He's leavin (leavin) on that 3:10 train to yuma (leavin on a 3:10 train ooo ya)

Did ya see what I did up there? Did ya see? Clever eh?

I was lucky enough to see 3:10 to Yuma on Sunday night. It's a gritty western about a father (Christian Bale) struggling to keep his land and feed his family who volunteers to help escort a dangerous criminal (Russell Crowe) to a prison train. I have to say...this movie is great. Directed perfectly by James Mangold (Walk the Line) and starring Christian Bale, Russell Crowe, Peter Fonda, Logan Lerman, Kevin Durand, Gretchen Mol, and Ben Foster.

Let me start with Ben Foster. I don't know what it is about him but he takes every scene he is in and makes it pure art. He is probably one of the single best character actors working today and most assuredly the best character actor from my generation. He takes the role of Charlie Prince and plays it spot on perfect. He has a knack for making characters that had they been played by anyone else they'd be over the top and campy, but he makes them real. From Freaks and Geeks to Alpha Dog he makes every part his own and Yuma is no exception.

The rest of the cast is great also. Gretchen Mol is in about a total of 15 minutes of the movie but she held her own. Same with Peter Fonda. Kevin Durand plays Tucker, a character who is hated from the second he gets on screen. I don't think I have hated a character in a movie as much as this one.

Let's be honest though, you want to hear about Russel Crowe and Christian Bale. They hit the bulls eye. Russel Crowe is delightfully sinister in this. He plays the part of coach robber and murderer Ben Wade with such a quiet intensity that is is impossible to look away when he is on screen. Christian Bale again gives us perfection. Whether he is playing an emaciated insomniac, a caped crusader, or a struggling rancher, he puts his all into the part and it really shows.

The movie is intense and refreshing change from the usual movie fare. We haven't had a good western in theatres since probably Unforgiven. Oddly enough, I grew up hating westerns. I wanted nothing to do with them. In recent years however, I've been more and more drawn to the genre. 3:10 to Yuma has only increased that. It's made it cool to like westerns again.

3:10 to Yuma is in theatres September 7.