The Magnificent Seven (Collector's Edition)

The mark of a great movie is whether you can keep watching it year after year and not get bored. This is one such movie. I can't count how many times I've seen it, but it still keeps me enthralled. Outside the Dollars Trilogy, this has to one of the greatest westerns ever made. Besides the stellar cast, great story, and iconic soundtrack, there is the understated acting and minimal dialogue that gives the movie an Oriental feel. Indeed, 'The Magnificent Seven' is based on Akira Kurosawa's classic 1954 epic samurai action film 'The Seven Samurai'. Steve McQueen, who plays Vin, is an expert in the art of understatement, relying on a glance, a snap of the fingers, or a condensed piece of dialogue to convey much more than what is said. (Steve McQueen's first wife, Neile Adams, was born in Manila, Philippines, and later moved to the US with her family). Much of this understatement owes a lot to John Sturges who directed 'The Magnificent Seven' (1960) and would later direct many of the same actors in 'The Great Escape' (1963). Sturges generally avoided unnecessary camera movements or flashy techniques that would distract from the story and its characters. What's amazing about the seven main characters in 'The Magnificent Seven' is that each character is unique and by the end of the movie we feel that we know them all quite well. The death of Bernardo (Charles Bronson) and Britt (James Coburn) are particularly poignant and will have you reaching for the tissue box. Interestingly, Kurosawa, a director not easily impressed, raved about 'The Magnificent Seven' and even sent Sturges a ceremonial sword as a gift. This gesture speaks volumes and should tell you how great this film really is. All I can say is just watch it. The runtime of 128 minutes will pass in a heartbeat.

Fantastic 4k transfer, the bonus disc will not play in the UK.

One of the best movies of its kind ever made with a sterling cast.

Great classic 👌

Great movie good product

Great product, good delivery time.

I only spotted that this disc was coming from the USA after I had ordered it, so I was worried that it wouldn't play on my 4K blu-ray player. But luckily it was fine! I was worried about this because I bought the 4K version of A Hard Days Night some time back and my player refused to play it - it complained about the wrong region. But no problem this time! The film is excellent. Although it is a restoration, there is still some grain visible and the sound, of course, is very basic. A classic film.

My husband's favorite

Without question, it is one of the greatest Westerns and films ever made. I, despite being such a massive fan of Westerns, embarrassingly have never seen it before now. In my defence, there is a frustrating trend of great classics not being aired on regular television anymore, other than maybe genre channels, and streaming services have only slightly improved this issue. Alas, I'm not a fan of streaming, so when I got the email that Shout! was releasing a newly restored version, I saw my chance. The film is beautifully shot, which blends wonderfully with the fantastic music by Elmer Bernstein. I've been in love with his theme for this picture for most of my life, even if I hadn't seen the film. The story has great messages of resilience and camaraderie, with unique and memorable characters, though only Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson, Eli Wallach, and Horst Buchholz's characters, as well as several of the Mexican villagers, have defined and explored personas. That is the nature of films of this age and genre, as well as the natural cost of having such a large cast. That being said, I may be asking for too much, as I've fallen back in love with reading, and greatly appreciate the freedom to explore characters thoroughly. What is explored are subjects that have completely left cinema and storytelling for a long time. I don't want to spoil it here, though what I can say is there is a subversion that actually works, going in a direction that has not been ventured in what feels like forever. The classic archetypes are here as well, which feels so refreshing to see—again, missing from modern storytelling. Shout!, as always, did a wonderful job in their inclusion of special features, which they seem to be the leaders in, especially given it has now fallen out of favour in modern releases. I own no less than 15 releases from Shout! (not including this latest addition), and while they command a higher price tag, they are worth every penny by going above and beyond. The only thing that's disappointing is the lack of extra dubbing and subbing. I recently bought Rio Bravo on blu-ray, and it has extra audio tracks, as well as subtitles. I understand that if there aren't any dubs, then having to cast and record new ones would be expensive, but given how popular the film was in Europe, I would imagine those tracks would be easy enough to come by. If not, then subtitles, while tedious, would be inexpensive. A small flaw, but one that irks me, as my father loves Westerns, and would have enjoyed being able to watch it in Italian. That being said, this is a truly great release for one of the most culturally significant films, if not one of the greatest films, ever made. For many years I had heard that the film was a remake of the Kurosawa "Seven Samurai" movie, which I dismissed, thinking it was just another one of these attempts to delegitimize Western stories. Even if the documentary was not included on this blu-ray, it was VERY clear that it was a remake, as I had seen "Seven Samurai" first while at college. I was pleased to learn that Kurosawa was inspired by American Westerns when he made "Seven Samurai", and he was very humbled and pleased by "The Magnificent Seven". No greater complement indeed. I'm very happy to finally have this in my collection. I can only hope more people buy this, not only to enjoy the best of what Westerns have to offer, but so that Shout! get the message to release more classic Westerns. If they do to Westerns what they've done for Horror, then we are golden. TLDR: Great movie. Great rerelease. Saddle up, pilgrim.

