Python Hyena 3:10 to Yuma (1957): Dir: Delmer Daves / Cast: Glenn Ford, Van Heflin, Henry Jones, Falicia Farr, Robert Emhardt: Suspense western regarding endurance within the confines of danger. An outlaw is apprehended and set for the train arriving at 3:10 heading to Yuma. Structure is mainly a room overlooking the streets where criminal Ben Wade attempts to convince Dan Evans to let him go. Director Delmer Daves does a fine job at creating tension but perhaps his villain is too likable. Glenn Ford plays the sly Wade who is arrested and readied for transportation but his gang is closing in once a diversion fails. Wade is experiencing some hospitality from Evans, which doesn't go unnoticed. Van Heflin portrays Evans who suffers the drought and accepts the job of transporting Wade. He has integrity even at the safety of Wade but he will remain at his duty. Henry Jones plays town drunk Alex Potter who provides comic relief despite very standard writing. He fails to fully comprehend the potential consequences of undertaking this task. Falicia Farr plays a saloon waitress whom Wade dazzles. She is very good but the role becomes more distant as the story moves on. Robert Emhardt is the one who makes the charge and the cash offer for this task to be performed. High Noon dealt with similar themes but with greater conviction while this film is somewhat hooky but entertaining. Score: 6 / 10

evening1 Here is a movie that seems to be a simple tale, but is really about character development and growth. Yet still it's full of tension and suspense.The film starts out with a sudden and unnecessary murder. On the surface, killer Ben Wade (Glenn Ford) doesn't betray a bit of conscience. But his trigger finger has prevented him from consummating an encounter with a lovely saloon maid (Felicia Farr). Wade comes to realize that his choices in life are adding up to a big, fat zero. The way he's heading, he'll never have a wife and kids like Dan Evans (Van Hefflin), the poor shlub who's risking his life to haul him in to the law. Neither man sees it coming, but each influences the other powerfully.Evans has turned bounty hunter because he needs the money. Wade seems to deeply appreciate women, and man, does he miss taking a woman to bed! The chemistry between Emmy and Wade is palpable and intense."What's a woman for if you don't treat her right?" Ford purrs to his would-be lady love.At points along the way, Wade is taunting, shaming, and threatening to the seemingly not-so-swift Evans, who politely answers all his questions until Wade mutters, "I'll bet (your wife) was a real beautiful woman before she met you." At a certain point, it's as if Evans keeps on keeping on not for the money anymore but for his own need to grow up and just stop taking crap. It's his own growing a backbone that captures Wade's attention and spurs his own self-sacrificing turnaround -- even though it leads straight to the gallows. Like a better-known western, "Shane," that has a lot more going on than initially meets the eye, "3:10 to Yuma" captures the struggle between bullies of the world and plain old folks who just want to live their lives -- folks who'd rather not fight, but will do battle if there's no other way.I heartily recommend this film to anyone with an interest in psychological development and spiritual redemption.Don't overlook the brief funeral scene, with its solitary dog atop a plain wooden coffin. There's poetry here, amid the dust, craggy rocks, cacti, and big open sky.Based on a story by Elmore Leonard, this film far transcends its ordinary surroundings.

Michael_Elliott 3:10 to Yuma (1957) *** 1/2 (out of 4)Tense and extremely well-acted Western about a farmer (Van Heflin) who finds himself in desperate need of cash so he volunteers to transport a notorious criminal (Glenn Ford) to a train station. 3:10 TO YUMA is one of the best known Westerns from this era and it's easy to see why. Sure, there are those old-school moments about the good guy versus the bad one but it has an added touch of psychological drama and this here is where the film really stands on its own. There's no doubt that there are many great scenes in the picture but things really start to pick up when Heflin and Ford are inside a hotel room where they do nothing but talk about what's going to happen when the farmer goes to transport him to the station. This is when the super editing kicks into high gear as the farmer slowly starts to become panicked over what he's gotten himself into. There are some really striking scenes in this picture including a very dramatic one dealing with the fate of one of the helpers, which I won't ruin here. Another great scene happens early on during a stagecoach robbery where we get to see how menacing the Ford character can be. This here is followed up with a scene where Ford comes onto a local woman. You'd think a scene like this would be out of place but it actually works just to show that this villain also has a charming side. The performances by the two leads are certainly wonderful. Heflin has never been better as the good-hearted farmer who needs to prove to himself that he can support his family no matter what it takes. The scenes where the farmer's tension starts to crack has the actor really shining. Ford, usually a good guy, does wonders being able to switch things up and that wonderful voice of his really adds to the psychological drama as he starts to torture the farmer. The film certainly borrows from HIGH NOON but that doesn't hurt things too much. The film is certainly a gem from the genre.

SnoopyStyle It's late 19th century in the dusty Arizona Territory. Struggling rancher Dan Evans (Van Heflin) and his sons encounter Ben Wade (Glenn Ford) and his gang in a stagecoach holdup. Dan refuses to intervene. Later, Ben is captured. Desperate for money, Dan takes the job to guard the criminal destined for the the 3:10 train to Yuma.This is one of the first based on a Elmore Leonard short story. I watched the 2007 remake first. I found it gritty, morally murky, and quite frankly confused without the black and white characters. After watching the 1957 original, I can appreciate more of what the filmmakers are trying to do. I especially like the kid nagging at his father, almost taunting him as a coward. Dan's motivation is varied and complicated. In a sense, he's very human. Glenn Ford is brilliant playing against type as a villain. His motivation is also complicated. He seems like a mannered honorable man one minute and a cold-hearted killer the next. The ending is a little bit too happy ending which seemed ill fitting. Other than that, there is a lot to recommend in this movie.