6 Guns is a rape revenge movie in which a woman gets a gunslinger to teach her how to become one so she can avenge herself and her family by killing the men that wronged her. I only watched it because I’m a completist. It started when I saw Jane Got a Gun and discovered that it was a remake of Hannie Caulder, which in turn is a remake of Gunslinger, the only movie that I have not seen because it does not appear to be available for home viewing. 6 Guns was released before Jane Got a Gun, but long after the other two movies were on the big screen. It feels like a television movie in spite of the subject matter because the acting is not that great and the production value is basic, but convincing. The director is the son of one of the stars, who is also the son of Dick Van Dyke, but it does not feel as if it was made by showbiz royalty. It feels as if it was made by first time filmmakers, and maybe it is because it is clearly a family affair with the cast rounded out by more Van Dykes.
So how does it measure up? 6 Guns may be my favorite version to date. Hannie Caulder is dated because it feels exploitive and completely oblivious to the sensitive catalyst to the action, but once the action gets started, it acquits itself well and mostly satisfied my woman kicking butt vitamins. Jane Got a Gun had amazing acting, but as a drama, it was handicapped by its clunky, contrived narrative that never quite nailed clearly conveying its characters’ stories and felt a bit outlandish. The action was too brief to make up for the grueling journey of the characters. While 6 Guns’ acting may have been wooden and fell just slightly above a team of children performing in a very inappropriate school play, it was earnest, and the actors clearly cared and were trying. What they lack in natural ability and/or experience, they make up for in heart and hard work. The story was well told and never felt exploitive once it got cooking. In the beginning of the film, the housewife looks too dressed up for just being at home with her family, and the family does the worst bit of hiding that I have ever seen in the history of movies. Otherwise t was imbued with a modern sensitivity without feeling anachronistic or holding back when it was time for the action to begin.
Because 6 Guns was so earnest and straightforward, especially in wisely telling its story in chronological order, it succeeded where its better known and well received counterparts did not. 6 Guns becomes a rape revenge story that becomes redemptive through violence. Hannie Caulder makes the end a triumphant tragedy. Jane Got a Gun is a melancholy ode to loss and aging. 6 Guns is an act of rebirth through others blood and screaming. Sage Mears is not a good actor, but she is believable on the journey from housewife to bounty hunter. With a little more time, Mears reminds me of Emma Roberts, which is a compliment. (I liked Roberts in Adult World and Scream Queens).
I also liked the way that her teacher was introduced. In Jane Got a Gun, I was disgusted that he was a former love interest. I do not like it when every character’s relationship with a woman character is based in sex. In Hannie Caulder, her mentor is cut from the same cloth as other Western gunslingers and is not entirely memorable though Robert Culp plays him. 6 Guns shows us who her mentor is by showing how other people interact with him before he meets his future pupil. It does not hurt that he looks like Jack Palance. He is laconic like most heroes in a Western, but he seems more like an introvert who just wants to read his book, which seemed like a nice touch. He has a charitable streak, and I never got the impression that they were going to hook up. It seemed more like genuine concern and being appalled at others indifference to her pain, which I thought was a great direction to take the character in. I enjoyed their interaction and thought their training sequence struck the right tone. Even though the majority of the film feels as if the mentor is the protagonist, Selina, the housewife, has enough character development and shine that she does not feel two dimensional like Hannie or too melodramatic like Jane. In retrospect, they take turns sharing the spotlight though he may get more shine, but he is a Van Dyke after all. It only seems fair. If you can’t be the star of your movie, when can you be?
6 Guns also managed to inject humor with its supporting characters and heighten tension whenever the outlaws appeared. They seemed like a credible, long term threat to the community, which is essential for the Western drama and is a crucial element missing in the other two movies. The sheriff did not want to do his job, which is obvious, but there is always an unspoken question of whether or not it will matter to the outlaws since they just enjoy harming people. I definitely got the sense in this version more than the others that there was a possibility that the entire town would be affected if the mentor did not get backup, which provides another plausible reason why he would teach her if only to slightly increase his odds of surviving. Because of his empathetic streak, it definitely feels like leaving is not an option for him. If he feels bad for her, his heart would break over a town that he did not particularly want to socialize with. The other movies make it seem like the outlaws are only a threat to her, and she was just a victim of bad timing. 6 Guns was more effective than The Magnificent Seven in creating a credible, down to Earth threat storyline and providing a solution that seemed organic rather than crafted.
When the shooting begins, 6 Guns does not disappoint. If I had to choose between Hannie, Jane or Selina, the heroine of 6 Guns, to defend me, I’m choosing Selina. I want a CW television series with Selina as the Western hero who rides into town and kills the bad guy. Hell, bring Mears back! Best of all, it still felt thrilling without employing all the techniques that media usually employs when women are involved in action sequences. There is no CGI, acrobatics, cutting edge technology, awesome soundtrack, gorgeous clothes and makeup. Pardon my French, but she just fucked people up. I feel as if Haley Bennett from The Magnificent Seven was thinking, “Why couldn’t they do that with my character?” I know, girl.
Even though 6 Guns is not the best crafted movie with numerous glaring weak spots, I loved it and thought that its spirit and dedication carried the movie to a higher echelon. I would have been happy to pay money to see it and would definitely consider seeing another Van Dyke film if it was a genre than I enjoyed. Good job!