3:10 to Yuma - Glenn Ford

(aka 'Three Ten to Yuma')

Directed by Delmer Daves
USA 1957

A classic Western scenario, adapted from a short story by Elmore Leonard. For $200, the sum he desperately needs to save his land from drought, a small-time farmer (Heflin) agrees to escort a notorious outlaw (Ford) to the state penitentiary in Yuma; holed up in a hotel to await the train, with the outlaw's gang gathering in force outside, the escort finds himself in effect the prisoner; nevertheless, although the financial inducement evaporates (he's offered more to let matters slide by both the outlaw and the town's alarmed mayor), he insists on fulfilling his contract. It's of necessity a talkative film, with Ford working on Heflin's nerves in a stream of Machiavellian banter, but one held in perfect balance by Daves, who keeps the tension strung taut (especially in the gauntlet-running final walk to the station) while at the same time elaborating a subtle psychological conflict. The nerve centre is exposed in an early scene where Heflin, the dour family man careworn by responsibilities, watches as his wife and sons come under the spell of Ford's carefree charm: the conflict, ultimately, stems from each man's envy of what the other has.

Excerpt from TimeOut Film guide located HERE

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Theatrical Release: July 1957

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DVD Review: Sony (Special Edition) - Region 1 - NTSC

DVD Box Cover		CLICK to order from:
Distribution	Sony Home Video - Region 1 - NTSC
Runtime	1:31:57
Video	1.85:1 Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 4.29 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate:
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 2.0), DUB: French (Dolby Digital 2.0)
Subtitles	English, French, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Sony Aspect Ratio: Original Aspect Ratio 1.85:1 Edition Details: • trailers for the 1957 and 2007 film (with Christian Bale and Russell Crowe) • 'Classic Westerns' Advert DVD Release Date: August 28th, 2007 Keep Case Chapters: 12

Comments:

Super western with Glenn Ford as the baddie and Van Heflin the incorruptible rancher/turned pay deputy. By the way, has Van Heflin ever given a bad performance? Whether Noir, drama, or westerns this guy was always a consistently strong performer. Underrated for sure.

Sony's got some nerve - 'Special Edition' eh? I suspect the only thing special about this release, as opposed to the original DVD, is the 'co-incidental' inclusion of the 2007 film trailer (3:10 to Yuma with Christian Bale and Russell Crowe). There are no viable extra features but the single-layered, progressive and anamorphic DVD looks very good though. Excellent detail and grayscale - I don't see excessive manipulation and the image is fairly clean. Optional subtitles are offered in a large intrusive yellow font supporting the consistent audio track.

I should note that I haven't seen the original DVD and only suspect that this new one is improved to some degree in the image department but I think its rather underhanded of Sony to market this as an SE. Still, the price is right for a great film and better-than-average transfer. A top rated western.

Gary W. Tooze

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