MovieChat Forums > 7 Men from Now (1956) Discussion > The Seven Men

The Seven Men

posted 15 years ago by Robbmonster
5 replies | jump to latest

I like this film, but something that frustrates me is that Stride may or may not have actually got all of the men responsible for the death of his wife.

It's never stated - or even implied, really - that Masters and Clete were in any way involved, but they die anyway.

Is it more a case that protecting the Greers becomes more important to Stride than his vengeance?

I actually don't think Stride racks up a body count of 7 over the entire film...

"It's just a movie" is no excuse for treating us like idiots!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwRqc0KSkJ0

[–] jimmy-ringo 15 years ago

All seven men were killed,assuming that the guy Masters killed during the indian attack was involved;

The 2 at the beginning of the film.
1 who trys to back-shoot Stride after the indian attack.
2 who ambush Stride coming into Flora Vista.
2(including Bodeen)who ride out to get the money.

Masters and Clete weren't involved in the killing of Strides wife.They were simply after the money

"Cowboys don't get married....unless they stop being cowboys" Monte Walsh(1970)

[–] guy_lazarus 14 years ago

Thanks. I had only added up six. I didn't think the old fart that Lee marvin shot was one of the 7, but of course, he was.

[–] Jason_Radley 11 years ago

I assume he was, too, but there's no 'of course' about it. I thought at first he was just some ex-con who recognised his former jailer.

[–] TheManInOil 9 years ago

That would be a far less comprehensible explanation. Hell, the guys who join Bodeen at the end specifically say they've been eluding the natives. That's why they're late. It's pretty obvious that guy was one of them who got cornered.

[–] wvq2 14 years ago

I thought it was significant that Masters and Clete ending up killing the final two of the seven. Now, in part, this simply builds tension between Stride and Masters, since Masters steals Stride's chance to exact his revenge on all his wife's killers. But, as you suggest, I think there's more to it than that: part of the reason Stride doesn't end up killing all seven is that vengeance no longer seems to be his central concern (and so Stride's getting vengeance is no longer what the movie is about). But I don't think he's primarily concerned with protecting the Greers; instead, it seemed to me that Stride ended up needing to confront Masters more than he needed to exact his revenge. As soon as Masters showed up, the movie started building to their confrontation; the tension between Masters and Stride wasn't simply a matter of Masters spoiling Stride's plan for revenge.

I think the movie presented Masters as a sort of dark doppelganger for Stride--he was Stride's strength, pride, self-confidence, and manliness warped into something ugly and destructive. And I think Stride had to confront Masters to prove that he wasn't like Masters. He needed to confront Masters to prove that he was a different kind of man.