The Magnificent Seven Ride! (1972) Online

This is the last sequel to ¨Magnificent seven¨ with the skinny Lee Van Cleef as tough gunslinger named Chris (whose character was played by Yul Brynner in two occasions and one performed by Lee Van Cleef and George Kennedy). He's nowadays as sheriff , Marshal Chris Adams , who turns down a friend's request to help stop the depredations of a band of Mexican bandits , but then his spouse (Mariette Hartley) has been kidnapped by a gang . When his wife is abducted by bank thieves and his friend is murdered capturing the last outlaw , Chris feels obligated to take up his partner's cause . Then Chris along with a journalist (Michael Callan) set off in pursuit bandit gunfighters (Gary Busey among them) , as he recruits five prisoners to track down the desperadoes . Besides , Chris helping his buddy (Ralph Waite) must free a Mexican village (inhabited by women as Stefanie Powers , among others) besieged by nasty outlaws who are devastating the small location . Lee van Cleef is decided to take a group of prisoners and strike a blow against the Mexican bandits . He goes to Tucson Territorial Prison where a bunch of misfits , murderers , robbers , rapists and other prisoners (with a TV star-studded cast such as Pedro Armendariz , Luke Askew, William Lucking, Ed Lauter, and James B. Sikking ) get a chance to redeem themselves . As Chris recruits various Magnificent Men and once again defending hapless people from their oppressors . As a brand of new seven , doing their number , they put their lives on the line and let it ride .

The last in the original series of four ¨The Magnificent Seven¨ movies , here Lee Van Cleef as Chris , substituting Yul Brynner , who played the role in two occasions , and one performed by George Kennedy . Yul Brynner insisted he would only make the sequels if Steve McQueen was not involved , McQueen felt the plot was too absurd and for this, and other reasons, was not interested anyway . Van Cleef as a two-fisted avenger sheriff is good as well as his role of ¨Sabata¨, meanwhile Yul Brynner left the Chris character for playing the ¨Cleef's Sabata¨ role in ¨Indio Black¨ . The story is similar to previous entries , adding ¨Dirty dozen¨ wake , including customary outlaw band formed by an eclectic gang with diverse speciality , as dynamite or guns . The film gets action Western , exciting riding, shootouts, it's funny and entertaining , although nothing new but displays a television style . The movie contains some moment of grisly violence and even touching on the relationships between the women and the Magnificent . This is a drab , inferior sequel from the original and enduringly popular ¨The magnificent seven¨ (John Sturges,1960) that is equally remake to ¨The seven samurais¨ (in fact , it was Yul Brynner who approached producer Walter Mirisch with the idea of doing a Western adaptation of Akira Kurosawa's classic) . After that , followed ¨The return of the seven¨(Burt Kennedy,1966), again with Brynner and ¨Guns of the magnificent seven¨ (Paul Wendkos,1969) with George Kennedy and continued with a TV series and a Television movie realized in 1998 . As always , breathtaking and memorable musical score by the great Elmer Berstein. Elmer , whose score for the series is one of the best-known ever composed , also wrote the soundtrack for the parody of this film, 'Three amigos'. Appropriate cinematography by expert cameraman Fred J. Koenekamp (Patton, The inferno towering, Papillon) . The motion picture was regularly directed by George McCowan , a usual TV episodes director (Charlie's Angels , Banacek , Cannon , Starsky and Hutch) . The film will appeal to Lee Van Cleef fans .

The final chapter of the original series (as there was a short-lived TV series that came out decades later), but despite the recurring Chris character (this time portrayed by the steely Lee Van Cleef) and the Mexican bandits. "The Magnificent Seven Ride!" didn't feel like a magnificent seven film but more a western take on "The Dirty Dozen". Well when it starts it plays on a more personal, if adventurous note (Chris now a town Marshall seeking vengeance on a couple of bank robbers) before settling on the winsome, but safe story mechanics of the previous entries. A village (of women) in need of rescue from Mexican bandits. After chasing one of the bank robbers over the border, he finds himself accidentally getting involved as originally he knocked down the offer from an old friend to help in some shape. "He did my job. I'll do his." A team is hand-picked by Chris… this time it's criminals not bounty hunters. The same shtick, but still rather diverting. Arthur Rowe's story moves by quick enough, never becoming overly preachy but held together by some engaging dialogue passages and solid performances (Michael Callan, Luke Askew, Stefanie Powers, Pedro Armendáriz Jr. and Ralph Waite) that share a good rapport on screen. Also some familiar faces (James Sikking, Ed Lauter and Gary Busey) show up. Director George McCowan takes time to set it up with moments of reflection and humour, but there are well pieced shootouts with violence bursts and red sauce going around. The efficient direction stays grounded, even though it had that made for TV back-lot feel. The music score is recycled but still feels at home with the action. "Ride" won't blow you away, but I found it a slightly better effort over the last two instalments; "Return" and "Guns".

With about a week to go,I talked to my dad about what presents to get for a pal for their birthday. Knowing that me and my friend are hoping to see the new Magnificent Seven on the big screen,my dad decided to get him the final title from the original Magnificent Seven era.

