3:10 to Yuma (2007)

our rating: 3 out of 5 
reviewer: Charity Bishop

It's been a long time since anyone made a truly great western. Hollywood was once known for them, when such iconic figures as Jimmy Stewart and John Wayne rode across the big screen. I went into this remake expecting the usual rubbish and was surprised; this is a rarity in modern times -- it's a great western.

Every father wants to be a hero in the eyes of his child. Would-be cattle rancher Dan Evans (Christian Bale) is no exception. Unfortunately, his impetuous son William (Logan Lerman) has no respect for him, and their most recent point of contention comes when the loan sharks Dan has been borrowing from in order to keep his place afloat come calling and burn down the barn. Either he pays up in short order, or it'll be the house next. Disheartened and knowing he will soon lose everything, he and his boys set out to round up their cattle... and witness something that changes their lives forever: the robbery of the stagecoach. The attack is led by the infamous Ben Wade (Russell Crowe), a gun slinging outlaw with an impressive reputation that includes multiple murders and hold-ups. But this time he pushes his luck a little too much and is taken into custody in town, while his "boys" escape out back.

The intention of the Pinkerton detective on the case is to put Wade on the 3:10 train to Yuma prison... but they have to get him there first. It's a long journey across Indian-infested territory, with the full knowledge that Wade's posse, led in his absence by the ruthless Charlie Prince (Ben Foster), will be intent on rescuing him. Desperate both to save his land and recover the respect of his son, Dan volunteers to go along as a hired gun. Little does he realize what he is in for, because in addition to Indians, accidents, and escape attempts, Wade is known for his unnerving charm and calculating plans. And even if they make it to Yuma, they still have to wait for the train.

I admit that westerns are not my favorite thing in the world, in part because so many of them are dreadful. I started out this movie in the background while tidying up the living room and then midway through simply sat down and watched the rest. It's a great film. It has a solid script with intense dialogue, truly terrific actors (other notable ones show up in cameos throughout), and an unusual friendship that forms between two men so different in so many ways yet that understand one another on a deeper level. The character of Wade is ingenious, for one moment he is all charm and smiles and the next he is throttling someone or calmly throwing them off a cliff. But even though he is hard to put your finger on, you know what will happen toward the end because you start understanding him along with Dan. Crowe and Bale are incredible together; they have an on-screen chemistry that is rare these days, and it was a pure delight for me to see two such talented actors at the top of their game.

Audiences considering spending time with this film should know going in that in the true style of great classic westerns, sacrifices are made; people are killed, at times people we have grown fond of, but the story is ultimately all about integrity, which something we're severely lacking in the modern age. Dan undertakes a job and is determined to stick to it, because he gave his word -- even when it means he could die, even when he is offered ten times the promised amount if he'll just walk away. He never goes back on his word, and it is this that makes the biggest impact on his son. In a sense, he accomplishes far more than he intended to, and also earns respect from Wade that would have never been offered if he'd been easily bought off or given in. That, in part, was what so impressed me about it; that it wasn't just a shoot-em-up western where the good guys where white and the bad guys wear black, but it had a moral core to it, and depth beyond being a superficial action film.

Content-wise, it does fill out the R-rating with a lot of violence. It ranges from exchanging gunfire (the body count is enormous, since Charlie has a habit of shooting people that annoy him, get in his way, or simply he doesn't like the look of) to explosions; Wade strangles one man in his sleep after the man irritates him by singing a song about dying, and throws another off a cliff. People are shot point blank, with some bloody results. It's implied that Wade sleeps with a prostitute; he is shown drawing a picture of her afterward (the drawing contains partial backside nudity, but we never see it on his subject). References are made to prostitutes. The language bothered me most, because in addition to profanities, there is about a dozen uses of GD and Jesus' name. I didn't feel that was necessary and it lessened my enjoyment of it a notch. One could also argue that there is a decidedly anti-Christian slant to some of the dialogue; Wade asks a man if he considers himself to be a Christian, and then reminds him that he saw him gun down Indian women and children and throw their still-alive bodies into a ditch. He says that his mother gave him a Bible to read and then abandoned him at a train station. However, the behavior that Dan reveals throughout is decidedly virtuous -- and his wife insists on praying over their meals, implying they are a God-fearing household.

Where this movie stands on religion is uncertain; it toes the line and is ambiguous about its conclusions, but it does remind audiences that real integrity is doing what is right even though it may not be easy and might cost you your life. The final ten minutes are the most action-packed and profound in many ways, and even though it has an unexpected twist that some may not welcome, it does what few movies can do: share a deeper truth without preaching.