Heroes

You'd think the theme of heroism would be exhausted by now, but you'd be wrong. 3:10 to Yuma does an excellent job of adding to our understanding who heroes are, where to look for them, and why they are important.

It juxtaposes two men- one is unaccomplished, frustrated, and desperate-in short, a failure with a family. The other is unattached, romantic, intelligent, fast, and powerfully charismatic.

It really does take every minute of the movie, and especially the structure of the ending, to tell us WHY the first of the two men is the true hero, and why the second is empty and valueless. You'll see that the West was won by men of no accomplishment and high character, not men of talent and charisma. You'll see that a father's love has more power than a gunslinger's right hand. Perhaps most important, you'll see that a hero is such because he gives, not because he takes.

Enjoy the movie, and learn to see the heroes in the world around you.

Where's Clint when you need him?

Well, if the Western isn't dead, it won't be because this film has revived it. More of an American homage to Sergio Leone and the Spaghetti Western era, particularly with an ending that would make even the Spaghetti King himself weep. But Russell Crowe here is no Clint Eastwood. This is one of his weakest efforts to date. Christian Bale is far more watchable here but still isn't strong enough to carry the film on his own back. The film has it's moments but whatever meaning might have been made out of its parts destroyed by an ending so incredible that it crosses over the border into comedy.

Noble attempt to be an in-depth movie + Outrageously far-fetched ending + Few entertaining moments = Worth renting

It tries hard to be an in-depth movie. It deals with psychology, conscience and honesty. There are very few exciting moments. The worst problem is the outrageously far-fetched ending. That has never happenned in history or reality. Logically, it'll never happen either. To me, that makes the film less interesting. It's still worth renting for curiosity.