The plot:

Trying to put his outlaw life behind him,Chris focuses on being the best sheriff in town,who makes sure that everyone serves their time for misdeeds (even when his wife Arrila pleas for a teen ragamuffin to be freed!) Learning that his old friend Jim Mackay is caught in an ambush,Chris goes to help him out. After helping him escape,Chris is asked by Mackay to help him protect a town that is being overrun by outlaws. Turning down the offer,Chris soon discovers that he will have to gather up the Magnificent Seven.

View on the film:

Crossing the floor, Lee Van Cleef gives a very good performance as Chris,who despite having an "old romantic" side which looks a bit odd against Cleef's credits,is given a smooth soulfulness from Cleef,which Cleef melts down with a pipe smoking stamp which keeps all the guys in line with a cold hard stare. For the lone Magnificent Seven flick of the 70's,director George McCowan and cinematographer Fred J. Koenekamp ride off to a dusty warmth,as smooth crane shots catch the glare from the sun gliding over the 7 outlaws.

Loading up short shots of action, McCowan gives the movie a grubby mood by splatting dry blood on the slow-draw cowboys. Mapping out the final set-piece, McCowan rolls out explosive shoot-outs,that catch a few surprising people in the crossfire. Bringing the sun down on the series,the screenplay by Arthur Rowe gets some Western grit under the gun by firmly pulling Chris from the straight and the narrow back to the path of the outlaw. Clearly inspired by The Dirty Dozen (a film I've not yet seen!) Rowe fails to give the other six members of the gang "their moment" and instead leaves them to fade into the background,and stops The Magnificent Seven from going out with all guns blazing.

This ain't your grandfather's western. It's disturbing, cynical, morally ambiguous, and despite the stunningly bright visuals and bouncy themesong by Elmer Bernstein, it's one of the darkest westerns I've ever seen. I couldn't help but wonder if this film served as the template for the Eastwood masterpiece UNFORGIVEN that would come 20 years later.

Unlike your classic westerns where the hero is infallable and can shoot the dandruff off a cockroach at 100 yards, this presents a realistic protagonist: a man who is troubled by questions of morality, one who doesn't always have the perfect plan, one who makes some pretty bad judgements and has to pay the price.

There are some real gems of dialogue that illustrate this human factor, delivered brilliantly by Lee Van Cleef in the role of Chris.

A priest says: "God works in mysterious ways."

Chris retorts: "Yeah, he confuses the heck out of me, too."

And throughout the film we get similar insight into the soul of a man who, despite his decades of experience, still doesn't have any answers--at least none that he can convince himself about, despite his bravado. For that reason alone, I rate this as one of my favourite westerns. Like the aforementioned UNFORGIVEN, this is one of the rare westerns that shows us what real life is about, not comic book goodguy/badguy stuff.

I can only assume that's why this film doesn't seem to be well received. The earlier MAG7 films seemed to be a clearcut war between right & wrong, whereas MAG7 RIDE gives us a war between two different forms of insanity. This presents a much more challenging story to follow. Viewers might be confused at how a "good guy" can leave his friends to die, or how he doesn't fight fair. But to me--and maybe to you--it gives the story a lot more substance. It also makes the story very unpredictable right from the beginning, and as a result it's one of the most suspenseful westerns I've seen.

A word about Stefanie Powers: FREAKIN AMAZING. Good golly miss molly, I didn't know she could act! If you think all she can do is "Hart to Hart" you gotta check this film out for her performance alone. It's a tough role, because she plays the emotional character amidst a backdrop of cold, leathery gunslingers. This formula is nothing new for western heroines; however I've noticed in other films the emotional heroine is too melodramatic, reducing her to the absurd. Stefanie, on the other hand, delivers the perfect subtle performance: very human yet not hysterical. She's smart, wise (in many cases wiser than any other character)... and I gotta say it... what a looker! You'll find your eyes glued to her in every scene.

A final note, for anyone who notices this sort of thing: horses. As with all old westerns we see a fair number of horses getting thrown around. I went back & watched these scenes in slowmo, and I'm pretty sure that these were trained horses who fell without harm. Unlike RETURN OF THE MAG7 which was absolutely brutal (in one case you see a trip wire pop up, sending a 40mph, 2000lb horse onto its head--I doubt that horse ever got up again), these horses always fall to the side and roll safely. It always sucks when you learn how many horses are killed in these old westerns, but this film seemed to be pretty tame in that respect. Well, enough of that. The bottom line is I really enjoyed this film, and if any of this review made sense to you, I think you'll really like it, too. Go Ride(!) to your nearest video store and check it out. (gawd that was a cheezy line. Maybe I'll edit it out later)

Of the four M7 films, I'd rate this number 2 - after the original, of course. It's also the hardest to find. I saw it in the theatre when it was released and caught it late night once. Chris is asked to do his usual bit of chasing off banditos but refuses. He's married and settled down now - not interested in adventure. But then his wife is killed. Chris heads south. "He did my job, now I'll do his." His helpers this time are a bunch of cut-throats he finds in the local prison. (Someone must have seen 'The Dirty Dozen' along the way.) Lots of good action shootouts. Lee Van Cleef is great playing his usual, 'Man with the Gunsight Eyes'.

