Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		5.0

3:10 to Yuma Blu-ray Movie Review

This multi-Oscar caliber film is perhaps Blu-ray's crowning achievement to date.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman January 21, 2008

Sure as God’s vengeance they’re coming.

Wow. Do I really need to write any more than that? Writing "wow" 2,000 times would serve as a fitting description regarding how I feel after watching this film, twice, for the purpose of this review, but it would also make for a lousy review of such an incredible movie, so I'll do my best to bring justice to what a darn good movie and Blu-ray disc this is. 3:10 to Yuma plays out like a perfectly choreographed dance. It is a film of perfect harmony, tempo, and movement, showcasing filmmaking and all that implies at such a level of perfection that I don't know how any other movie could ever rival this one in conveying its simplistic plot yet also complex characters with such grace. 3:10 to Yuma could easily have been just another action movie with pretty faces that become progressively bloodier as the film moves along. Instead, the film presents viewers with the unfolding of a new chapter in a man's life and shows the influence that the strength and determination of another can have on even the staunchest and coldest of hearts. 3:10 to Yuma packs quite the emotional punch while maintaining a pace complete with terrific, well-staged action and luscious scenery. This is filmmaking at its finest.

Drop the gun or I'll make you watch 'I Know Who Killed Me!'

Dan Evans (Christian Bale, Rescue Dawn) is a poor rancher struggling to keep his land. He's nearly broke, and his land is declared worth more with him off of it. One night, those to whom he owes money burn down his barn. He and his two sons head out the next morning to recover their cattle that were driven off by the fire and witness the robbery of a railroad stagecoach orchestrated by the notorious outlaw Ben Wade (Russell Crowe, Master and Commander). After a brief, tense meeting between Evans and Wade, the two go their separate ways only to meet again in the town of Bisby where Evans is witness to Wade's arrest. For $200, Evans offers to travel with the gang accompanying Wade to the 3:10 to Yuma, a prison train that will take the criminal to his trial and execution. With Wade's gang hot on their trail, Evans and Wade come to know one another, and each man must choose his own destiny as the hour draws nearer to 3:10.

3:10 to Yuma is absolutely brilliant as a character study on human interaction and the bond that forms between men, a bond that stems from respect for a man's soul and not from the barrel of his gun. The characters of Dan Evans and Ben Wade are anything but archetypical movie characters. While they are simple men on the surface--a poor rancher and a criminal--they reveal a deep and profound sense of humanity, and the slow reveal of this trait, especially in the Wade character, makes for a stunning finale to this film. Wade's revelation is perhaps best epitomized in the film through the theme of his three drawings. I won't tell you what he draws, but when you watch the film, pay attention to them, especially his final drawing. I felt his drawing of each subject represented those things in which he felt peace and comfort, those things that allowed him to, even for an instant, forget he's wanted for 22 armed robberies and believe that he's a simple man enjoying the simple pleasures of life. Taken in this context, I found the ending of the film all the more powerful and relevant. Both Bale and Crowe are brilliant in their performances. Each actor is so good and the chemistry between them and the characters they portray is so strong that even the terse looks each gives the other is literally sometimes worth a thousand words. Watching these two fine performers in action is alone worth the price of admission.

Technically, 3:10 to Yuma is a standout film. As an action film, I was completely impressed with the staging of the action as well as the realism and accuracy in the use of firearms in the film. Anyone that has spent time handling and discharging firearms knows that all too often, Hollywood glamorizes the use of weapons and gives them unrealistic actions and sound effects. This film is one of the most accurate I've seen. I was particularly impressed with the audible quality of the shots. The reverberation and hard hitting sound and power of each shot is amazingly reproduced. Directing the action is James Mangold, who has a wonderful variety of films under his belt, ranging from the edgy and underrated Cop Land to the Oscar winning Girl, Interrupted to the creepy horror flick Identity and finally to the Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line. This eclectic mix of films shows the director has real talent, that he can venture from one genre to the next, and he has now proven himself worthy in the genre of the Western, one of the most storied and beloved genres in American cinema history. The movie also contains an absolutely wonderful score by Marco Beltrami who also penned recent and respected scores for films such as Live Free or Die Hard and I, Robot.

3:10 to Yuma Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

3:10 to Yuma is presented in its original 2.40:1 aspect ratio for this 1080p Blu-ray release. This transfer is, in a word, stunning. Black levels are absolutely spot-on, demonstrating a perfection that seems perfunctory in presentation, feeling as real as one could expect from a properly calibrated television set and the fine work evidenced by the beauty of this transfer. Attention to fine detail is, for me, one of the truest tests of the level of perfection of any good transfer, and 3:10 to Yuma passes with flying colors. Not only are close-up images, such as human faces, presented with a naturalistic grace that seems almost too perfect to be anything but reality, but there is a clarity to the mundane in the background images in the film. Wood grains and trim, the cracks of the leather in the saddles, the seams of Ben Wade's sketch book, and the stitching on the saddles all look great. This image not only rivals the best on Blu-ray to date, it may very well be the best. After watching this disc, you may find yourself asking, "is it live or is it Blu-ray?"

