The earth is hard, the climate is dry, the sun is scorching. The bad guys outnumber the good, and in the entire town there is but one woman. That's right, this is a Western and its the best I've seen in a theater. Of course that isn't saying much, but my point is that this is a good Western. It's also a good remake apparently, this very movie was made a half century ago or something. So we add "3:10 to Yuma" to the "King Kong list" of remakes that are probably superior to the original film.
The plot is pretty simple, the real draw to this film are the performances. Almost in a duel/partnerships are Russel Crowe as outlaw Ben Wade and Christian Bale as a failed family man whose son outspokenly voices his disapproval of him. An example of their conversation "Someday when you walk in my shoes, you would understand." Intese pause. "I'll never walk in you're shoes." Such words from sons can drive men crazy. And so we get Christian Bale becoming a hero before our and Wade's eyes. It's a sight to see the transformation. The intensity, the passion, the tough grit. Very few movies give a lot to the word honor nowadays, but we see it in this movie in spades.
Two more righteous shoutouts. One goes to the Ben Foster who turns in a splendid performance of Wade's sidekick "Charlie Prince." The little touch of sophistication goes a long way. The second shout out goes to the climatic gun fight. Hopefully this movie is turned into a video game at some point. There's plenty to work with here.
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