KEY POINTS:
Herald rating: * * *
This remake of a 50-year-old classic certainly brings the psychosexual subtext to life: the competition between the snakelike outlaw and the decent, plodding hero is reflected in the eyes of the latter's wife (Mol) and son as a dramatically potent test of virility. But in action terms, the new film's additions seem like over-egging the pudding.
It's a great outing for the actors: Crowe (the villain of cocksure charm) and Bale (the hard-pressed rancher forced to choose between integrity and self-interest) inhabit their roles, played in the 1957 original by Glenn Ford and Van Heflin, with great conviction. And supporting turns, especially from a grizzled Fonda as an old bounty hunter and the show-stealing Foster as the ice-eyed deputy villain, add tastily to the mix. The film delivers more bang for your buck if that's what you're after, but the extra 25 minutes make it a lesser film.
Based on an Elmore Leonard short story, it's about rancher Dan Evans (Bale), a one-time army sharpshooter, who needs money, so accepts the perilous assignment to deliver captured outlaw Ben Wade (Crowe) to the train of the title. That involves a long walk from hotel to station with Wade's gang (and, in a late flourish, most of the town's able-bodied men) trying to stop them. It means a climax of great firepower but, for my money, the new film's ending, though different, is no better than the old one's: it requires a leap of faith that seems at odds with what has gone before.
Cast: Christian Bale, Russell Crowe, Ben Foster, Gretchen Mol, Peter Fonda
Director: James Mangold
Running time: 117 mins
Rating: M
Screening: All cinemas
Verdict: Remake of a classic is packed with action and good performances but lacks subtlety and nuance.
