REEL CRITICS: ‘Shoot ‘Em Up’ hardly cerebral, but lives up to namesake

You can’t get too serious about a movie called “Shoot ‘Em Up.” But for fans of mindless gunplay, it follows faithfully in the footsteps of films like “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.”

It has all the trappings of film noir with ironic humor added. It’s a violent ballet of special effects with endless streams of bullets expelled in slow motion from a variety of automatic weapons.

Clive Owen and Paul Giamatti have lots of fun playing the gun-toting adversaries. Try as they might, they can’t stop killing people who get in their way.

Owen’s character rescues a newborn baby whose mother is shot to death in front of him. Watching Owen protect the baby while eluding the bad guys is the heart of a screenplay filled with constant chase scenes. There’s no end to close escapes from certain death with guns blazing at every turn.

You have to suspend all credibility and be a real fan of this type of movie to enjoy this wild ride.

But it’s filmed with first-class special effects by Peter Pau, who was honored for his work in “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.” It’s not for everyone. But if this is your cup of tea, it’s steamy hot and ready for you now.

CHARACTER DEPTH REDEFINES WESTERN

In “3:10 to Yuma” the line between good guys and bad guys is not as clear-cut as in Westerns of old. Thanks to the fine performances by Russell Crowe and Christian Bale, we want both of them to walk off into the sunset.

This remake as directed by James Mangold (“Walk the Line”) does justice to the 1957 original.

Brutal and violent as it is, “Yuma” is really a psychological shootout between vicious thief and murderer Ben Wade(Crowe) and struggling rancher Dan Evans (Bale) who risks all to escort him to justice.

The twist is that Wade is confident, charming and a shrewd observer of human frailties while Evans is desperate and unsure. Wade keeps taunting the men assigned to guard him and tempts Evans with money that could solve his dire financial woes.

But Evans is not just trying to hold on to his ranch; he’s also trying to regain the respect of his family.

There’s a lot of rousing action, and a fine supporting cast including Peter Fonda and Logan Lerman as Evans’ teenage son. Ben Foster is standout as Charlie Prince, Wade’s right-hand man with a creepy devotion to his boss.

Perhaps because they seem to be the only men capable of having deep thoughts, Wade and Evans form an unlikely bond with an even more unlikely outcome. And yet it works.