7 Men from Now

This is one of my favorite westerns. Since it has been out of circulation until recently, few of the new generation have got to see it. Hopefully now that it has been restored on DVD it will receive its just desserts. If at all possible, see the wide-screen version. Budd Boetticher believed that as many shots as possible should be made outside. His movies have few interior scenes. He shot his best westerns in Lone Pine, California, second only to Utah's Mounument Valley for natural beauty that fulfills anyone's fantasy of how the Old West should appear on the big screen. "Seven Men From Now" also contains one of my favorite movie shots highlighting the genius of Boetticher. When Ben Stride (Randy Scott) draws against Bill Masters (Lee Marvin) the viewer never sees Stride draw. His/Her imagination must be used to visualize just how fast Stride's draw is. It's sort of like the old joke used on the Steve Allen Television Show by Don Knotts. He never moves his hands and asks the viewer, "Wanna see it again?"

These were the early days of Lee Marvin's film career when he was still trying to prove himself as a viable actor. In "Seven Men From Now" he succeeds beyond one's wildest expectations. Though he deserved the Oscar for "Cat Ballou" a few years later, he is actually better in "Seven Men From Now" than he was in that award-winning flick. After "Cat Ballou" his acting deteriorated somewhat, though from time to time he turned in an admirable performance especially in the neglected classic "Point Blank." Second only to Lee Marvin, is Randolph Scott who never gave a poor performance. He plays to perfection his role as a revenge seeking, self-pitying Marshall who still believes in fair play and romance. John Wayne was originally slotted for the role, but it is doubtful that even such a great actor as Wayne could have played Ben Stride the way he was meant to be portrayed, the way Randy Scott plays him. The finely honed well-written script is by Burt Kennedy who would go on to make one of the funniest westerns ever, "Support Your Local Sheriff." What a team Boetticher, Kennedy, and Scott made.

Though it is good to see the old cowboy star Don "Red" Barry on the big screen once more, his part as Bill Masters' weak-minded sidekick does not fit him. He is sadly miscast. A character actor such as Strother Martin would have fit the role much better.

This is one of those films not to be missed whether you're a western fan or not. It can be viewed repeatedly and enjoyed more each time.

I have a story to tell about this one. I had never heard of Bud Boetticher or "7 Men from Now" when I set out with my mom (a cool old lady) to Berkeley to see what was going on (she's from out of town). We found a schedule for the Pacific Film Archive and it said they were showing 2 westerns by Bud Boetticher and that he would be there. Well, I'm a sucker for meeting directors (very few crawl out to bask in the sun, it must be bad for their complexion) especially if they directed lots of b movies. They were showing "Bullfighter and the Lady" (also excellent) and "7 Men From Now." 7 Men is one of the best westerns I have ever seen, Lee Marvin and Randolph Scott are just terrific and the direction is amazing. I thought the kinetic energy combined with the extreme tension in the fights at the end were excellent. Now, after the show Boetticher and his wife showed up and Boetticher had some illuminating words to say. After that he met some of us in the audience, and I happened to mention how much I liked the scene where Gail Russell is in the wagon and puts out the candle and has a brief but oddly touching dialogue with Randolph Scott, who is lying under the wagon. What Boetticher said was "Yes, that's a much better way to do a sex scene, now isn't it?". When I reflected on this statement later, I realized what seemed casual at first was in fact a profound statement on film expression: Boetticher was telling me that what he was showing WAS sex. Maybe, I think he suggested, throbbing bodies and dim lights aren't sex at all. Maybe what so many people in my generation (I'm 25) take as naivete in classic films was....... dare I say it, TASTE AND STYLE???!!! Yes is the answer. And Boetticher's got both of them, hats off to him and everyone else involved in this fine film I hope everyone sees (and I hope I get a chance to see again and again).

I finally got to see Budd Boetticher's superb Technicolor western "Seven Men from Now" which was long considered a lost classic in 1950s American cinema. The copy I saw was a pre-restored version but in excellent condition. This is Boetticher's first of a series of fascinating, modest, and low-budget westerns with Randolph Scott. The others include "Buchanan Rides Alone", "Decision at Sundown", "The Tall T", "Ride Lonesome", and "Comanche Station".

