Quel treno per Yuma

Farmer Evans looks to avoid conflict and work his farm in peace, when he witnesses a stage coach being held up he doesn't get involved. However due to drought and debt threatening his farm, he takes the job of escorting the leader of the gang to Yuma and prison when he is caught. The sheriffs fool the gang into thinking that Wade has been taken by coach and Evans and Wade stay in a hotel room until the train to Yuma. However with Wade's gang getting closer, the clock ticking and Evans' posse deserting him man by man the stakes rise.

It's a western but it could easily have been in any setting if it was done this well. The story is clever but really picks up once Wade is captured – in both Evans' home and in the hotel room, the dialogue becomes clever and meaningful. The story is kept tense (with Evans getting increasingly sweaty) despite being very talky. Wade works Evans in a Machiavellian flow of dialogue that visually gets to him throughout. However once it is clear that honour is important over money the countdown to the tense walk to the train station is on.

Heflin is great as the farmer who takes a stand only to see pride swell up in his family, in a way he respects the criminal for taking risk and being brave in contrast to his middle road lifestyle. Ford is effortlessly brilliant as the criminal blessed with charisma and charm with a dangerous streak underneath – in one key scene he sets out Heflin's character when he easily casts a spell charming Heflin's wife and sons. However beneath the dialogue he is slightly jealous of the farmer's settled life and this adds spice to the relationship between the two.

Overall this is a fantastic western, but if it was set in the modern day it would be a brilliant cop thriller, or in space, a brilliant sci-fi. The key is the central relationship between the two men – here it is perfect and the tension that builds towards the fateful walk to the station is gripping.

Usually I do try to watch original movies before I go ahead and watch remakes. In this case I was not aware of the original when I watched the remake. So hard to say how I would have viewed the remake, with that in mind. But I don't think I'd have liked it less. While this is the original, the remake did get quite a star cast as well. Maybe Glenn Ford is the one element that is the best in both movies ... still they both are good and whichever you feel is better in your view, so be it.

And yes Glenn Ford is so good at being bad, it actually makes you root for him. At least it is true for me. He seems to have some moral compass left ... or some form of humanity. But maybe I'm wrong and he is just deceiving. Whatever the case, he is the star of the movie in so many different ways. If you like western movies with a touch of High Noon to them (a real classic if there ever was one), this will float your boat.

Christian Bale and Russell Crowe are going to have to perform feats of magic to beat this film. There is no doubt that they have picked one of the toughest westerns to beat in their remake.

There is shooting, but this is not a shoot-'em-up western. It is a thoughtful game of chess between a ruthless outlaw (Glenn Ford) and a farmer (Van Heflin). To see Ford, who we lost last year, try to buy Helflin (Johnny Eager, Shane), and see Heflin grow in courage was magnificent.

Every one else fades as these two play their game. The ending was terrific. I am anxious to see if they change it.

I normally don't comment on movies others have already commented on, but this one's been really bother me because no one really noted just how outstanding the cinematic compositions are. They're eye-poppingly gorgeous and remind me of a western Citizen Kane. In some scenes the Deep Focus technique (lots of hot light so that the background is in sharp focus) is outstanding. The artistry is almost out of place in this exciting but preposterously noirish western. There doesn't seem to be anything else in Lawton's repertoire (maybe parts of Two Rode Together?) as good, but director Daves' respect for good pictorials is evident in most of his efforts. It's a great collaboration, and a pretty good picture that's not as great as the sum of its parts. *** Most of the other comments rightly comment on Glenn Ford's cool acting. Isn't it time for him to get a Lifetime from AFI?

When the charming outlaw Ben Wade (Glenn Ford) is captured after the heist of a stagecoach, the stage line owner Mr. Butterfield (Robert Emhardt) offers US$ 200,00 to the man that escorts the bandit to the city of Contention to take the 3:10 PM train to Yuma to be sent to trial. The rancher Dan Evans (Van Heflin) is broken and needs the money to save his cattle and support his family and accepts the assignment. During their journey, Dan saves the life of Ben when a vigilante tries to execute the criminal. Meanwhile Ben's gang split to find where Ben is and then rescues their boss. When they find that Ben is trapped in a hotel room, they put the place under siege and Dan can not find any man to help him.

"3:10 to Yuma" is a classic western from a wonderful time when honor was an important value in a film and even outlaws could have a code of honor. In the present days, it would be hard to believe why Dan Evans is incorruptible and does not accept Ben's bribe. Glenn Ford performs a charismatic outlaw and the moral duel with Van Heflin's character is fantastic. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Galante e Sanguinário" ("Gallant and Bloodthirsty")