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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

3:10 to Yuma
Lions Gate Films


6.5

based on 37 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 171 votes
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FILM:

MPAA RATING: R for violence and some language

Starring Christian Bale, Russell Crowe, Ben Foster, Alan Tudyk, Gretchen Mol, and Peter Fonda

In Arizona in the late 1800's, infamous outlaw Ben Wade and his vicious gang of thieves and murderers have plagued the Southern Railroad. When Wade is captured, Civil War veteran Dan Evans, struggling to survive on his drought-plagued ranch, volunteers to deliver him alive to the 3:10 to Yuma, a train that will take the killer to trial. On the trail, Evans and Wade, each from very different worlds, begin to earn each other’s respect. But with Wade’s outfit on their trail – and dangers at every turn – the mission soon becomes a violent, impossible journey toward each man's destiny. (Lions Gate)

GENRE(S):	Western
WRITTEN BY:	Elmore Leonard (short story) Derek Haas Michael Brandt Halsted Welles
DIRECTED BY:	James Mangold
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: January 8, 2008 Theatrical: September 7, 2007
RUNNING TIME:	117 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

James Mangold's 3:10 to Yuma restores the wounded heart of the Western and rescues it from the morass of pointless violence.

100

Miami Herald Connie Ogle

The new version is a glorious, thrilling throwback that never sacrifices its solid roots in the western genre despite a sharp modern update that actually improves on the original.

100

San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle

The finest American Westerns have a characteristic that 3:10 to Yuma shares. In a way that's almost mystical, they suggest a truth beyond the specifics of the tale.

Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow

The rousing new Western 3:10 to Yuma has the sweep of an epic and the economy of a stopwatch.

Film Threat KJ Doughton

Mangold has time to build sensational, studied characterizations, brilliant pacing (courtesy Mike McCuster, who also edited the director’s previous effort, the Johnny Cash biopic “Walk the Line”), and blistering action.

Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan

James Mangold directs it with such energy and passion that it's as if he didn't know it's all been done before.

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

Unlike Glenn Ford, a soft-spoken studio star who was cast against type as Wade 50 years ago, Crowe is a perfect fit. Not because of his bad boy behavior offscreen, but because he can blend charm and menace better than anyone.

TV Guide Ken Fox

The nerve-racking wait at the Contention hotel is no longer the film's centerpiece, but the deeper characterization gives Bale an opportunity to once again sink his teeth into a complex role, and offers a reminder as to why the notoriously difficult Crowe is sometimes worth the trouble.

Boston Globe Ty Burr

Both actors are among the best, most intuitively creative we have, and whatever transpires offscreen in Crowe’s case, onscreen they only serve their characters. Neither man showboats here, and it’s a thrill to watch them work.

Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey

A riveting remake of a pretty terrific 1957 western about manhood, fatherhood and honor.

Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy

A fine and sturdy picture, capable of standing alongside the many such films made when Westerns were one of our chief entertainments.

Christian Science Monitor Peter Rainer

What Alfred Hitchcock once said about thrillers also applies to Westerns: The stronger the bad guy, the better the film. By that measure, 3:10 to Yuma is excellent.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Tasha Robinson

Mangold delivers a taut modern take on a lesser classic, preserving the "High Noon" themes about doing the right thing against all odds, and injecting a more modern pacing and urgency without going overboard. His film isn't Leonard's classic, but it's a solid, genre-respecting Western in its own right.

The Hollywood Reporter Michael Rechtshaffen

A largely compelling ride on the strength of a powerful cast led by Russell Crowe and Christian Bale.

The New Yorker David Denby

In this movie, Fonda really is iconic. 3:10 to Yuma may be familiar, but, at its best, it has a rapt quality, even an aura of wonder.

Variety Todd McCarthy

James Mangold's remake walks a fine line in retaining many of the original's qualities while smartly shaking things up a bit.

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

Period westerns are so unfashionable and costly that they usually require a top-drawer script to get off the ground -- and this one, adapted from an Elmore Leonard story and its 1957 movie version, travels with an arrow's clean arc.

Time Richard Schickel

Who says remakes are always inferior to the original film? And who says the western is dead? Especially when a movie is as entertaining as this one, you begin to think this formerly beloved genre is due for a revival.

Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten

This film is an example of a Western that ought to appeal to a healthy-sized contemporary audience, and is also a remake of the 1957 film of the same name, which is a hallmark of the type of psychological Western.

USA Today Claudia Puig

Captures a potent sense of the Old West with its multidimensional raw performances and captivating final shootout sequence. But with its emphasis on emotional truths, it transcends the confines of a cowboy movie.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

The 30-minute finale, which includes a tense stand-off with Ben's gang, is masterfully executed. It's perfectly paced, suspenseful, and ends in a way that's both appropriate and satisfying.

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

This is how a Western today tries to give us more bang for the buck. By working this hard to be a crowd-pleaser, though, it may please fewer crowds.

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

Maybe this redo didn’t need so many bells and whistles, but Mangold brings it home.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Jennie Punter

While the newer version's darker ending lends a more contemporary twist, overall 3:10 to Yuma is reverent to the original – a few more bullets and more spilled blood notwithstanding.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

An extremely well-acted and well-directed remake of a 1957 oater.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

Mangold has been smart or fortunate in casting, and personalities sustain interest even when the narrative flags.

