Plot Synopsis by Hal Erickson
Ben Stride (Randolph Scott, in a role originally slated for John Wayne) trudges stoically through the West, hunting down the seven men responsible for the murder of his wife in a Wells Fargo station holdup. As the film opens, we see him dispatching two of the miscreants during a driving rainstorm. Though the victims are deserving of their fate, the script is careful to detail the moral deterioration of Scott, who'd quit his sheriff's job to go on this unauthorized death hunt. Also turning up is Bill Master (Lee Marvin), not one of the bandits per se but actually a villain from Stride's past who happens upon the situation and sees a chance to make off with some loot. This film marked one of the few Randolph Scott/Budd Boetticher collaborations not released by Columbia Pictures.
Seven Men From Now is one the (now?/cult?) classic team-ups between actor Randolph Scott and director Budd Boetticher. The film involves a cowboy named Stride (R. Scott) meeting up with and leading a married couple, The Greers, southwest towards California. There is an underlying mystery about Stride, mainly "What happened in Silver Springs?", his old hometown. What happened is; bad guys stole some gold and killed Stride's wife.
Lee Marvin wears a very bright green scarf and has a very interesting story/monologue the goes into Stride's past, and intimidates the Greers in doing so. He is as menacing as only Marvin can menace. There cannot be a love interest in this film, as Scott is mourning his dead wife. But he is obviously taken by Annie Greer, played by Gail Russell. Part of Marvin's menace is that he insinuates that she looks like Stride's dead wife.
The end shootout is really interesting because it is not often (to me) where you see the person who has been shot, look like he is really surprised when he is shot so swiftly.
06/11/2007
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