3:10 To Yuma- You Can Afford Not to Be On Time for this One **1/2

Rating: 6/10 (9 January 2008)

Russell Crowe does not exactly sound western here as Ben Wade, an outlaw who is vicious and cunning.
The movie becomes preachy at the end when Crowe and Christian Bale, who delivers a great performance, become too friendly. Does Crowe try to show he is a person with a conscience when he reveals at the end that his mother gave him a bible to read and then abandoned him at age 8? Does he become sympathetic to the plight of rancher Bale, who wants to bring him in to face justice so that he can collect money to save his family and ranch.
The part where the sheriff and posse abandon Bale and his son represents a complete reversal of the "High Noon" concept.
Crowe and Bale are natural enemies who come to understand and even aid each other. The ending will sadden but shock you. Nevertheless, the concept that there is good even in the worst of people is cliché here.