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Film Review: 'A Million Ways To Die In The West'

Sonia Gumuchian |
May 20, 2014 | 4:13 p.m. PDT

Staff Reporter

(amillionsways/Tumblr)
(amillionsways/Tumblr)

Seth MacFarlane and his crew debuted “A Million Ways to Die in the West,” the long-awaited and hysterical Western comedy sure to entertain audiences this summer. 

"A Million Ways to Die in the West" has been in the public eye for quite some time, especially after Seth MacFarlane released a novel in early March based on the screenplay that he, Alec Sulkin and Wellesley Wild wrote together. Both mediums of the story are entertaining, however the film pays special attention to a certain style of slapstick comedy that MacFarlane has mastered.

This movie marks Seth's first on-screen appearance in one of his projects, as his previous works have had him performing behind the scenes by lending his voice. This time he was center stage and, though relatively new to acting, did a wonderously hilarious job. 

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The film follows a strong and clear structure, playing and making fun of genre tropes while poking fun at the dangers of living in the wild wild west. The trio (MacFarlane, Sulkin and Wild) pulled off and re-created what was thought to be a bad investment, as Westerns have been known to tank in the box office. 

As anticipated, there was an outpour of non-stop laughter in the audience as unexpected one-liners and plot twists continued to shock everyone. To put it simply, we never thought death could be so funny. An added surprise was the amount of emotional reality throughout the story. We received the laughs we wanted plus an added bonus of a touch of sincerity throughout the film. 

Anna (Charlize Theron) and Albert (Seth MacFarlane) form an unusual and unique bond through their hatred of the West and a particular brand of humor only they (and the 21st century audience) understands. MacFarlane may have created more than just a Western movie, as he and his crew packed endless jokes about Western movies and life in the 1880's while tugging on our heart strings. The amount of touching moments definitely makes up for the never ending slew of fart jokes (which are also hilarious).

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Before the screening of the film, MacFarlane made an announcement thanking everyone from his production team to co-writers, but made a special mention to the talented lady who helped make "A Million Ways" the success that it is.

“There is one person I couldn’t have done this without- Charlize Theron. I could not ask for a better partner; I went into this pretty cautious and pretty intimidated and within a couple weeks I became very relaxed and it’s largely thanks to her. She is the greatest partner I could possibly ask for in every way and I can’t thank her enough. So, enjoy!” MacFarlane stated.  

Theron and MacFarlane are a dream team and throughout all the expected death, this film gives you a million reasons to laugh.

Reach Staff Reporter Sonia Gumuchian here. Follow her on Twitter here.  



 

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