My Evening in Sedona - Part two (Some Spoilers)

3:10 to Yuma – the review

The movie starts off with an exciting sequence and within a few minutes you are aware of the Evans’ family’s precarious situation, on the verge of losing the ranch. You get a sense of the desperation Dan Evans is feeling; helplessness at not being able to provide for his family and fear of losing the respect of his family, he sees it reflected in his wife’s face and his son’s eyes. There is also a desperation in his hope that things will be alright as soon as it rains, and you don’t believe that he really believes it.

With the first few frames of Ben Wade you also get a good sense of who he is, or who you think he might be. He sits on his horse high on a hill watching the stagecoach approach, and then, like a general, watches his men go into ‘battle’.  Soon after he joins them amongst the wreckage they’ve created, he commits an act which shows his ruthlessness. It appears to shock even his own men.

Thus begins the journey of these two men; adversaries who become unwilling collaborators and who eventually build a respect for each other and form one of the more unusual bonds portrayed in movies. 3:10 to Yuma is one part exciting and intense Western version of a road trip, and one part psychological and moral struggle between two complex men.

Ben Wade is Russell at his charismatic best; charming and appealing, but also cagey and manipulative, steely and dangerous. But, as we know, Russell can humanize even the darkest of characters and he does a brilliant job with Ben Wade.  He slips into this role like he’s putting on his most comfy pair of boots.

Christian Bale is an honest but beleagured rancher, who takes the job of escorting Ben Wade to Contention to catch the 3:10 train to Yuma. Southern Pacific railroad man, Grayson Butterfield, also on this trip, has promised to pay him $200. A Pinkerton-hired bounty hunter Byron McElroy (Peter Fonda), who was shot in the stagecoach hold up perpetrated by Wade’s gang, refuses to let this group go without him, although he is wounded.  We find out he and Ben have a long past history.  Doc Potter (Alan Tudyk) is roped into going, ostensibly to keep his eye on wounded McElroy, as we learn Doc is a lousy shot. The man who Dan is in danger of losing his ranch to (Hollander) sends along one of his men (Tucker), who needles Ben Wade relentlessly. The sheriff and one of his men round out this group at the beginning of the two day journey to Contention to deliver Wade to the 3:10 to Yuma.

Several exciting events occur on this road trip; an interesting subterfuge, Indian attacks, trouble at a railroad camp, members of the posse ‘lost’ along the way, and there are also several moments in between the action which provide us insight into the increasing, but strange bond forming between captor and captive.  You also begin to wonder if Ben Wade really is the captive, he seems to be in control of the situation more than his guards. 

When we get to Contention and Ben and the few men left guarding him hold up in a hotel room, the tension starts to build as they wait the several hours until the train arrives. Tension increases as Ben’s gang rides into town and his second in command declares “This town’s gonna burn” if it has to in order to free his boss. There’s no doubt he will do just that and kill anyone in his way.  The last 20 or so minutes of this movie are very tense and the foot race to the train station is one of the most exciting chase sequences I’ve seen in a long time. 

Ben Foster is fun to watch as the psychopathic killer, but Charlie Prince is more of a one-note character. You sense his devotion to his boss, but you get no back story on him at all.  I wouldn’t even call him an animal, that’d be a little too generous. He’s a cold-blooded killer, willing to do the most vile acts to get to town to free his boss. I guess that devotion, though you’re not sure of the basis of it, could be the only thing we could call a redeeming quality in this nasty individual.

Russell and Christian are the heart and soul of the film, and are dynamic together every time they are on screen.  Dan Evans is everyman, working very hard but getting beaten down by circumstances. He’s not only fighting to survive, he’s fighting to regain the respect of his family. Christian’s performance is spot on, he shows quiet heroism even within his own self-doubt.  Ben Wade would at first glance appear to be the complete opposite. Ben is all casual, laid-back charm, but there is hidden danger within, that strikes out so quickly, by the time you see it you’re dead.  Russell is compelling as this ruthless killer, but there is something about him that makes you not want Ben Wade to be killed, that wants to find out what makes him tick. There was at least one spot where the audience gasped when they thought he might be killed. That was the point, for me, when I realized Ben/Russell had them eating out of his hands. 

In summary, I give high marks to this film, straight across the board; writing, directing, acting as well as the production values. The cinematography is exquisite in the hills and canyons surrounding Santa Fe, standing in for Arizona.  The music is reminiscent of the old classic Western scores, but updated and very effective. The editing, the pacing were perfect, the action sequences were fast and exciting and the dialogue driven sequences never felt slow. The dynamic between Russell and Christian is riveting, in both the tense times and the quiet times.