3:10 To Yuma

Director: James Mangold
Starring: Russell Crowe, Christian Bale, Logan Lerman, Ben Foster, Dallas Roberts, Peter Fonda, Vinessa Shaw, Alan Tudyk, Gretchen Mol, Luke Wilson
Running Time: 122 min.
Rating: R

**** (out of ****)

Years from now movie buffs and film historians will look back on James Mangold's remake of the classic 1950's Western, 3:10 To Yuma as the rare opportunity to watch two acting legends square off. It'll rank alongside such memorable moments as the Pacino/DeNiro face off in Heat only this takes it a step further. Russell Crowe and Christian Bale don't just share one measely scene in this film.

We get everything we hoped for as two of our finest actors give each other and us everything they have for 2 straight hours and it's a testament to their performances that when it's over it's the story that's remembered most. You can add to that mix another actor who, if his work this year is any indication, may soon be joining their elite company, and we have one hell of a motion picture experience.

There are certain genres, like war and espionage films, I generally tend to stay away from because my interest in the subject matter is low. Westerns are a different story. I always had an interest in them but my exposure was limited and, with very few exceptions, they seemed to have gone out of style in the past two decades, making a bit of a comeback only recently. As I was watching this film it occurred to me just how much I missed them and how truly great and exhilarating they can be when executed well.

So for those tentative about going into Western, don't think of it as one. It could better be classified as The Departed, set in the West as it shares many of that film's qualities thematically. The best in the genre aren't about gunfights or cowboy hats, but are morality plays that explore the thin line between good and evil and the importance of standing up for what you believe is just. They're about honor. It seems simple and clichéd when I type it, but it actually isn't at all. There's nothing simple about this story or the characters in it, at least not in the way that this magnificent film grippingly presents it.

Dan Evans (Bale) is an impoverished rancher who lost his foot in the Civil War and is struggling to make ends meet for his wife Alice (Gretchen Mol) and two young sons. His situation worsens when his ranch is burnt to the ground by two henchmen of a man to whom Dan owes money. The next day while herding cattle Dan and his sons witness the violent robbery of a stagecoach by notorious outlaw Ben Wade (Crowe) and they discover the sole survivor of the ambush, seriously wounded bounty hunter Byron McElroy (Peter Fonda).

In desperate need of cash and about to lose his land to the railroad Dan agrees to join McElroy, Sheriff Butterfield (Dallas Roberts) and Doc Potter (Alan Tudyk) for a fee of $200 to accompany Wade to Contention where he'll be put on the 3:10 train to Yuma prison and await hanging. But Wade has other plans, as does his posse now led by his right-hand man, the psychotic Charlie Prince (an electrifying Ben Foster). Dan needs the money to keep his home and family together, but must also consider whether the reward is worth the price if his widow is left to care for their sons alone. Dan is just a crippled rancher, not law enforcement, and has no business being involved with someone as dangerous as Wade. The chances of him surviving this journey are slim to none.

Motivating Dan further, however, is the fact that his eldest son William (Logan Lerman) views his father as a weak coward incapable of standing up for himself. William is so disappointed and has such little faith in his father that the overambitious teen even continuously demands to come along for help despite his dad's adamant objections. Dan's involvement in escorting Wade to Contention with the rest of the men never goes where we think it will, nor does his complicated relationship with his son, or most importantly, his even more complicated relationship with the ruthless Wade. I can't say I was shocked how it all went down but I was shocked at how conflicted I became about the characters on the journey and how emotionally powerful the final minutes of this picture were.

Everything about this film is perfect and at its center is the relationship between Dan and Wade and how both actors choose to play it. They're not friends but they're not exactly enemies either and the casting of Crowe and Bale in these roles was brilliant and isn't done as a vanity project for the stars or a stab at stunt casting. It serves the material every step of the way. You can feel the tension as they're both on opposite sides of the law, but there's also strong mutual respect between two men who are really much more alike than different as far as their goals. How each go about reaching them is a different story. That mutual respect and tension changes in ways I won't reveal throughout the picture and the beauty of the casting choices is that you can't help but wonder if the complicated relationship between the two characters mirrored the one between Crowe and Bale on set (where supposedly they got along really well).

In one of the most memorable scenes the outlaw Wade joins the Evans family for dinner and Alice remarks that he Wade wasn't at all what she expected him to be. He's not what we expected either as Crowe manages to make this cold-blooded killer come off as polite, respectful, intelligent and even likable. Not too likable though and that's where it's to the film's benefit to have an actor like Crowe playing the role and knowing just how much is too much. Praising him is becoming old hat by now, but it's nice when a role like this comes along to remind us just how good he really is. He leaves it all right there on screen and this is one of his most subdued and nuanced performances.

It's also a rare treat to see Bale in a role we're not accustomed to: that of a weak, defeated man. He owns it and believably conveys his slow transformation throughout this journey. When this was over I had to wonder just how much longer Bale can continue giving performances like this (and the one in Rescue Dawn earlier in the year) without being recognized with an Academy Award nomination. There's no doubt he'll get one eventually and when the day comes it'll be that much more meaningful knowing he left behind a body of work that includes performances like this.

The relationship between Dan and his son is heartbreaking not only because of the boy's low opinion of his father but the prospect that this teen could one day turn into the man Wade has become. It's a very real and scary prospect that's alluded to many times throughout the film. Lerman plays William exceptionally, holding his own with the two best at the top of their games. It would be an intimidating situation for any young actor, but watching his work here you'd never know it.

As good as Crowe and Bale are though, they're both nearly upstaged by Ben Foster, whose threatening presence holds this movie captive. Every word he speaks and action he takes literally shakes you to the core. What's most amazing is his Charlie Prince doesn't even have all that much screen time over the course of the film but Foster makes every second of contained menace count. It's the quality, not quantity.

One of the great benefits of seeing so many movies is getting to follow the career trajectory of all these actors, some of whom really end up surprising you. I don't think anyone would have guessed that Foster, a graduate of such films as the forgettable teen comedy Get Over It, would morph himself into an actor of such force. When the Oscar nominations are announced on January 22nd one thing that would have me jumping out of my seat would be hearing his name announced as a nominee for Best Supporting Actor for his work here or his equally powerful turn in Alpha Dog early last year. Take your pick. Either performance is deserving.

Watching this film it occurred to me that James Mangold, dating all the way back to Cop Land over a decade ago, might be the only director who actually improves with each outing. Walk The Line may always remain my favorite film of his but there's little argument on my end that this is his personal best. Having not seen the original 1957 film (which itself was based on an Elmore Leonard short story) I've heard that this expands the scope of the tale, giving us more details and motivation. I believe it and if this wasn't such a crowded year, a film like this would usually be a lock for a Best Picture nod.

It's a throwback to a time in movies when the story, not computer generated special effects, were the reason audiences came to the theaters. It's all done right and feels authentic. Everything from Marco Beltrami's score to the gorgeous cinematography. There's even a Fonda in it for good measure. The return of the Western has to be one of the more positive developments to come out of Hollywood in recent years and I'm curious to see how the year's other big Western, The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford fares against this. It definitely has its work cut out for it. So those thinking of staying away from 3:10 To Yuma and writing it off just merely an accurate recreation or faithful re-imagining of a genre left for dead years ago, think again. This is the real thing.