Despite sporting "The Magnificent Seven" in it's title, this is basically a B-movie with a budget, albeit a very good B-movie. This throws in revenge elements and a little Dirty Dozen style criminal recruitment to spice up the usual heroics of the title protectors.

After seven or so years of mainly spaghetti westerns, it's nice to see Lee Van Cleef (taking over hosting duties from Yul Brynner and George Kennedy) headlining a major American western.

It's also a lot of fun to see a slew of familiar faces sharing the screen with Van Cleef, like Gary Busy, Luke Askew, Ed Lauter, and William Lucking (who's finally getting some recognition as a co-star on "The Sons Of Anarchy") among others.

It's too bad that second-billed Stefanie Powers isn't given anything much to do besides looking good and kissing Lee Van Cleef, who's wife has been dead less than a week!

Another Dirty Dozen western knock-off, this one being Italian, is Massacre At Fort Holman, also known as A Reason To Live, A Reason To Die, starring James Coburn, Telly Savalas, and Bud Spencer. If you liked this, then that one is highly recommended too.

If you like Lee Van Cleef you must have this film now on DVD in an excellent transfer. Yes this looks like a TV Movie. Yes the plot has been done a million times etc. But it DOES have an excellent performance by Van Cleef playing Chris. On the plus side - Some TV movies are pretty damn good! This is a solid western in all departments with good acting all around. It's almost a Whose who of 70's character actors- James Sikking, Ed Lauter, faces you've seen all the time and a young Gary Busey. The dialog is pretty brilliant at times(scene with Chris and the Monk is a hoot) and is never less than good. Stand out scenes for me were when Chris and the writer find his dead wife. Van cleef underplays fantastically and it is genuinely touching and simply done. Also his "love scene" - Stephanie Powers looks stunning and Van Cleef absolutely Oozes restrained machismo. It's a moment of simple affection portrayed spot on by both actors. If you want to know what "screen presence" means check this scene out. These two scenes alone are worth the price of the movie. If you're a fan of IL "Angel Eyes" this is a must have.

I would bet a month's salary "The Magnificent Seven Returns" (MSR) was made-for-TV. Other reviewers attest that MSR was a theatrical movie, and I'll take their word for it. The logical answer must assume it was originally shot for TV, and after a change-of-studio-heart, it was released theatrically instead. Every actor is primarily a TV actor: Mariette Hartley, Michael Callen, Ralfe Waite, Stephanie Powers... TV performers all. Lee Van Cleef split his time between TV and theater screens. Stephanie Powers has only made 3 or 4 "real" movie appearances in the last thirty years of a very prolific television career. Minor players are veteran small-screen actors who can be seen on old reruns of "Gunsmoke", "Wild Wild West","Streets of San Francisco," and so on.

The ho-hum sets are identical to the Universal Studios Tour sets, often seen in old episodic TV. And the editing betrays the one-or-two-takes-hurriedness of TV, with limited camera movements, positioning, cutting, and lighting. The sound track, exclusive of the original Berstein themes, are straight from seventies television. Yep, I'd bet money it was shot for TV.

That's an important point in evaluating MSR. Initially I watched MSR on cable assuming it was an old theatrical release. In comparison to the original "Magnificent Seven", it's a joke, a cartoon, an amateurish attempt at movie making. Acting, lighting, writing, settings, action, cinematography, music (exempting the Berstein themes), editing, pacing,...on and on....all pale in comparison to the classic "Magnificent Seven" which is close to the perfect 60's western, and one of the great action movies of all time.

However, viewed as an early 70's made-for-TV movie, the film is actually better than average. Those unfortunate enough to live through the 70's as an adult, know what I'm talking about. MSR would have competed favorably with "Alias Smith and Jones" and similarly bland network shows. During the seventies, "Gunsmoke" was a quality show, concentrating on character development rather than action, deemphasizing gun play to two shootouts a week. MSR has more action than a whole season of "Gunsmoke." In this light - in this frame of reference - MSR is passable entertainment, a cut above the TV fare from that decade.

Taking more of its plot from The Dirty Dozen than from the previous Magnificent Seven movies, The Magnificent Seven Ride! finds Lee Van Cleef in the role of Chris the leader, previously filled by Yul Brynner and George Kennedy.

There's a bandit named DeToro (Ron Stein) who apparently took over the role from Rudolfo Acosta mid point in the filming who's a really nasty devil, raping the women of a given place after the men have been killed is an avocation of his. When he rapes and kills Van Cleef's woman, it's time for Van Cleef and writer friend Michael Callan to find five more to make another seven.

Good men are hard to find so when you can't find good ones, get bad ones. Which Van Cleef does by going to the nearest prison and getting five specimens, William Lucking, Luke Askew, Pedro Armendariz, Jr., James Sikking, and Ed Lauter.

