Random Thoughts
The dual traits of nobility and heroism among gunslingers have always been a hotbed of debate for decades now. More often than not, there is a very thin “Lakshman Rekh” (lol, Sorry Rekha, couldn’t resist that one) dividing the good and bad. Though world history is replete with epic tales of heroes who battle evil to save the good, I’ve always wondered on what side of the line heroic cowboys lay.
They too are outlaws, murderers, cutthroats, derelict barflies and cattle rustlers, aren’t they? I searched for an earnest answer in many a western movie and was glad to find the reply in “The Magnificent Seven”. Without a doubt inspired from the legendary Akira Kurosawa’s Japanese cult classic – “Seven Samurai”, TMS is an engaging adventure with a surprisingly large dose of morality. It attained cult status and led to the spawning of half a dozen sub-genres of stylish westerns including our own desi versions – the breath taking “Sholay” and a much hyped disgrace, “Chinagate”.
The Story
A small Mexican farming village is repeatedly looted by the notorious bandit, Calvera (Eli Wallach) and his band of forty followers. Despite their best efforts, the villagers are left with just enough provisions to fill their stomachs. Clearly at their wits end, the village elders decide to ride across the US border and buy guns and ammunition to fight the bandits. Here, they bump into Chris Rock (a smashing Yul Brynner) whom they innocently approach and request to help them in buying guns.
“Why don’t you hire gunmen?” he asks. “They come cheaper than the guns”.
Chris then sets about selecting a band of gunmen with different motives to take on Calvera. The motley band soon comprises Vin (Steve McQueen), Harry (Brad Dexter), Lee (Robert Vaughn), Bernado (Charles Bronson) and Britt (James Coburn). Britt’s introduction is particularly Amitabh Bachchanesque in execution and is a sight to behold. The seventh member is a young gun, Chico (Horst Buchholz) who wants to join the group and learn the tricks of the trade and despite Chris’s reluctance to take him on, Chico wont take “No” for an answer.
The seven train the simple villagers in the use of arms and fortify the village to surprise Calvera when he comes next. The villagers are initially wary of the seven recruits but a strong bond soon grows between them all. The scene where Calvera first confronts the Magnificent Seven is a masterpiece by itself. In an otherwise largely restrictive role, Eli Wallach excels in the few scenes that he gets. The dialogues are marvelously perfect and crackle with subtle humour such as the ones below.
1. Calvera looks around the village and remarks to Chris, “Walls. There are lots of new walls around…but they won’t keep me out.
Chris: They’re built to keep you in.
- Calvera (referring to his “right” to loot the villagers): if God did not want them sheared, He would not have made them sheep. What do you say?
Chris: Ride on.
Calvera and his followers are blown away by the seven heroes but Calvera is not one to take an insult lying down. My favourite line occurs when Calvera sends three of his “sniffer dogs” to go ahead and scout the village for signs of trouble. Chris instructs Britt to capture one of the three alive and get him back as a hostage. Thanks to an interfering Chico, things go wrong and two bandits are killed. The third jumps on his horse and rides away. Britt takes aim and shoots at the escaping bandit from a distance of half a mile or so with a pistol.
’’That was the greatest shot I’ve ever seen, ’’ says a visibly excited Chico to Britt after the bandit falls off from his horse. ’’The worst, ’’ says Britt, ’’I was aiming at the horse.’’
Gradually, the gunmen who signed on for the “contract” to protect the village for reasons ranging from a measly 20 dollars a day to the sheer enjoyment of “being out there” take such a liking for the village and its inhabitants that they are even willing to sacrifice their lives for its welfare.
As expected, the good triumphs over the evil, though not without many casualties. There are various twists and turns even in a simple tale such as this but the one that perplexed me the most was why Calvera, such a ruthless bandit, would let off the seven heroes with just a warning to make themselves scarce from the village. That particular sequence looks too contrived and manipulated just for the sake of twisting the tale.
Thus Spake TiC
The actors are all top class though they were unknown faces except for Brynner and McQueen. I particularly liked the way in which the introduction of each character was smoothly built into the movie without looking out of sorts. Brynner is clearly the scene-stealer with a shining bald pate, triangular shaped boots, the careful, measured swagger, the omnipresent cigar in his mouth and an all-black costume. The others are perfect casts because have great physiques, difficult-to-forget faces and each plays his role with great aplomb.
An avid fan would obviously feel bad that the incomparable Eli Wallach didn’t get a meatier role. Throughout the 130 minute long movie, he’s present in the first 15 and the final 30, that’s all! Being the great actor that he is, makes a deep impression in the minds of viewers and conveys the character of an evil Calvera with hate, contempt, ruthlessness and humour.
The director (John Sturges) does a terrific job of nearly matching the critical plaudits that were heaped on “Seven Samurai”. The seven heroes are not made to look like supermen. Instead, they are shown as mere commoners who assemble to fight for a good cause rather than money. Sturges had done a few other westerns earlier but this was probably his best offering, only to be surpassed by “The Great Escape” a few years later.
Music. What can I say about Elmer Bernstein’s memorable background score? It’s probably the second most recognizable theme music after Ennio Morricone’s masterpiece in “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly”. He makes judicious use of the mouth organ and percussions to heighten the on-screen proceedings. Interestingly, the music rights for the theme music were bought by RJ Reynolds for a piddly sum of $ 5000 and used for many decades in the Marlboro TV commercials until they were banned.
The final dialogue uttered by Brynner sends out a strong message as he remarks to Vin, “We lost. We always lose”.