The Magnificent Seven

General Notes

Savior Motif: The westerns love to use the savior motif. The idea of a righteous God who is the avenger is extremely attractive. The setting of the western, wide open spaces where characters have the ability to come in and ride away with no questions asked, lends itself to a mysterious presence that can arrive out of nowhere and then ride into nowhere, or at least the sunset. Here, the seven are the saviors who come to save the lives of the Mexican peasants. The very people they come to help turn on them and reject them, but in the end are saved by the seven gunfighters. The leader of the band is named Chris. At one point he is offered payment from the villagers. They offer everything the village has. "I have been offered much before, but never everything," a scene is reminiscent of the Biblical story of the Widow's Mite.