Obviously this part of the plot is completely ripped off from The Dirty Dozen. And Van Cleef does have an interesting way in both insuring his parolees don't desert him and guarantees that the bandit chief will meet him on ground of his own choosing. That's the big surprise of the plot and I won't reveal it.

Some surviving women of another town, Stefanie Powers, Mariette Hartley, Allyn Ann McLerie, and Melissa Murphy join up with the Dirty Seven knowing full well, it's either their protection or their open targets any time the bandits are having a booty call. This is the only Magnificent Seven film with any real women participation in it.

Still it doesn't quite come up to the standards of that first film. None of the successors do.

I recently watched all four of the Magnificent Seven movies and "The Magnificent Seven Ride!" was the last. While the first film was exceptional in every way, I can't say there was much reason for the other three films. Part of it is that the plots are pretty much the same as the first film. Part of it is that the cast kept changing. In the case of Chris, the leader of the seven, he was played by three different actors. Yul Brynner played him in the first two and was a tremendous presence. So, when he was later played by George Kennedy and Lee Van Cleef (in this film), it was a huge letdown.

While "The Magnificent Seven Ride!" is yet another attempt to squeeze a little bit of life out of a dead franchise, at least it offers SOME differences. The first three plots are pretty much clones. This one is just enough different to make it interesting....a bit. In fact, this film is a bit like the first three combined with "The Dirty Dozen"!

When the film begins, Chris (Van Cleef) has settled down. He's now a sheriff and has a young bride (Mariette Hartley). Life is good. However, after three punks rob the bank, shoot the sheriff and kidnap his wife, the usual routine is disrupted. When he sufficiently recovered from the shooting to give chase, Chris sets off to catch the creeps. Unfortunately, his wife's body is found along the trail and the trio brutalized and raped her. When Chris finds two of them, he soon dispatches them--but isn't sure where the third is. Perhaps he's gone across the desert to Mexico.

Inside Mexico, Chris meets up with an old friend that tried earlier in the film to recruit Chris for another Magnificent Seven-style fight against some stupid Mexican gang of bandits. He refuses--as he's got revenge on the brain. But, when Chris later finds the friend and others murdered AND rescues their women (who have all been repeatedly raped), he isn't going to walk away this time. But he needs help--and goes back over the border to get prisoners to help him with the fight! What will happen next? See the film...though there really isn't a whole lotta doubt!

"The Magnificent Seven Ride!" ends up being pretty much what you'd expect after the prisoners were recruited. They are a pretty much forgettable cast doing EXACTLY what previous incarnations of the series had already done. And, the film looks a lot more like a made for TV movie than anything else. Very slight and forgettable.

By the way, when you watch the film, you might have a similar reaction to me. After this group of women have been brutalized, raped, had their men murdered and just barely avoided death, showing them romantically pairing up with the surviving members of the seven seemed pretty sick.

The series finally hits rock-bottom with this lousy fourth installment, which was (thank God) the last one. None of the three sequels did justice to the highly entertaining original, but this particular film is nothing more than a shameless attempt to exploit the name of the "Magnificent Seven" and Bernstein's rousing music theme. The production values resemble those of a made-for-TV movie and the characters are forgettable and indistinguishable: in parts "II" and "III" you couldn't remember their names, here you can't even remember their faces. Lee Van Cleef was an inappropriate choice for the role of Chris, but nobody could have replaced Yul Brynner in our minds anyway. Don't waste your time.

The Magnificent Seven Ride is directed by George McCowan and written by Arthur Rowe. It stars Lee Van Cleef, Stefanie Powers, Michael Callan, Mariette Hartley, Luke Askew and Ralph Waite. Music is scored by Elmer Bernstein and cinematography by Fred Koenekamp.

The third and final sequel to John Sturges' The Magnificent Seven (1960), "Ride" is a pretty lifeless affair that plays out as nothing more than a last resort TV time waster.

Plot finds Chris Adams (previously played by Yul Brynner and George Kennedy and now by Van Cleef) as an older man settled down as a town marshal. When one day he is coerced by his wife Arilla (Hartley) to parole a young scoundrel, they both come to regret it very quickly. Chris is set on a path of revenge that will eventually take him to a border town that has been raped, pillaged and stripped of all males by bandits led by Del Toro (Ron Stein). Sure enough, backed by some convicts released into Chris' custody on promise of parole for their gunnery services, Chris and the rest of the seven set about protecting this town now made up only of women and children.

It honestly sounds better than it is! The film is tired across the board, it's now become a weary premise for any "seven" fan to sit through. The production is cheap looking, the colour photography drab, even Bernstein's iconic score is pared down, while McCowan (Frogs) directs in a ponderous fashion. There's loads of talking that really doesn't add up to much, main characters are either not defined (we barely know the five convicts or the villain Del Toro) or react bafflingly to a situation (Chris and Powers' Laurie begin a relationship quickly after losing their respective spouses' to murder!).

