Rated R for violence and some language.
Directed by James Mangold (Walk the Line, Identity)
Starring Russell Crowe, Christian Bale, Peter Fonda, Gretchen Mol, Dallas Roberts, Ben Foster, Vinessa Shaw
3:10 to Yuma is a wild ride and reminds me why I love westerns.
This 1957 remake is set in Arizona in the late 1800's. The infamous outlaw, Ben Wade (Russell Crowe), and his vicious gang of thieves and murderers have plagued the Southern Railroad and its surrounding towns. Wade is finally captured and Civil War veteran Dan Evans (Christian Bale), who is struggling to keep his ranch and family together, volunteers to deliver him to the 3:10 train to Yuma. Knowing this train will take the Wade to prison and set Evans back on track, not to mention Wade's gang on their trail, the two expect this will be a violent, almost impossible journey to their destiny. The one thing they don’t expect is to earn each other's respect along the way.
I remember seeing the movie poster in my local Cineplex and not being able to wait to see this “new” western with a goofy name and two of my favorite actors. I actually said I really hope they don’t screw this up…like Will Smith’s Wild West. Let me reassure you…they didn’t!
3:10 to Yuma is an intensely wild ride that brings back everything that is right about the Western. As a huge fan of Tombstone, Unforgiven and others that have done it right, I love how James Mangold captured the gritty and wild shoot-'em-up action while telling the classic good guy vs. bad guy story and the hard-learned lessons of redemption and forgiveness. One of the things that make this one so good is Russell Crowe and Christian Bale, who are both powerful and believable and do a great job of playing off each other.
It’s been said that what made the classic western films wasn't its violent confrontations but its depth of the characters, and this new 3:10 to Yuma lies up to that claim. It truly is a Great Western drama.
SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
The true R rating is for violence and some language both of which are relatively mild to more graphic and gratuitous films. Ben Wade has a romantic scene with a bar maid but surprisingly the scene ends well before anything is shown. There is also a tamer-than-Titanic nude scene where Ben sketches her body.
Conversation Starter
Three Simple Questions (with Answers You May Be Looking for):
- What are some of the messages or themes you observed in this movie?
- How do you suppose we—as serious Christ-followers—should react to this movie?
- How can we move from healthy, Bible-based opinions about this movie to actually living out those opinions?
