3:10 to Yuma

Christa and I had the opportunity to see this movie this past Saturday afternoon. I had seen a few previews for the movie on TV, but I honestly didn't know much about it. Now is the time when the summer of "blockbusters" begins to die down and the hype about movies decreases.

Having not seen a movie in awhile, we decided to check it out. It has been some time since I have seen a good western. I want to take the opportunity now to say that if the previews shown before this movie are any indication, it is going to be a lean next couple of months in the movies.

Christa and I both enjoyed 3:10 to Yuma. It was a well-written, involved movie that mostly kept my attention throughout its full two hours. The movie was based on a short story...Shawshank Redemption, anyone?

If I had to point out the things that I didn't like about it:

• The movie did feel stretched out a little bit. If they had the opportunity to re-edit the movie, I think there are some scenes that could be taken out to move the movie along a little bit.
• The music was at times distracting. It wasn't a bad score, but I don't think it has the ability to stand on its own like great movie scores do.

Much of this was overshadowed by strong acting performances from Bale and Crowe. They were brilliant. Some components of the ending were not surprising, but other parts were quite surprising. The dialogue was well-written and the script was strong. I would definitely recommend this movie to folks.