The shift to an older lawman Chris is a good idea, but it never gets utilised and Cleef is pretty stagnant (or bored) in the role. The plot point of using convicts to make up the "seven" was a bold try, but it just comes off as being a cheap knock-off of The Dirty Dozen. The makers go for a psychological kick by only letting us see or hear the aftermath of crimes, which is good since there is some upsetting stuff in the mix, but again it is handled so laboriously it tests the patience considerably. This also means the picture is devoid of thrilling moments to at least keep the action fan interested, meaning the "big" finale has to pay bigger dividends than it actually does.

Return of the Magnificent Seven and Guns of the Magnificent Seven are hardly great sequels, but they have some worth to Western fans in general, but "Ride" is sadly a case of flogging a dead horse. A poor movie that really should never have been made. 3/10

Just when you think they're releasing more and always inferior "Magnificent Seven" sequels solely because people can't get enough of Elmer Bernstein's legendary musical score, comes the final and (in)arguably best follow-up of the whole franchise. John Sturges' 1960 original, although merely just a blatant imitation of the Japanese milestone "Seven Samurai", can righteously be considered as a true American western classic, but parts II and III are downright shameless, uninspired and totally redundant rehashes without any entertainment value whatsoever. The character of Chris Adams, twice depicted by Yul Brunner and once by George Kennedy, grew out to become some sort of philosophical prophet who always does the right thing and the rare highlights of the sequels were just vague copies of similar moments featuring in the original. With this fourth and final installment, we arrived in the decade of 70's cinema and is this ever noticeable or what? What the Italian directors already knew throughout the entire 1960's had now suddenly become clear in the USA as well: westerns need to be mean and dirty, with despicable characters (even the heroes!), graphic violence and plenty of sleaze and smut! Even the traditional goody-two-shoes Marshall Chris Adams has suddenly become an embittered and narcissistic persona, though admittedly the performance and natural charisma of Lee "the Bad" Van Cleef adds a great deal to this transformation. Not once but twice Chris rejects the cry for help of an old pal, who begs him to come and fight an unfair battle against a Mexican posse that terrorizes a small little town near the American border. Instead of that, he chooses to go after one sole juvenile delinquent who raped and murdered his own wife. Only when Chris discovers that his pal killed off the youthful thug because he joined the posse, he feels responsible to take over the good cause and defend the remaining widows of the little community. Chris' six "noble" helpers aren't heroic lonesome cowboys, but convicted criminals who only participate because it's their only chance for parole. This minor chance in the formula actually makes this final entry more like a crossover between "The Magnificent Seven" and "The Dirty Dozen". And last but not least, the allegedly poor and defenseless town women are actually more like luscious and horny widows. They don't exactly appear mournful over their brutally slaughter farmer husbands and pretty much throw themselves at the robust macho thugs. It also has to be said that they don't really look like Mexican farmer women, but more like the ensemble staff of a luxury brothel. All this is perhaps a bit of an abrupt alternation of the franchise, but it's the best damn thing that could have happened to it! The gunfights are quite nasty, with lots of blood spurting out of people's stomachs and heads, and the climax is short but exhilarating. Van Cleef is awesome as always (by God, I love that guy) and there are terrific supportive roles for Luke Askew, Ed Lauter and William Lucking. And, not to forget, a modest but memorable cameo appearance of a still very young Gary Busey.

A perfect example of the exploitation of a name (i.e. - "The Magnificent Seven") in order to put butts in theatre seats, this dire THIRD sequel to the original film has little or no connection to it at all. Van Cleef (taking over a role made famous by Yul Brynner and then after that played by George Kennedy) is a newly-married sheriff of a small western town. His wife (Hartley) sympathizes with a young robber who is about to be transferred to Tuscon Prison. When, against his better judgement, he releases the punk, the robber and his two pals rob again and kidnap Hartley. Van Cleef and his recently-acquired biographer Callan ride off to rescue her, but find that impossible. Meanwhile, a crazed Mexican bandit (Stein) is terrorizing the area and wipes out all but 17 women and some children in a small village. Van Cleef decides to defend the village against Stein, who is about to return, and recruits five hardened criminals from Tuscon Prison to aid Callan and him, thus another "Seven" is formed. Van Cleef and company, with the aid of the women, fortify the village and plan to wipe out Stein and his 50 men when they come back. Within the preparations, Van Cleef begins to fall for Powers and Callan takes a shine to Murphy as the other men also establish relationships with their respective aides. Van Cleef isn't bad in the film and ably represents a sure-handed gunslinger and leader. Callan has little or no acting pressure placed on him in his rather lifeless role. The remaining members of the seven are familiar TV and movie faces and, considering it takes a very long time for them to team up, not very much of them is shown below the surface attributes. Waite, of "The Waltons", has a brief role as a friend of Van Cleef's. Hartley (who had co-starred with Van Cleef previously in "Barquero") only appears briefly and, while she gives a sensitive portrayal, she has very little to work with. Powers, decked out in thoroughly inappropriate hair (as are all the women of the village including one with a bob and one with a long greyish-blonde fright wig), has a tough row to hoe here. The idiotic script asks her, as a very recent widow and the victim of repeated rape, to instantly fall for Van Cleef! The romantic aspects of the film are heavily misguided as all the women have been brutalized, used and assaulted and yet make goo-goo eyes at the seven men who've come to rescue them! It's repulsive and trashy to have the female cast represented this way. Almost reprehensible. Other noted cast members include Busey, in an early role as one of the robber's associates and Conwell, who spent 24 years on "The Young and the Restless" as one of the widows. One major failing of the film is it's lack of a decent villain. The marauding bandit is referred to repeatedly as a vicious, menacing and mad killer, yet when he arrives, he's played by stuntman and bit player Stein! The entire film, as exciting as its concept sounds, has a pall over it. The legendary Elmer Bernstein theme music is trucked out again, but this time it has a muted, anemic, generic sound. The scenery is dull, the settings are bland and the cinematography is drab and uncaptivating. In its favor are some lively action scenes including an attack on a hacienda and the pivotal finale, but, unfortunately, too often it's a bleak, uninteresting, amateurish and tacky, to the point of being offensive, affair.

