first season of the British comedy Blackadder, The Seventh Seal, features the main character (played by Rowan Atkinson) assembling seven evil-doers to overthrow the king. Blackadder and other characters parody this film by signalling the number of men who have been recruited with their fingers, as Chris and Vin do throughout the first half of this film.

• The sixth season episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "The Magnificent Ferengi is a reference to this film.

" * "The Magnificent Warriors", an episode of the original Battlestar Galactica, has a plot based on this film. ¡Three Amigos! is a 1986 comedy western film, produced by George Folsey, Jr. ... Chevy Chase (born October 8, 1943) is an Emmy Award-winning American comedian, writer, and television and film actor. ... For the football player of the same name see Steve Martin (football player). ... Martin Hayter Short, CM (born March 26, 1950 in Hamilton, Ontario) is a Canadian/American actor, writer, and producer. ... Roger Corman. ... Battle Beyond the Stars is a Roger Corman-produced science fiction film, directed by Jimmy T. Murakami and released in 1980. ... Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals. ... Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of over 200 stories including over 50 bestselling horror novels. ... The Dark Tower painting by Michael Whelan The Dark Tower is a series of seven books by American writer Stephen King that tells the tale of lead character Roland Deschains quest for the Dark Tower. ... Wolves of the Calla is the fifth book in Stephen Kings The Dark Tower series. ... Blackadder is the generic name that encompasses four series of an acclaimed BBC One historical sitcom, along with several one-off installments. ... Rowan Sebastian Atkinson (born 6 January 1955) is an English comedian, actor and writer, famous for his title roles in the British television comedies Blackadder and Mr. ... Space station Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (ST:DS9 or STDS9 or DS9 for short) is a science fiction television series produced by Paramount and set in the Star Trek universe. ... The Magnificent Ferengi is a sixth season episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. ... The Magnificent Warriors is an episode of the original Battlestar Galactica television series. ... Battlestar Galactica. ...

• In Westworld, written and directed by Michael Crichton, Yul Brynner played an android impersonating his black-dressed gunfighter role as "Chris Adams".

• It also inspired the Kazakhstan film The Wild East.

• There have also been adaptations of the film's plot, notably in a German Karl May movie called Thunder at the Border (Winnetou und sein Freund Old Firehand) (1966), and in the science fiction movie Battle Beyond the Stars (1980), in which Robert Vaughn reprised his role from The Magnificent Seven.

• It also inspired the Bollywood (India) film 'Sholay' which went on to become the second longest running film in Indian cinema history.

• In the European version of the Playstation 2 Videogame "Ape Escape 3", the monkeys are filming a movie called "The Magnificent Monkeys", almost surely a parody of The Magnificent Seven.

• The hit 1980s television series The A-Team was initially conceived as a cross between The Magnificent Seven and The Dirty Dozen. Interestingly, James Coburn was reportedly considered for the role of The A-Team's leader, Colonel John "Hannibal" Smith. The role went to George Peppard - who was initially chosen to play Vin in The Magnificent Seven.

• Episodes 131 to 133 of the anime series Hokuto no Ken 2 (Fist of the North Star in English) features a group of cowboys modeled after the titular characters from the film known as the Kouya no shichi-nin ("The Wasteland Seven"), which is the Japanese title of the film.

• The 2007 University of Hawaii Warrior Football team has seven dynamic players that have also adopted the "Magnificent Seven" namesake. Slotbacks Davone Bess, Ryan Grice-Mullen and Jason Ferguson, Wideout Jason Rivers, Running Back Jazen Anderson and Cornerbacks Gerard Lewis and Myron Newberry round out the group. While remaining a team, the boys have a strong bond that takes place even off of the field.

• The Egyptian movie Shams El Zanaty starring Adel Emam is based on the plot of The Magnificent Seven, with an Egyptian village instead of a mexican one.

Westworld was a 1973 film written and directed by Michael Crichton. ... Michael Crichton (born October 23, 1942, pronounced [1]) is an American author, film producer, film director, and television producer. ... The Wild East (Russian: , Dikiy vostok, Dikij vostok) is a Russian-language film created in Kazakstan shortly after the dissolution of the Soviet Union released in 1993. ... Karl May. ... Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals. ... Battle Beyond the Stars is a Roger Corman-produced science fiction film, directed by Jimmy T. Murakami and released in 1980. ... Robert Francis Vaughn (born November 22, 1932) is an American actor noted for stage, film and television work, and best known as suave spy Napoleon Solo in the popular 1960s TV series The Man from U.N.C.L.E., although he continues to be a popular television actor into... Sholay (Hindi: शोले, Urdu: شعلے) (advertised in English as Embers, Flames, or Flames of the Sun) is the biggest blockbuster in the history of Bollywood, Indias Hindi film industry. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The Dirty Dozen is a 1967 war film directed by Robert Aldrich from the novel by E.M. Nathanson. ... George Peppard, Jr. ... It has been suggested that this article be split into multiple articles. ... Adel Emam (sometimes credited as: Adel Imam), (Arabic: عادل إمام) (born May 17, 1940 (or, according to other sources, December 17, 1946), is a popular Egyptian movie and stage actor. ...

External links

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The Magnificent Seven

• The Magnificent Seven at the Internet Movie Database
• The Magnificent Seven at All Movie Guide
• The Magnificent Seven at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Magnificent Seven at the Movie Review Query Engine

Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Wikiquote is a sister project of Wikipedia, using the same MediaWiki software. ... The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, and video games. ... All Movie Guide is a commercial database of information about movie stars, movies and television shows. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Movie Review Query Engine (acronym: MRQE) is one of the largest indices of movie reviews available online. ...