All of them are superb, but "Seven Men" is really my favorite. As Andrew Sarris astutely observed in his Boetticher entry in The American Cinema, "Constructed partly as allegorical odysseys and partly as floating poker games in which every character took turns at bluffing about his hand or his draw until the final showdown, Boetticher's westerns expressed a weary serenity and moral certitude that was contrary to the more neurotic approaches of other directors in this neglected genre of the cinema". From the stunning opening sequence of Scott coming from behind the camera entering a rocky shelter to the final scene of Gail Russell watching Scott leaving the town, "Seven Men" is an exciting, brooding, and impeccably constructed western. Boetticher deftly uses the vast isolated landscape to comment on the characters' isolation and entrapment. The screenplay by Burt Kennedy is brilliant and witty. The film also features some extraordinary performances by Scott and his clever nemesis, played by the incredible Lee Marvin, a role that somehow anticipates his sadistic Liberty Valance in Ford's "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance". Scott plays a morally ambiguous ex-sheriff who, while helping an Eastern husband and wife, travel cross-country in their covered wagon, hunts for the seven men shot and killed his wife. The scenes between Scott and Russell are strangely moving and effective. The final showdown between Scott and Marvin is stunning and unforgettable.

Underrated entry in Boetticher-Scott cycle of Westerns. Maybe it's because this was the first collaboration between the two that has kept it overshadowed by better-known entries like The Tall T or Decision at Sundown. Nonetheless, the essential elements are already present: a laconic, embittered Scott, the neolithic Alabama Hills, a villain with some scruples (Lee Marvin), and an excellent script (Burt Kennedy). There's also a couple of neat surprises that make sense.

Note how well that first scene is both conceived and staged. Stranger Scott rides up to campfire where two other strangers sit cozily, drinking coffee. It's cold and Scott wants to sit awhile. Naturally, there's some wariness since these are strangers meeting in a hostile environment. But soon Scott and one stranger (John Beradino) start sounding friendly. Now, Boetticher could have cut between close-ups of the two conversing. But he doesn't. Instead he keeps the silent cowboy in the same frame as Beradino and cuts between them and Scott. This keeps a certain tension alive in the scene because the second stranger looks worried even while Scott and Beradino begin to warm up, and we're reminded of that every time the camera switches to Beradino. Thus, the undercurrent of unexplained unease never leaves the scene, until events climax. It's a brilliantly executed passage that hooks the audience for the remainder. It's also touches like this that lifted the cycle to classic status.

Then too, there's a chance to scope out a young Lee Marvin, about as good an actor as there was at the time. You never know what his talkative villain will do next. Pitting him against the sternly taciturn Scott makes for marvelously contrasting styles. Scott's ongoing role in these movies is a role he apparently was born to play, after starting his career in sappy male leads. Then too, there's the gorgeous and doggedly loyal Gale Russell as the pale-eyed wife. Her scenes with Scott amount to little gems of suppressed desire. But especially qualifying as a classic is the stormy night in the wagon. The tension there builds as Marvin tries to rile Russell's mild-mannered husband (Walter Reed), while Scott and Russell look on. The scene is beautifully played and fairly crackles with cross-currents of emotion as Marvin exploits the growing attraction between the married Russell and the conflicted Scott. My only complaint is the very last scene where the usually sure-handed Kennedy flounders and Russell looks like she just stepped out of a Hollywood beauty salon. Just goes to show, I suppose, the difficulty Westerns traditionally have when deciding on romantic commitment.

Another characteristic in this initial entry is Scott's clear code of honor. It's macho-based but also notable for its gallantry. Scott's not too proud to help Russell hang out the wash, nor will he get overt as long as Russell's married. But just listen when Russell strays into his private concerns, such as that of his dead wife. His voice turns suddenly cold and hard, and you know this is a man with a firm code of honor that will not be compromised, even by an appealing woman. He may not be as personable as villains like Marvin, but there's always that strict code that commands respect and guides his actions.That's the kind of character Scott portrays throughout the cycle, and is a major reason why little gems like Seven Men from Now endure.

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While heading to Flora Vista, the coach of John Greer (Walter Reed) and his wife Annie Greer (Gail Russell) gets trapped in the mud and the former sheriff Ben Stride (Randolph Scott) helps the couple that invites him to ride together with them. Then they meet the strangers Bill Masters (Lee Marvin) and his partner Clete (Donald Barry) and Bill tells to the couple that Ben is tracking down the seven men that robbed the Well Fargo office in Silver Springs and killed his wife that worked in the office. Annie gets close to Ben, who feels responsible for the death of his beloved wife. During their journey, they have moments of tension with an attack of Indians and the interest of Bill in Annie, and Ben asks Bill and Clete to leave the couple. When they arrive in the boundary of Flora Vista, John discloses a secret to Ben.

"Seven Men From Now" is a solid western, with story and characters very well developed and outstanding performances. Randolph Scott performs a lonely rider thirsty to revenge the death of his wife, and Lee Marvin performs a great villain, as usual. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "7 Homens Sem Destino" ("7 Men Without Destiny")