This is a classic forever film. Epic actors, storyline, filmatography and direction. I can and do watch this film repeatedly. There's a very peurile and inferior imitation re-make disaster. There's no way to adequately imitate the original film.

Die glorreichen Sieben ist einer der großen Klassiker des Western Genre, mit Recht, denn der Film ist wirklich gut. Die Fortsetzungen (es gab glaube ich 3 ) kann man getrost vergessen. Das Remake mit Denzel Washington ist auch recht gut. Aber dieser hier ist das Original, und der Lohnt sich für Western Fans auf jeden Fall.

It was great watching this classic as well as the "making of" on this DVD which really clarified why this film was so popular, especially in Europe (of all places). It's a western, of course. A gang of Mexican bandits, about 30 of them, invade a village and demand their tribute. When met with resistance, a bullet in the belly is the villager's reward. What to do? They're just farmers, not hired guns. The elder of the village says go and buy guns! [It's interesting, in the "making of" of this film, they had a censor who had to ensure that the Mexican people were not be degraded in this film as they were in an earlier film, Vera Cruz. In the original Japanese film, The Seven Samurai, the Seven were hired. This looked like a degradation, so the censor accepted that the villagers would buy guns, not men. That they did hire men was an afterthought rather than a main plot point of the earlier adaptation.] Two men (played by Yul Brynner and Steve McQueen) overhear a funeral director (played by that guy from Time Tunnel!) lament that he cannot bury an Indian body in the cemetery because he'll get shot at. Apparently the town is so racist that to bury an Indian body into a white cemetery is stating you're an "Indian lover" and could get you shot! After safely getting the funeral wagon to the plot (after much shooting, joking around and a little whiskey to keep ya warm), Brynner (Chris) is confronted by the villagers as to where to get guns, etc. They convey that they're being taken advantage of and want to get rid of this bandito. Throughout the film the question is asked why Chris does this. Is it an honor thing? Certainly not money (20 dollars, even by 1895 standards is cheap). And could be he just likes the thrill of being a hired gun. It's a matter of honor and integrity that the audience is left to ponder. What makes the film great are several themes: The camaraderie of seven men, who separate are pretty good but as a solid team are a force to be reckoned with. This theme has been repeated time and time again, but The Magnificent Seven was the first film to do this successfully. It's been copied since. Another theme is the music! Bernstein's theme is one of the most recognized and even earned an Oscar for that year. [As an aside, the film was not that hot right out of the gate. It was only after its hit in Europe and then its subsequent replay to American audiences that it finally caught on.] Each character gets his scene time. Each has his own problems and these are confronted. And not all the Seven make it out alive. But they all contributed, to a greater or lesser degree, to the successful liberation of the village. And what of the villagers? Some resented being helped. Some resented having their lives complicated. What was the harm in letting this bandito come down and have some food? What a price to pay, freedom? The scene of betrayal was especially poignant with me, really struck a chord. The realistic scenery, the horse & cowboy battles, the realism of the people and their plight, make it clear why this film has been copied, a TV series and several sequels have been made! And the new faces of actors who some would go on to bigger and better things - McQueen and Robert Vaughan as a few. Great "making of" on the DVD. We listen to interviews from the original cast, the controversy of the script (the original scriptwriter did not want a credit), the fear of failure of the film (would it flop?) and so on. Fascinating piece of cinematic history - the last real American western!

A small Mexican village is being ravaged by an army of marauding bandits. Villagers seek help from 7 American gunfighters. The job is about 6 weeks long and the pay is $20.00 per man. This movie is stunning in 4K and has an amazing cast of brilliant actors. The scenery is spectacular and gorgeous. Action, suspense, bravery, love connection and a lot of gunfire throughout. Just a great classic western movie 👍🤗💝🙏