Film Screening 1st May, 2008

Poster for 3:10 to Yuma

3:10 to Yuma 

8:00 PM, 1st May, 2008
No Guests

  • MA
  • 122 mins
  • Unknown
  • James Mangold
  • Halsted Welles, Michael Brandt, Derek Haas
  • Russell Crowe, Christian Bale, Peter Fonda, Gretchen Mol

Outlaw Ben Wade (Crowe) has been arrested holding up a coach belonging to the railway company and needs to be taken to the town of Contention, where he can be put on the 3:10 train to Yuma Prison. Dan Evans (Bale), a small time rancher in debt and struggling through a drought, agrees to take him for the fee of $200. A simple plot, set against a classic 'end of The West' backdrop, draws the three basic players in that set-up ((ndash)) the outlaw, the railroad baron, the little man ((ndash)) ever closer to their respective fates as the clock winds down. The leads are excellent, but are almost outplayed by the supporting characters; Evans' son (Logan Lerman); Wade's second-in-command (Ben Foster); a tough bitten Pinkerton operative (Fonda); and a sadist called Zac (Luke Wilson, in an unusual cameo). The balance between action and dialogue is well maintained; the interactions between the characters create as much drama as the fight scenes. This is not a film for the queasy ((ndash)) no violence or gore is spared. While it may not be the most original film you will see this year, 3:10 To Yuma is a well-told story without a single weak link, making an enjoyable evening's entertainment.

Eloise Wright