Why didn't the Seven wait until Bogue came back to attack?
- The Seven amply demonstrated their ability to slaughter the men Bogue had in Rose Creek. The dozen or so more that Bogue was likely to travel with as escort wouldn't have made much of a difference. Why not wait until Bogue came back at the end of three weeks and attack him then? The Seven alone would've been more than enough to dispatch them all. By slaughtering his garrison and calling him out, they made sure that he would come back sooner and with a far larger force than he would have otherwise had.
- They wanted to make sure Bogue came back himself, not just sending a few men. Giving him a challenge is the best way to do that.
- They tried and failed to kill all of Bogue's men during the first fight (Robicheaux had the last one in his sights but froze up), so it's possible that pissing him off first wasn't their Plan A. Alternately, Chisolm has a massive hate-on for Bogue and wanted to hurt him as much as possible before killing him.
- They let the Sheriff go purposefully; the man Robicheaux failed to kill wasn't the one who let Bogue know about the Seven.
- Wasn't that Cam Gigandet's character? The Sheriff was purposely let go, but that guy (McCann, says Wiki) made it out because of Robicheux, IIRC.
- They wanted to clear out all of Bogue's men so they could prepare the town for an attack. They figured it would be easier to defeat Bogue's army with the whole town population on their side and the town properly fortified/rigged for battle. Also they figured the best way to inspire the whole town to take up arms and fight Bogue would be to show them his men could be defeated personally.
Torches and pitchforks? No? Okay then let's just cower.
- Was anything actually stopping those townspeople from burning down Bogue's mansion while he slept?
- The fact that the mansion was in Sacramento. Bogue probably stayed at the saloon/hotel while he was at Rose Creek.
- Wherever he stayed, he would have had some of his best men as guards - without the training/support from the Seven, the townspeople would have been no match for them even if they weren't utterly terrified of the man.
- They did fight back. The townspeople buying weapons and hiring mercenaries to do so is literally the entire plot of the movie. They were discussing it in the very first scene.
- The few men who were ready and willing to fight from the start were provoked by the murder of Emma Cullen's husband and a woman who tried to run away into drawing and trying to fight while surrounded by Bogue's Blackstone thugs. They are cut down before any of them can even clear their holsters.
Range markers.
What was the point of the red pinwheels? They mark where the explosives are hidden, but those are triggered by men counting down verbally in the covered trenches where they can't see them. They aren't for the sharpshooters either, since the rifles open up well before then.
- It may have been something for the children to do? Or maybe it marked where the explosives were for the townspeople, not the bad guys.
Why go into the town first?
Bogue brought a Gatling gun with him and his army, but specifically waited until the Magnificent Seven had decimated his men before busting it out. Possibly could have won the battle if he'd used it sooner. While it would require more effort, he also could have brought food and supplies to have his men surround the town and starve everyone out.
- Bogue is a Bad Boss extraordinaire and doesn't care about the people in his employ. Also, Chisholm had specifically taunted him, counting on him to overreact and charge in blindly. Aside from that, he didn't expect anyone to use actual tactics against his men.
Why are the townsfolk such poor marksmen?
As farmers in the Old West, wouldn't these guys have plenty of experience hunting? They should have at least been able to hit a stationary target.
- If they could shoot, they wouldn't be such easy marks. Plus, being a farmer doesn't make you good at shooting.
- It depends how available guns are. Rose Creek doesn't seem to be near anywhere that would have easy access to ammunition/replacement parts. Gun traders would be rare in the middle of nowhere and regular merchants don't sell weapons that could be used to kill them and take their stuff unless they are extremely desperate. If Rose Creek ran out of bullets or required replacement parts, it maybe weeks if not months before they could get them. If the townspeople could afford them at all. Most of the folks probably stick to bows and arrows since, as Red Harvest shows, they are still a deadly weapon in the West.
Why does Bogue want to destroy the town in the first place?
He's already got a working gold mine in the valley, and he already owns the sheriff. The townspeople don't seem to be interfering with his operation much, though they complain sometimes. Why the heavy handed tactics to try to get them all to sell and leave, then? If he wanted to build a ranch there or thought there was more gold under the town or something I would understand, but he seems to be doing it just
For the Evulz.
- Bogue's poor impulse control is a central aspect of his character. Chisolm talks about how he killed his family for his land and He ends up killing one of his men solely for being the bearer of bad news. So him strong-arming the village with the most brutal methods possible after speaking up against him is a very plausible turn of events. Likewise his ultimate decision to essentially level the place to the ground after they decide to kill a few of his men. Bogue flying off the handle at the tiniest thing is basically his Modus Operandi.
- Or to put it more succinctly, he's the poster boy for what NOT to do in regards to the Evil Overlord List.
Where did Bogue find such dedicated and loyal mooks?
The men Bogue sends to attack the town aren't professional soldiers, just hired guns. So you'd think they would call off the attack and retreat after they start taking heavy casualties. But nope, they all charge in without a second thought and die to the last man. It really didn't occur to them that it might be time to rethink their career choices after they saw 90% of their force get wiped out?
- They probably just figured each dead compadre meant a bigger share of Bogue's payment for them. Plus, they were also inflicting pretty heavy casualties, so the last guys to go in had a better chance of winning. If not for Faraday's sheer guts and sacrifice, the Gatling gun might have actually won the day.
In the Seven's first shootout with Brogue's men, how did they know they weren't shooting the innocent?
At one point, they were shooting anyone who entered the Main Street on a horse or stepped outside a saloon door. How did they know they weren't inflicting friendly fire on innocent townsmen?
- The Seven probably assumed that whoever came galloping during a shootout was not a peaceful villager. This proves right when Emma afterwards has to call her fellow citizen before they dare to leave cover.
- To quote Captain America, "If they're shooting at you, they're bad."
