The original Magnificent Seven is a classic of modern western cinema.  The cast was no small thing, a collection of actors at the top of their game in 1960.  Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Eli Wallach, Charles Bronson, Robert Vaughn, Brad Dexter, and James Coburn headed the film about a group of gunmen hired to protect a small Mexican village from invaders.

The 1960s film was itself a remake in the American ‘old west’ style of the masterpiece that is Akira Kurosawa’s 1954 The Seven Samurai, so this 2016 version will be the third time the story has been told.  Here is the first trailer for the MGM feature:

The new cast is pretty well assembled; Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D’Onofrio, Byung-hun Lee, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, and Martin Sensmeier are the NEW ‘Seven’ with Peter Sarsgaard and Matt Bomer just two of the supporting cast.

This film COULD be amazing, but it seems like every time the modern filmmakers try to recapture the allure of the West, it falls flat. If Magnificent Seven does well, expect that long awaited/rumored Deadwood film to finally happen, and the genre to become revamped.  Last year we had The Revenant, and before that The Hateful 8, both pretty solid additions to the American West lexicon of film.

While the remake train is one I don’t *REALLY* want a ticket for, it seems like we don’t have a choice.  Like Snowpiercer but for recycled Hollywood greatness, so we must resign ourselves to find the good in each new telling of a familiar story.

The film boasts a score by the late great composer James Horner, and it is the last film he worked on before his tragic death last year. Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, Equalizer) is no stranger to high action films, and is on board to direct.

The Magnificent Seven is set to open in theaters worldwide on September 23rd, 2016.