3:10 to Yuma Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Lionsgate has really stepped up their game recently, delivering incredible uncompressed tracks on many of their newer titles, and 3:10 to Yuma's 7.1 PCM mix is without question the best of the bunch. Sound separation across the front soundstage is splendid, and dialogue is reproduced to absolute perfection. Bass is deep and loud but remains accurate and distortion free. The most noticeable aspect of this track is the all encompassing use of the surround channels. Not only are background elements superb, but the action sequences are so good that I believe they are unrivaled in comparison to any Blu-ray I have screened to date. The opening robbery of the armored stage coach is not just demonstration worthy--it's a home theater seller. The ricochet of gunfire off the armor plating, the reverberation of each shot through the air, the stampeding of the horses, and the impact of explosions and other calamitous occurrences are beautifully and powerfully reproduced. The reproduction of each sound is perfectly clear. As I mentioned above, 3:10 to Yuma offers perhaps the most realistic sounding gunfire I've ever heard in film, and it has a pronounced and powerful authority. Everything about this sound mix receives an A+.

3:10 to Yuma Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The 3:10 to Yuma Blu-ray disc may not offer viewers the most special features, but what is provided here is of the utmost value and is very informative and entertaining. First up is a feature length audio commentary track with director James Mangold. He tells us up front that this will be a fairly typical track. He will delve into casting, shooting, and the like. Mangold does discuss his reasoning for remaking the film and discusses why some remakes are made (greed) while others are made for love of a story that isn't well known to the general public. Such was the case with 3:10 to Yuma. Mangold discusses differences between the original and this remake and offers some very good insights into the making of the film that any fan will enjoy learning.

Destination: Yuma (1080p, 20:58) looks at the making of the film and its settings and props, some of the deeper meaning the film conveys, and some of the challenges in making the movie. Outlaws, Gangs, & Posses (1080p, 12:58) looks at the history of outlaws in the United States and their depiction in media throughout the years. An Epic Explored (1080p, 6:22) is a brief look at the history of the western in cinema seen through the eyes of various cast and crew members. 3:10 to Score (1080p, 7:38) features a behind-the- scenes look into the creation of the wonderful music featured in this movie. From Sea to Shining Sea (1080p, 19:39) features an interesting look at the impact of the transcontinental railroad on the United States. U.S. History fans will love this feature.

Also included is A Conversation With Elmore Leonard (1080p, 5:24). Leonard is the author of the story that was the basis for the original 1957 film. This is a nice little piece that briefly touches upon the history of the Western in literature and his original short story, Three-Ten to Yuma. The Guns of Yuma (1080p, 6:17) looks at the firearms carried by each character and why each weapon was chosen by the prop department. Historical Timeline of the West allows users to select four different decades--the 1860s, 1870s, 1880s, and 1890s--and find out what important historical events took place in each year of those decades that helped shape the west. This feature is entirely text and image based with no sound.

"Blu-Line" is a nifty feature that is accessible by pushing any of the arrow keys on your remote control. Displayed on screen is the name of the chapter, the current runtime, and time remaining showing both a clock and a progress bar. The user can use the left and right arrow keys to move the time cursor across the progress bar to jump to a particular point in the film. Viewers can also bookmark scenes from this feature by pressing the green color button. "Blu-Line" remains on screen for several seconds. Inside Yuma allows viewers to read each page of the script as the corresponding scenes are on screen. The script page is large, filling over 1/3 of the screen. In the same options screen, viewers can choose to see select storyboards that correspond to the action on screen. This is a very useful feature.

Rounding out the supplements is the film's 1080p theatrical trailer, seven deleted Scenes (1080p, 7:55), and trailers for Rambo, War, Lord of War, The Condemned, Crank, The Punisher, and Good Luck Chuck.

3:10 to Yuma Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

3:10 to Yuma might very well be the pinnacle of the Blu-ray format thus far. In addition to an absolutely fantastic, Oscar caliber film with marvelous acting, direction, cinematography, and music, Blu-ray owners are treated to mesmerizing video quality and a stunning audio track that must be heard to be believed. The lifelike reproductions both deliver is breathtaking. The supplemental material is uniformly excellent as well. No Blu-ray collection is complete without a copy of 3:10 to Yuma, and it therefore receives my highest recommendation.