Return of the Seven (1966)

Touches You

Fresh and Exciting

Captivating movie !

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

Yul Brynner returns as gunfighter Chris, who is recruited by old friend Chico(now played by Julian Mateos, taking over from Horst Bucholz) to return to his village that has been raided by a powerful landowner, who has kidnapped the men for his own purposes. Chris agrees to help, and enlists old friend Vin(Robert Fuller, taking over from Steve McQueen) and new members of the "7", including actors Claude Akins & Warren Oates.Disappointing sequel has some good action, but a limp plot, and is generally an inferior rehash of the first, though Brynner is still good, and Fuller a decent substitute for McQueen.This must have done well though, since two more sequels were made(without Brynner!) Haven't seen them, don't plan to.

"The Magnificent Seven" was an exceptional remake of Akira Kurosawa's "The Seven Samurai". But, unlike the Japanese film, it was set in the West. Because of a terrific musical score and excellent cast, the film was a resounding success. Now, years later, the studio is whoring out the name in a remake. I know it sounds very harsh, but there is so much that disappoints in "Return of the Seven".The biggest problem in this film is that of the three survivors at the end of the last film, only one is played by the same actor in both films (Yul Brynner). The other two are played by new actors. These two plus the new members of the group are all lightweights compared the the fine cast in the first film. Think about it--here we have the likes of Claude Akins, Robert Fuller and Warren Oates instead of actors like Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson and James Coburn! The second biggest problem in the sequel is that the film is pretty much the same as the first film. The SAME great music is once again here and the plot is pretty much the same, as the seven rescue the exact same town that was terrorized in the first film! It cheapens the name of the franchise and offers nothing particularly new.Now the actors do try their best and the film is worth seeing as a time-passer. But, it's just not a worthy sequel to one of the best westerns of the 1960s--it's only a pale imitation. Interestingly, the next film in the series, "The Guns of the Magnificent Seven" is actually a bit better even though NONE of the actors playing the seven are back because at least the plot is a tiny bit different.

Ten years after 'The Seven' saved a Mexican village from a group of bandits it falls prey to another gang; this one rides into town, rounds up all the men then takes them away. The men taken away include Chico; one of the original seven who stayed in the village and married a local girl at the end of the previous film. She and her son seek out Chris once again and he and Vin set about recruiting a new Seven to find out what happened to the men and return them to their village. It doesn't take long before they find the men; they had been captured by a rich and powerful man called Lorca who was using them as slave labour to build a church in memory of his two sons. Chris and his men liberate the captured men with surprising ease but Lorca has no intention of letting him keep them; if they are to live free they must stand up and fight when Lorca and his men return.If the first film had never been made this would probably be considered just another B-western, albeit one made in Spain rather than California... unfortunately for this film though it will always be compared to the original 'Magnificent Seven' and when compared to that it is a distinctly inferior product. Yul Brynner reprises his role as Chris and does a decent job; unfortunately he is the only one of the original cast to return; Vin may be back but this time he is played by Robert Fuller. He does a good enough job but he is no Steve McQueen! The rest of the cast do well enough but lacks the star quality of the original. There is plenty of action with plenty of shooting and in the final seen plenty of explosions after a case of dynamite is fortuitously found. Overall this is a very average film that passes the time well enough if it is on television but is hardly a 'must see'.

The first of three follow-ups to the John Sturges' western classic "The Magnificent Seven" is a prototypic sequel if there ever was one. It's a totally redundant and uninvolving rehash of the original that you nevertheless don't mind watching purely for popcorn entertainment value. The plot is almost identical, the lead actor reprises his role although he doesn't seem all too happy about that and some of the original characters are there as well albeit portrayed by different, inferior actors. I had some personal reasons for desperately wanting to see the film, including this being one of the first scripts written by Larry Cohen and Warren Oates in one of his pre-Peckinpah roles, but I could have guessed "The Return of the Seven" would be a forgettable and second class western. A large posse of bandits have kidnapped Chico (who suddenly looks a whole lot more Mexican than in the original film) and the rest of the male population in the original village to works as slaves. Under the reign of a man named Lorca, they are forced to build a church monument in honor of his executed sons. Chris and (a different) Vin round up four more trigger-happy gunslingers to save the day. Most of the sequences in this film are actually shameless copies from the highlights of the original. The recruitment of the shooters goes a little quicker, but they still use the same counting gestures. Why is it that cool stuff from the originals always looks silly in sequels? Chris' character also has become some kind of all-knowing, philosophizing prophet. He speaks the absolute minimum, but nonetheless makes people question themselves. Usually he just goes standing next to them and they begin talking wholeheartedly about their lives and issues. Chris merely just replies with one sentence but apparently this is enough to make them contemplate everything all over again. The other characters, on the other hand, are colorless and dull. Vin and Chico are only shadows of what they used to be and the others are merely just caricatures. Claude Akins as the silent and embittered loner and Warren Oates as the sneaky womanizer to name just two. The shootout sequences are pretty boring and unexciting. Elmer Bernstein's music is still a joy to listen to, but also that is exactly the same as in the original.