The Magnificent Seven

by theimperfectmodeller, posted in Old West, Uncategorized

Knuckleduster continue to expand their range of 28mm Old West figures at a pace I have given up on in terms of trying to collect and paint them all.  As a consequence I made the decision to focus only on the figures which really caught my eye or had some other special meaning.  So when they recently brought out the seven figures from the classic western movie “The Magnificent Seven” I knew this was a purchase I had to make.

The quality of the metal sculpts was typically excellent but there is a problem with figures of “real” people.  Whilst I consider myself to be a reasonable figure painter I am not an artist capable of painting a face to look anything like the actual actor.  Those of you familiar with the film will no doubt be able to work out which figure is which from the pose and the clothing but alas you ain’t going to look at the faces and say “He’s a dead ringer for Yul Bryner/Steve McQueen”.   All I can say is I did my best.

Pictures below along with a final group shot.

TIM

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32 thoughts on “The Magnificent Seven”

  1. Oh wow man they’re awesome!!! I was transported back to the original movie. The McQueen one looks a little like you I reckon and I bet that was no accident haha. Very nice sculpts. I’m yet to paint any of the knuckleduster minis but they’re on the list and in the Pile of Possibilities. I think the original plan was to do a Wild West diorama. I know you’re a fan of the original magnificent seven but did you like the more modern one? I prefer the original for nostalgic reasons myself but I really enjoyed the newer one too.

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  5. I haven’t seen the film before but with a cast like this it must be a winner, great job. Do you paint each one individually or use the colour between all as you go along.

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    1. It’s a classic of its genre Steve, sadly most if not all of the cast are no longer with us. As much as possible I try to avoid batch painting in any form and paint one figure fully at a time. Probably not the most economic way of doing things though. 😊

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      1. oh not sure about that, at least you only have to concentrate on one figure, i spend way to long painting area’s i missed the first time.

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  6. That is a great looking posse! 🙂 I probably saw Magnificent Seven when I was young but I don’t remember it. I saw the newer one and I liked it but it didn’t blow my socks off either, if you know what I mean. It would be nice if a really high quality western hit the theaters again though.

    I googled this actor in Magnificent Seven and I think you did a great job of matching him. To my eyes, the sculpts don’t exactly match the actor’s likenesses quite as well as they could and I think that makes your job harder as the painter harder. Regardless of that, I think they look awesome all together and this was a really cool project as well 🙂

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    1. The film is a classic of its genre and of its day but of course is dated now. Painting real life figures is something I generally keep clear of. Painting a face is one thing, painting one to look like the real person is another thing entirely and well beyond my skill level.

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      1. It is definitely a classic and well-regarded. I have found that I don’t have much fondness for John Wayne movies which haven’t aged well and I prefer the Clint Eastwood movies as they have sensibilities that fit our modern times better. I’m not sure where Magnificent Seven fits on that spectrum I just invented but I’d think somewhere in the middle or maybe closer to John Wayne 🙂

        I know what you mean about painting actor’s likenesses. I get into that quite a bit with LOTR minis and it can drive you mental if you’re not careful 🙂

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      3. I think there is a decent chance I would enjoy it then 🙂 Seven Samurai is another I should give a watch. I think if I can get over that it is in black and white, I’d enjoy it 🙂

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  9. It’s been awhile since I saw the movie, but I’d say they look spot on! Recognized Yul and Steve right away. Excellent work on these, especially the clothing. Will they get a diorama at some point?

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    1. Thank you. I did consider a diorama but couldn’t quite see how to bring all the poses together as one. Might be an option to do them in smaller groups perhaps but I really need to sit down and watch the film again as that will probably have the answer. 😊

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  10. I certainly recognize a few of the famous chaps. You probably loved doing those, considering how much blue-jeans you were able to paint! I think they might become your trademark one day… 😉
    I’m really stunned with the two ones that have patterns or better the lines on their clothes, those are truely “magnificent”. On another note, it’s fascinating how well those rather simple bases complement their models. Chapeau! (well they haven’t taken off their hats though)
    Please tell me, is Django next?

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    1. With the film set on the Mexican boarder simple bases were the order of the day. I also think something more elaborate would have taken away from the sculpts which are pretty excellent I think. As for Django that would be great if the figures are out there.

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