3:10 to Yuma Arrives Better Than Expected

by Andrew Jupin

The new vision of 3:10 to Yuma brings to mind that classic statement, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Well, considering that sentence alone has a few grammatical breakdowns that are worth fixing, I suggest that you pay it no mind. At first glance, James Mangold’s outing into the old West seems superfluous. Critics will argue that this is just another instance of Hollywood going back into the vault and fooling with an old, untouchable classic. The problem is that, although I find myself growing tired of the rehashing in contemporary cinema, not all films made before 1970 were perfect. So I decided to go in to 3:10 to Yuma with an open mind and a clear conscience. I don’t care that Glen Ford was in the original. I wanted to see for myself.

Leaving the theater I found myself neither blown away or angry. Mangold’s film takes on the same story of the original. A down-and-out rancher by the name of Dan Evans (played this time by the Man of One Thousand Movie Roles, Christian Bale) decides to help a group of local officials escort the great Wild West outlaw, Ben Wade (Russell Crowe) to the next town in order to catch a train bound for a prison. What train you ask?

That’s right…the 3:10 to Yuma. Along the way lots of Western shenanigans occur. People shoot guns at each other, horses run really fast, villains wear dark clothes and yes, they even drink whiskey. But it’s through a combination of those expected genre elements and a cast of superb leading men and phenomenal character actors that the film winds up working really well.

Ben Foster plays Charlie Prince, Ben Wade’s psychotic second in command who will stop at nothing to free Ben from the long arm of the law. Dallas Roberts is Grayson Butterfield, the railroad tycoon who’s train Wade robbed. Character Actor of the Century award winner Alan Tudyk—last seen in the dreadful un-comedy Death at a Funeral—is his usual great self as the town doctor along for the ride. Even Peter Fonda manages to hop aboard and deliver a pretty solid performance as a bounty hunter/former outlaw. Also, look out for an uncredited Frat Packer in a role where, while he’s great in his own right, he is dwarfed by the likes of Bale and Crowe. He sticks out like a sore thumb is what I’m trying to tell you.

3:10 to Yuma turns out pretty much as you would think it would. There are no surprises, no cheap shots, and little-to-no computer graphics (aside from one hilarious equestrian incident). It’s exactly the film I expected it to be, but at the same time, above my expectations on so many performance levels that it really does turn itself into one pretty solid return to the Western Genre. Oh and the good news is that if you enjoy hearing the times and destinations of trains barked by disgruntled cowboys...you're in for about a dozen treats.