Amarillo College Ranger

Issue date: 9/20/07 Section: Arts & Entertainment

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Shootouts, fistfights, saloons and bandits: all the important elements of a great western.

A great western is exactly what a new moviem, 3:10 to Yuma, is.

Starring Christian Bale and Russell Crowe, this sprawling western is not just mindless shootouts.

Rather, it tells a story about deep, evolving characters. One finds oneself questioning the traditional "good guy/ bad guy" model.

It is strange to walk into a movie and end up rooting for the bandit as well as his captor - the coldhearted murderer and the morally absolute rancher.

The movie opens by introducing us to the hero, a conflicted rancher, played by Bale.

When attempting to gather lost cattle, he witnesses the robbery of a stagecoach and meets the film's villain, played by Crowe.

When Crowe is captured later, he needs to be escorted to the town of Contention and put on the movie's namesake, the 3:10 train to Yuma Prison.

Bale, an-ex soldier, deeply in debt, volunteers to join the group of men to escort Crowe for $200.

Within minutes, however, it becomes clear that putting Crowe on the train will be far less simple than it sounds.

Pursued by a bloodthirsty gang of bandits intent on stopping them, the group faces treacherous miners, territorial Apaches and each other.

The most engrossing conflict, however, is the continuous one between Bale and Crowe.

Bale struggles with his own personal demons, his ideas of right and heroism.

Crowe, on the other hand, struggles with his beliefs and whether he can bring himself to murder Bale and escape.

Through it all, they struggle inevitably with each other: captor and captured.

The problem is compounded by Bale's family problems, namely a rebellious son who doesn't respect him, and another whose life depends on Bale regaining the family farm in the dry climate of Arizona.

Above all, this movie is a sprawling epic. The characters are deep, enigmatic and innately human.

The story line is fascinating and thought-provoking and calls on viewers to decide right and wrong in their own eyes.

Ending in an amazing running gunfight through the streets of Contention and with a surprise ending, this movie was well-thought-out and amazingly filmed.

3:10 to Yuma brings back the Hollywood western in a spectacular way.

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