A Train to Catch
3:10 to Yuma
Review by Ross Anthony

I was hot to see this film when it first came out. I missed it for whatever reason and finally caught up with it this weekend. It's 2 hours in duration, of which an hour and half is slow, preposterously scripted, and short of powerful dialogue. I was so frustrated with the lack of anything quality in the film that by the 40 minute mark -- I wanted out. Even Russell Crowe and Christian Bale weren't bringing much to the picture. But again, the screenplay is to blame, not them.

I forced myself to watch on. Strangely, I got some satisfaction out of being shocked by the ridiculous story I was expected to buy into. The film never explained why the railroad was so intent on bringing this guy in alive - especially at the cost of countless innocent lives. Or why the veterinarian would shun two men for "mistreating a prisoner" then slug one of them with a shovel -- how does that makes sense morally? Anyway, I found the film a scripting mess up until the last 15 minutes. At which time, the production steps up and shines. It finally made an impact and became the powerful western I'd expected it to be. It still gave me something hard to believe, but began delivering it with enough passion and quality that I was moved to believe.

I would have rated this film ½ a star out of 4, but that ending knocked the picture up a full star. In fact, as a writer, I was left wanting to go back and rewrite the first two acts to be worthy of that ending.

-- Books by Author/Illustrator Ross Anthony --


  • 3:10 to Yuma. Copyright © 2009.
  • Starring Russell Crowe, Christian Bale, Peter Fonda, Gretchen Mol, Dallas Roberts, Ben Foster, Alan Tudyk, Vinessa Shaw, Logan Lerman. Directed by James Mangold. Screenplay by Halstead Welles, Michael Brandt, Derek Haas. Produced by Cathy Konrad at Lions Gate Films.

Grade..........................B- (1.5/4)


chili4 special olympians
power5 ra hforh radiop
Copyright © 1998-2023 Ross Anthony, Author - Speaker - Solo World Circumnavigator In addition to reviewing films and interviewing celebs at HollywoodReportCard.com, traveling the world, composing great music, motivational speaking, Mr. Anthony also runs his own publishing company in the Los Angeles area. While traversing the circumference of the planet writing books and shooting documentaries, Mr. Anthony has taught, presented for, worked &/or played with locals in over 30 countries & 100 cities (Nairobi to Nagasaki). He's bungee-jumped from a bridge near Victoria Falls, wrestled with lions in Zimbabwe, crashed a Vespa off a high mountain road in Taiwan, and ridden a dirt bike across the States (Washington State to Washington DC). To get signed books ("Rodney Appleseed" to "Jinshirou") or schedule Ross to speak check out: www.RossAnthony.com or call 1-800-767-7186. Go into the world and inspire the people you meet with your love, kindness, and whatever it is you're really good at. Check out books by Ross Anthony. Rand() functions, Pho chicken soup, rollerblading, and frozen yogurt (w/ blueberries) also rock! (Btw, rand is short for random. It can also stand for "Really Awkward Nutty Dinosaurs" -- which is quite rand, isn't it?) Being alive is the miracle. Special thanks to Ken Kocanda, HAL, Jodie Keszek, Don Haderlein, Mom and Pops, my family, R. Foss, and many others by Ross Anthony. Galati-FE also deserves a shout out. And thanks to all of you for your interest and optimism. Enjoy great films, read stirring novels, grow.


Last Modified: Thursday, 18-Jun-2009 10:46:27 PDT