Atrocious and proof, if proof were needed, why movie franchises aren't always a good thing; indeed, if this is anything to go by, sequels and franchises of any kind are mostly to be avoided. In fact, the only resemblance "The Magnificent Seven Ride!" has to Sturges' classic is in having seven so-called 'heroes' fighting some Mexican bandits and in stealing the title. Otherwise this is truly inept.

Lee Van Cleef is now the leader but apart from Michael Callan you can forget trying to recall the names of the others. The dialogue is woeful, (or is it just Van Cleef's line readings?), the revenge element unpleasant and the 'direction' of one, George McCowan, virtually non-existant. This is a travesty which should be avoided at all costs.

"Jim MacCay" (Ralph Waite) is an American who takes a job as a marshal for a small Mexican town and rides across the border to ask a colleague of his named "Chris" (Lee Van Cleef) to come and help him hold off a large group of Mexican bandits that are expected to raid the town soon. At first he declines the offer but when his wife "Arrila" (Mariette Hartley) is kidnapped, raped and then killed by three young thugs he rides out after them. After killing two of them he discovers that the third has joined the bandits and for that reason he decides to take up the cause with a vengeance. Unfortunately, the only men he can get to assist him are vicious outlaws themselves—and a couple would be more than willing to desert him if the time is right. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was a decent Western all things considered. Admittedly, it isn't nearly as good as the original but it was still somewhat entertaining and I have rated it accordingly. Average.

The movie doesn't have the star power of the original but it's refreshing to see Lee Van Cleef in a Western leading role for a change. His character is Chris Adams, a role portrayed by Yul Brynner in 1960's "The Magnificent Seven". The character is played with some ambiguity, since even though Chris is a town marshal, he's not above shooting a couple of bullies who rode off with a young man he freed from prison at his wife's (Mariette Hartley) request. Events conspire to propel Chris and pulp tabloid writer Noah Forbes (Michael Callan) to form an alliance with five hardened criminals who are granted amnesty provided they accompany Chris to rescue the Mexican town of Magdalena against a marauding bandit named De Toro.

Though the film plays out largely as a made for TV Western, I was intrigued by the preparations for battle made by Chris with the help of one of the convict cohort, Captain Andy Hayes (James Sikking). In charge of the mandatory explosive devices was Luke Askew as Skinner, while the widowed women of Magdalena pitched in to help defend their small town against the outlaw gang. The expected confrontation held it's fair share of surprises and violence against the Mexican outlaws, though it came to a rather abrupt end with the death of De Toro (Ron Stein), who for all the build up of the character, had almost no screen time and very little in the way of presence considering the way the part was written.

With virtually no time spent grieving for his murdered wife, Chris forms an amiable alliance with Stefanie Powers' character, Laurie Gunn and they close out the picture as one of the couples to survive the gunfight. Considering his options, I was left a little puzzled by Chris's decision to remain behind in Magdalena as the new village marshal, wondering to myself what the citizens of his former town would have thought about that.

This film is a cash in. A cash in reliant on a rousing theme tune created for an earlier classic. Yul Brynner has long since jumped ship and so have most of the production values. Lee Van Cleef takes over the lead role of Chris. I can't think of any actor who looks less like Brynner than Van Cleef. Hey, he could have at least shaved off his hair and lost the moustache, just for the sake of continuity. Some correctional centres show this movie in order to punish offenders. One step out of line and The Magnificent Seven Ride! is brought to the fore and wielded. They didn't even bother trying to make this movie not look like a TV movie! Abysmal.

"The Magnificent Seven Ride!" qualifies as a saddle sore sequel compared to its two predecessors, Burt Kennedy's "Return of the Seven" (1966) and Paul Wendkos' "Guns of the Magnificent Seven" (1968), the followed John Sturges' incomparable original "The Magnificent Seven." Lee Van Cleef is the best thing about "TM7R." He looks like he belongs in this uninspired horse opera and his performance is top-notch. No, he looks nothing like either Yul Brynner or George Kennedy. Nevertheless, he lends a commanding presence that this woebegone western desperately needs. Indeed, Van Cleef dwarfs the rest of the cast. Moreover, this "Seven" lack depth of character and whip up no more than a modicum of sympathy, unlike their forerunners.

