As a trivia nerd, I was delighted to realize these four movies are crafted around the same premise of villagers hiring warriors to defend their village from returning marauders.
A little more about each movie:
Seven Samurai – 1954
- Japanese movie nominated for two Oscars
- Epic samurai drama film that takes place in 1586 during the Sengoku Period of Japanese history.
- Considered a motion picture masterpiece.
Trailer
The Magnificent Seven – 1960 version - traditional western
In 2013, this movie was selected for the U.S. National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.**
Trailer
¡Three Amigos! – 1986 – western comedy set in 1916
Steve Martin was a co-screenwriter. Originally, he, Dan Aykroyd, and John Belushi were the Three Amigos and Steven Spielberg was going to direct, but he wanted Steve Martin, Bill Murry, and Robin Williams. Also, Rick Moranis would have played Ned had Martin Short been unavailable.***
Contemplate this movie with Robin Williams and Bill Murray in it. Over-the-top comes to my mind.
Trailer
A Bug’s Life – 1998 – computer-animated comedy (Pixar Animation Studios)
While the film was purportedly inspired by the Aesop fable 'The Ant and the Grasshopper', the underlying plot is the same as Seven Samurai.****
Trailer
...and now you know. ;-)
Until next time,
Kaye Spencer
Kaye Spencer
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References:
*https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Samurai
**https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Magnificent_Seven
***https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Amigos
****https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Bug%27s_Life
So cool, Kaye! I knew that The Magnificent Seven and Seven Samurai were based on the same premise/plot but not the other two. Very interesting stuff! Oh, I love The Magnificent Seven. What a cast!
ReplyDeleteCheryl,
DeleteI haven't watched the remake of The Magnificent Seven. How can you top Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson, Eli Wallach, Robert Vaughn, and James Coburn? *sigh*
I have Seven Samurai and Magnificent Seven. Three Amigos was an interesting film. Now to watch A Bug's Life.
ReplyDeleteI confess, trivia like this is what makes my world go round. THANKS. (Grin) Doris
Doris,
DeleteWe must have common ancestors...Trivia floats my boat, too. *wink*
What a fabulous idea for a blog post. I never knew the last two were connected. This was loads of fun!
ReplyDeleteC.A.,
DeleteI knew that Seven Samurai and The Magnificent Seven were the same plot, but the other two were epiphany-up-along-side-my-head realizations. lol
Fun post, Kaye. I must confess I've never seen THREE AMIGOS or A BUG'S LIFE (obviously a big omission on my part!) so I was unaware they were 'inspired' by SEVEN SAMURAI. Although the connection to SEVEN SAMURAI is acknowledged in the credits of THE MAG 7, it was a circular process as SS's director AKIRA KUROSAWA was a big fan of JOHN FORD's westerns. When they met Ford apparently told Kurosawa 'You really like rain' to which Kurosawa replied, 'You really like dust.'
ReplyDeleteAndrew,
DeleteOh my gosh, that is a fabulous anecdote of rain and dust. I'd read that Kurosawa admired John Ford's work, and it certainly shows in Seven Samurai. Thanks for commenting.
good
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing. Those are good movies, you can also watch your favorite movies for free on the MovieBox application
ReplyDelete