First Hit: This is a decent enough film and some of the acting is quite good, however it isn’t a great western.
Russell Crowe makes a good villain but it was Ben Foster as his right hand man that put the real grit of “bad” in this remake of a Glenn Ford film.
Ben was the scene stealer from the get go. He looked and felt every bit of his part of loyal right hand man who could take over if needed.
Christian Bale is excellent in his role as someone who feels a little sorry for himself and also wants to prove that he is a man to his family. He, once again, shows why he is one of our best young actors.
Besides Ben and Christian, Logan Lerman who plays Bale’s son, William, did a wonderful job of moving from being hyper critical of his father, and life, to fully respecting him in the end. He grew up and showed up and after the film ends he would grow up to be a fine honorable man.
Overall: This was a good film with some very first rate acting.