Premiere Glenn Kenny

In the battle of the leading men, Crowe's character has a slight edge, and the actor really makes the most of it, showing us how boyishly mischievous charm and utter venality can exist without seeming contradiction in the same being. But Bale builds to a pretty impressive boil himself after laying back for about three quarters of the film.

Salon.com Stephanie Zacharek

Overall, the picture is accomplished, intelligent and, in places, a little dull. Mangold isn't an economical filmmaker, and parts of 3:10 to Yuma suffer from needless bloat. The new version doesn't use the same kind of blunt, visually arresting shorthand as Daves' original...And yet somehow, maybe just barely, Mangold -- succeeds on his own terms, largely because the actors he's working with here.

New York Magazine David Edelstein

As Ben Wade, gang leader and murderer, he gives an ironic performance, but Crowe’s irony is more intense than other actors’ obsession. He turns the idea of having so few emotions--of being beyond caring--into a bloody joke. He upstages everyone with his laughing eyes.

Village Voice J. Hoberman

The movie's best performance belongs to Peter Fonda. Tough, terrific, and totally unrecognizable as a bounty hunter, this cantankerous old hippie is so leathery he deserves his own line of rawhide apparel.

Newsweek David Ansen

What this version offers is the chance to watch Russell Crowe and Christian Bale—two of the more charismatic, macho leading men around--duke it out psychologically, while another fine but less well-known intensity artist, Ben Foster, steals

The New York Times A.O. Scott

More likely to be recalled as a moderately satisfying entertainment than remembered as a classic.

LA Weekly Scott Foundas

Under Mangold’s sure if uninspired hand, the new Yuma is reasonably exciting and terse, and, like its predecessor, built around a memorable villain of ambiguous villainy.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

The result bears so little resemblance to the original that you have to wonder what happened. It seems more a remake of "How the West Was Won" than 3:10 to Yuma.

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

The acting is its chief strength. Russell Crowe brings a cocky charisma to Ben Wade.

Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern

The strengths of the first "3:10 To Yuma" were enhanced by its proportionality -- an intimate story told in 92 minutes. The story is no bigger in the new version, which goes on for 117 minutes. And it's certainly not better.

Washington Post Stephen Hunter

The remake adds 24 minutes and subtracts most of the suspense.

The average user rating for this movie is 6.5 (out of 10) based on 171 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Aaron gave it a2:
The movie sucked, the critics are pathetic in applauding a film which is riven with plot holes, illogical developments, hammy acting, & a dire script. The film was an absolute mess and boring to boot.

Brian F. gave it a0:
Absolutely ridiculous all the way through. From the needlessly bloody and ill-handled stagecoach robbery, to the mind-numbingly insipid ending, the entire film was an exercise in credulity assault. The bad guy escapes as often as he wants and kills as he goes because his captives mindlessly do not secure him, outside of some handcuffs. Sharpshooters are killing moving stagecoach drivers from improbable distances with deadly accuracy but in the final sequences can't seem to hit the broad side of a barn while standing right in front of it. I could not get past the miserable storyline to enjoy any 'psycho drama' said to be unfolding along the way. Even watching the film for free, I felt violated.

Bob L. gave it a2:
Back in the 1880's in Arizona Territory, people were really dumb. They allowed all of their decisions to be made by moviemakers whose only interest was sensation and bloat. There is little logic in this movie. The shoot-out at the end, while thrilling in a ho-hum sort of way is particularly stupid, as is whoever wrote this and expects the audience to believe anything. If you want a good and thrilling--not to mention realistic--shoot-out, take a look at the ending of the made-for-TV "Open Range."

Dane D. gave it a7:
As those who wrote before me have mentioned, the acting is the saving grace of this trite tale. I haven't read the Leonard story, but I hope it provides a bit more insight into the ridiculous and sudden character dynamics in the final quarter of the plot. I found myself waiting for some other element of the film to catch up with the performances. Unfortunately, nothing stepped up to the plate: the cinematography was everything short of poetic, the attention to detail faded just when it was needed the most (the shoot-out), and - as I mentioned before - the plot jumped tracks at the end. Despite its shortcomings, it's still an enjoyable romp. It could have been much more than that, though.

Chris G. gave it a10:
Excellent movie. If you like complex characters in a story then this one's for you.

Adam A. gave it a7:
An interesting movie of morals and virtues. It was all around well done. However, some parts had just too much shooting, while others had too little. The movie seems undecided whether it wants to be a charachter piece, or an action movie.

Larry B. gave it a1:
Really sad when I compare this movie to the 1957 original version. The original movie was about a man who faced difficulties with dignity and who was loved and admired by his family. The 2007 version was about a man who was basically a loser, had already lost the respect of his family, and who died at the end, for what exactly I don't know. The original had a wonderful screenplay where not a moment was wasted in excess dialog; the remake just went on and on with silly banter, and nothing believable.

3:10 to Yuma Lions Gate Films

3:10 to Yuma
Lions Gate Films