7 Men From Now (Seven Men from Now) (1956)

100% of critics liked it
(5 reviews)
74% of users liked it
(1,907 ratings)

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.… More 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. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 18 min.
Directed By: Budd Boetticher
Genres: Western, Classics

In Theaters: Jan 1, 1956 Wide
On DVD: Dec 20, 2005

Critic Reviews

Michael E. Grost, Classic Film and Television
Classic Western that is one of the high water marks of the American cinema.
Brent Simon, Now Playing Magazine
Spare and artful...
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid
It deserves to be viewed, as one of the greatest Westerns -- possibly one of the greatest films -- ever made.
Chris Cabin, Filmcritic.com
gets everything right and we indeed feel this movie in our stomachs and hearts
Fernando F. Croce, Slant Magazine
The effect is not one of (pre) post-modern nudging, but a questioning of the conventions through the director's humanizing gaze.
Fernando F. Croce, Slant Magazine
As good an introduction to a modest master as you can imagine.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
A terrific Western especially for those who take their oaters seriously.

Read all 7 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

jay n

Wonderfully lean, effective western. Good performances all around particularly Marvin and Gail Russell, whose worn appearance gives her character an extra layer of vunerability especially if you know the actress' personal history
Walter M

In "Seven Men from Now," Ben Stride(Randolph Scott) is on the hunt for seven men who robbed a Wells Fargo office in Silver Springs. He has already dispatched two of them by the time he comes across John(Walter Reed) and Annie Greer(Gail Russell) who are stuck in the mud on… More
In "Seven Men from Now," Ben Stride(Randolph Scott) is on the hunt for seven men who robbed a Wells Fargo office in Silver Springs. He has already dispatched two of them by the time he comes across John(Walter Reed) and Annie Greer(Gail Russell) who are stuck in the mud on their way to California. Their voyage has not exactly gone as planned as he has had to take on odd jobs from time to time to earn money but their fortunes look up when Stride not only helps them get out of their predicament but also agrees to ride with them. His protection might come in handy as there are starving Indians on the warpath but not when encountering Masters(Lee Marvin) and Clete(Donald Barry) who are interested in the outlaws for a less charitable reason. "Seven Men from Now" is a very entertaining western that is a notch and a half above the usual fare due to imaginative camerawork, a scene stealing performance from Lee Marvin of barely controlled menace, how well information is dispensed and especially character development. Notice where the characters start out compared to where they finish. At first, Masters looks down on John Greer while staring lustily at his wife. And it would be interesting to think what Stride's path would be if he had not encountered the Greers.