Finally got around to watching 3:10 to Yuma, this is standard Western fare, well shot and acted.

It’s based on a short story by Elmore Leonard and is directed by James Mangold, who directed ‘Walk the Line’. He also directed ‘Identity’ (awful), ‘Girl Interrupted’ (I didn’t like it) and ‘Copland’ (good – best performance from Sly Stallone I’ve ever seen).

3:10 to Yuma opens well, nothing ground breaking or earth shattering, but some nice ideas well executed.

It continues well, and becomes quite an engaging film, and it kept me interested in what way the plot would develop.

I have heard criticisms that Russell Crowe phoned in his performance, but I have to disagree. His laid back, disinterested air was precisely what the character called for, as well as making for very entertaining watching and marking a stark contrast with his deeds – which is alluded to several times in the script.

Bale also gave a very credible and engaging performance, without relying too much on any western stereotypes, or giving away too much of his hand at any time.

Ben Foster, while he didn’t shy away from the western stereotypes quite so much as Bale or Crowe, gave another compelling performance – even if it was a character we felt much more familiar with from a host of other westerns. BTW – if you want to watch more Ben Foster, watch Alpha Dog – an excellent film.

Peter Fonda also gives a great performance, it’s only a pity he didn’t have a larger part.

3:10 to Yuma is a solidly good and engaging film… up until about 15 or 20 minutes from the end. At this point you should turn off your television and walk away having had your entertainment. If you watch the rest of the film it will ruin your evening’s enjoyment for you.

The film every now and then veers away from a nice gritty realism for some forgivable reasons like old fashioned but completely ridiculous gun skills, but once you hit the home stretch in this film, even the reality they have created for themselves is completely discarded and the film jumps gleefully into fairytale land with both feet and refuses to come out.

I was gobsmacked. How could anyone have thought this ending was acceptable? How could any director ruin a perfectly good film with this rubbish? How could… how… it….. oh. my. god.

Please tell me I’m not alone here. And also, if you’ve read the Elmore Leonard short story, please let me know if it included this ending, having read some of his work I sincerely doubt it.