3:10 to Yuma

Rancher Dan Evans (Van Heflin), whose cattle business is at risk of bankruptcy, begins to question his manhood when notorious outlaw Ben Wade (Glenn Ford in one of his slickest performances) arrives in town with his gang in Delmer Daves’ 3:10 to Yuma, a western noir with a skillfully performed psychological dimension. Feeling lesser and helpless after Wade robs a stagecoach and kills two men in front of Evans’ two boys, Evans volunteers (for $200) to escort the captured Wade to Contention City to catch the 3:10 train to Yuma where he’ll stand trial, but Wade’s gang won’t stand for it. Ultimately holing up in a Contention City hotel room to wait for the train, Evans guards Wade at gunpoint while his captive attempts to secure his freedom through psychological manipulation. Evans slowly earns Wade’s respect, especially when Evans rejects an offer from the stagecoach company to abort the mission while still getting paid. Felicia Farr is presented as female lead, but her role as a barmaid and potential lover for Wade is extraneous and inconsequential; Leora Dana, on the other hand, plays Evans’ wife Alice, whose esteem and devotion clearly mean the world to him and whose susceptibility to Wade’s charms motivates Evans to put his life on the line.