Lionsgate Entertainment

Written By:

Halstead Welles, Michael Brandt & Derek Haas

A Civil War veteran finding himself near poverty, crosses paths with an outlaw stealing his cattle. After arranging for his arrest, the ranchhand finds himself tasked with delivering the outlaw to the authorities in the gripping and well-acted remake of the 1957 classic western, “3:10 To Yuma.”

James Mangold’s ambitious take on the classic western, “3:10 To Yuma”, is less a remake of a classic, as much as a film which succeeds on its own merits, without the need for comparison to the source film. “3:10″ becomes incredibly engaging from the terrific work of Christian Bale and Russell Crowe, who play the good guy/bad guy dynamic to near perfection. Bale’s take on the Dan Evans character (played by Van Heflin in the 1957 original) is a joy to watch as Bale presents Evans as vulnerable when faced with adversity, and driven by stubbornness and wounded pride in having to deal with the combustible outlaw, Ben Wade, played effortlessly by Russell Crowe.

In watching the film develop, Crowe is nothing short of captivating. He has rarely played the “bad guy” role and here, he injects fantastic charisma and personality in a frankly, vile character. While the viewer cannot exactly root for Wade to succeed in all of his ruthlessness, you become interested in his cold and calculated actions. Crowe plays his outlaw with a callousness that Bale rivals with his desperation and determination. As Bale’s character comes to need and rely on Wade’s expertise and smarts along their journey, the film plays with an interesting consideration that these two hardened souls might be more similar than either would ever wish to admit.

“3:10 To Yuma” moves briskly while the film gains intensity as Wade and Evans play their proverbial chess game and encounter a psychopathic outlaw (Ben Foster) who complicates Evans’ plans, to say the very least. For those who recoil from the Western genre, the film offers something from everyone. The tremendous work from Bale and Crowe, along with Mangold’s pacing, makes “3:10 To Yuma” a fun, and at times, riveting enjoyment.

• Best Original Score (Marco Beltrami)
• Best Sound

Should I See It?

If you are a fan of James Mangold’s previous work, and his attention to character-driven films.

I detest the term, however if the word “Guy Flick” works for you, I suppose this would fit the bill.

Great acting from leads, supporting characters, and a film that keeps you engaged from the opening credits through the last.

NO

No matter how good the film is, there are people who run away from the Western genre in any form.

If you are not a fan of films which blur the lines between villain and hero.

If you fall in the camp that the only ideas Hollywood has left are to just recycle and remake the classics.