"Frogs" director George McCowan manages to keep the action galloping along for its 100 minutes, and seasoned TV scenarist Arthur Rowe has altered the formula for this outing. For example, unlike the original, our heroes attack the Hispanic villain's camp before they engage him in a fight to the death in the village at the end. Unfortunately, "The Magnificent Seven Ride!" breaks too many rules. The villain is a one-dimensional cipher with no personality. Indeed, he doesn't utter a word. The best part of this lackluster western occurs in the last twenty minutes as the seven prepare for the onslaught of De Toro's men. "TM7R!" looks tired, empty, and worn out owing to its ersatz back lot setting and familiar television locales. Clearly, McCowan could not surmount the obstacles inherent in the low budget. Walter Thompson does a competent editing job, but he doesn't have much with which to work so the film has a routine rhythm to it. Talented "Patton" lenser Fred J. Koenekamp had little time to make this sagebrusher look as majestic as the earlier "Seven" entries.

Die-hard "Magnificent Seven" fans have every right to abhor this lame western. I saw it in the theatre when it came out in 1972 and found it nothing short of deplorable. "The Magnificent Seven Ride!" doesn't live up to the Sturges, Kennedy, and Wendkos films. In fact, Geoff Murphy's television pilot surpasses the McCowan film. I remember "Playboy" magazine film critic Bruce Williamson commented that "TM7R" got by "on bits and pieces." In retrospect, more than 30 years later, my aversion to this film has dissipated. Although the McCowan film has its good points, the bad points set aside most of its assets. The stupendous Elmer Bernstein orchestral score seems to have lost its grandeur, too.

"The Magnificent Seven Ride!" opens with Lee Van Cleef and another horseman skedaddling out of town. One of Chris' pals from the past, former bounty hunter Jim McKay (Ralph Waite of "The Stone Killer"), is riding to see him in the hope that he can enlist Chris' help against a dastardly Mexican bandit called De Toro. Two of De Toro's men lay in ambush for Jim, but Chris guns down them and saves his old friend's life. When Jim asks Chris to ride with him, our pipe-smoking protagonist refuses. Not only has he ridden to Mexico three times before, but now he has taken a wife, Arrila (Mariette Hartley of "Barquero"), "who's still practically a bride." McKay reminds Chris that he saved his life, but Chris isn't about to budge. MacKay reminds them about the first time that they went south and earned only $50 dollars per man. Chris still turns him down.

Meanwhile, a washed up journalist, Noah Forbes (Michael Callan of "Cat Ballou"), wants to immortalize Chris the way the real-life Ned Buntline did Buffalo Bill Cody. While all this is transpiring, Arrila pleads with Chris to release an 18-year old robber, Shelly (Darrell Larson), who is about to serve a stretch at the infamous Tucson Territorial Prison. Eventually, Arrila wears her husband down and Chris frees Shelly. Shelly repays him by robbing the town bank, wounding him in the shoulder, and abducting Arrila. Chris and Noah track down Shelly's accomplices and Chris guns them down in cold blood. Chris crosses trails with Jim again. Jim is the law in Magdalena, a Sonora farming village that consists primarily of Mexicans with a few American families. De Toro (Ron Stein)and his army of pistoleros terrorize the border. Neither the Rurales nor the U.S. Calvary has had any luck thwarting his notorious activities. Worse, neither refuses to work with the other. When Chris encounters Jim the second time, he learns that Shelly has ridden by and left. Chris learns later Shelly joined De Toro's gang, showed them a rear approach (a la "The 300 Spartans") but Jim killed Shelly. "He's done my job," Chris observed, "I'll do his." Chris rides into Magdalena and finds wives who're widows and some children. They don't have enough horses to escort them out of the village, but De Toro and his gang have ridden north across the border. Chris promises Mrs. Laurie Gunn (Stephanie Powers of "Hart to Hart")that he'll return. Noah and Chris ride to Tucson Territorial Prison where the warden reluctantly paroles into his custody Walt Drummond (William Lucking), Scott Elliot (Ed Lauter), Matt Skinner (Luke Askew), Pepe Carral (Pedro Armendáriz Jr.), and ex-Army officer Andy Hayes (James B. Sikking). Chris warns them that he has to consign the pardons before they can be freed and that he dies under any circumstances that the law will track them down.

"TM7R" looks completely different from the three earlier oaters. "The Magnificent Seven" was made in Mexico, and "Return of the Seven" and "Guns of the Magnificent Seven" were shot in scenic Spain. In fact, "TM7R" was shot at Universal Studios back lot where "Laredo," "Alias Smith & Jones," and "The Virginian" were made. The exterior desert scenes were lensed at Vasquez Rocks where Captain Kirk battled an alien in the "Star Trek" episode "Arena" and where virtually every cheapjack genre B-movie has been shot.

