No western, with courageous sacrifice, can be stunning by accident!

Rating: 8/10 (30 March 2008)

Christian Bale (Dan Evans) holds the screen as an honest rancher who volunteers for two hundred dollars to be part of a doomed group of guards to take the enigmatic bandit and killer Ben Wade (Russell Crowe) to a train, the 3:10, leaving Bisbee, Arizona for Yuma prison to trial
Beaten down by an old Civil War injury, and unable to protect his farm and his family from Wade's ruthless gang and humiliated by his teenage son (Logan Lerman) who makes no efforts to hide his disappointment in his impoverished father, and who doesn't try to hide the fact that he admires the charismatic criminal, Dan finds a great quantity of reasons to undertake the perilous trip to Contention City to fight back like a real man and regain his son's respect The story concentrates on Evans whose unknown destiny tries to paint to his son an unforgettable picture turning up poignant and endearing
Wadeleader of a murderous band of robbershad great respect for Dan throughout the film and develops a kind of understanding and appreciation for him Their short scenes in the hotel room celebrate the virtues of two opposite men who stand up for what they believe stopping on issues in relation with family, dignity, virtue, and admirable integrity The best scenes are those in which Wade teases Dan: "Your conscience is sensitive, Dan. It's not my favorite part of you."
Crowe's interpretation of a gifted cold-blooded smooth-talking bad man is one of the most compelling parts of the film Bale is splendid as the struggling, crippled rancher, misunderstood by his whole family The two actors comfortably inhabit this stunning western
It is nice to see that there are still good westerns being made lately And James Mangold's "3:10 to Yuma," a remake of Delmer Daves' 1957 picture, is one of them It is a Western with realistic violence, great action sequences, breathtaking photography, and an inevitable final shoot-out