"The Magnificent Seven Ride!"isn't very magnificent.

The first thought I had about this silly movie was, "They must have been on a really tight budget" because nobody except the main characters ever say a word! I mean really, there's this bunch of about 10 women and none of them ever talk! When was the last time that ever happened? The pardoned criminals who make up this latest batch of not-so-magnificent avengers (and why doesn't Chris ever learn from his past and maybe try to recruit a few more than just six other guys to help him?) are told to take their pick of women to be their battle assistants and none of the ladies make a peep or say anything like, "Hey wait a minute!" or "Don't touch me you ugly brute!" or "What the heck kind of an idea is that?" They just stand there and quietly allow the men to grab them by the arm and lead them to the other side of the room.

Try getting ten real women in one place at the same time and see if you can get them to be that quiet for that long. Fighting the whole Mexican army with just seven guys is a piece of cake in comparison.

The director was probably still in his early learning stages when he tried his hand at westerns. Have a look at the outfits. Everybody looks well-scrubbed, well-brushed, well-dressed and well-ironed as though ready for church. Even the horses look well-groomed and shiny. This is a WESTERN, for crying out loud! It's supposed to look dusty, nasty and sweaty. And then there's the amateurish acting of the females in this bird. The whole lot, a dozen or so, all pretty and well-endowed, were just freshly raped and widowed, but hardly a tear flows. Instead they all look with great interest (if not downright lust) at the newly arrived magnificent seven who they subsequently feed, bandage and comfort with love during their battles with the bandits. The same directing criticism goes for Lee van Cleef, who does a reasonable good acting job. Our Lee, playing the law, just lost his dear wife. But Lee, hard as organic rock, shows no emotion whatsoever and finds himself within days of his spouse's demise in the arms of a juicy widow with whom he, together with her brood, walks off into the future. The cad. And then there's another thing that always kind of bothers me with this type of films: it doesn't matter how many dynamite-induced explosions take place in the middle of a pack of some 50 horses, never mind how many shots are being fired at the rabble on top of them, only the crooks get killed and the nags always go their way rejoicing in one piece. (I know...silly moi...it's just a movie...). It's not the worst western ever made, but prepare for some serious yawning.

My goodness, what a terrible movie. I have been watching westerns for over 60 years and can't believe this thing did not have commercials. It should have been shot in black and white. This way you may have missed some of the poor acting. It would take a very cold night in the snow covered mountains of Colorado to force me to attempt to watch this a second time. Oh, I almost forgot, what's with all the perfect white teeth on these tough cowboys,

There is an episodic feel to this film - brevity of sequences and quicker pacing - which makes this feel like a TV movie despite it achieving a theatrical release. Lee Van Cleef takes the lead character, Chris Adams, into middle age and into the safe position of town sheriff, albeit with a new set of problems. While there is a wisp of the determined air of Yul Brynner's characterisation, the film doesn't add up to much. There isn't much tension built leading up to the action sequences, just a series of melodramatic shifts. Stefanie Powers gives a touching performance but it is not enough to save it from formulaic dirge.

I shall say that Lee Van Cleef and a bunch of beauty women hold the picture,we must forget as sequel of Magnificent Seven,it was a masterpiece,this picture is quite good entertainment for many reasons,it has the most elements to make a good movie,the plot is aceptable,apart Cleef the casting is second class but still good and finaly a great western lanscape,but this one has a great virtue than the previous,it has a bunch of women,all them young widows including Stefanie Powers and Mariette Hartley....look and Ed Lauter & Gary Busey in the early years!!

Resume:

First watch: 2005 / How many: 2 / Source: DVD / Rating: 6.25

I guess I should now comment upon a 4th flick in the MAGNIFICENT SEVEN franchise; the sequels still surprise or amaze me—by their sleaze and deliberate _absurdism. They constitute or forge a 4th way—not classic, not revisionist, not European—but a sleaze Americana, kindred to the violent vigilante '70s movies, absurd trash. This installment too is bombastic sleaze—inexplicably awkward and even somewhat strange.

Now what I find disturbing that these sequels not only have their opportunist fans; but that the fans simply do not sense any difference between the original's style and the sequels'.

These sequels are not boring or insipid—but bizarre. They are of course very badly written—messy scripts, rubbish lines. It's straight crazy; in this installment each gunman gets several women— Van Cleef's young wife begs him to release a young prisoner; he finally does. The young man resumes his life, shoots Van Cleef, kidnaps the wife, rapes and kills her—then joins a wrongdoer. Van Cleef, who has previously refused to help defending a village, now assembles a small bunch and charges the wrongdoer's hacienda; then the wrongdoers charge the village where Van Cleef has set.

I liked the cast.

Van Cleef is Chris; Stefanie Powers, pretty active in the '70s screwy westerns, is Van Cleef's darling. Callan, very antipathetic, is Noah, a writer and Chris' sidekick. The rest of the aggressive bunch are Askew (one of the only three survivors), Armendariz, Lucking, Lauter; Rita Rogers is truly hot, fleshy beauty.