My One and Only (2009)

Comedy drama based on the early life of George Hamilton in the 1950s.

Renée Zellweger stars. She leaves her husband (Kevin Bacon) after he cheats on her, and takes off on a road trip with her sons. In search of a new husband and financial stability, she encounters a range of unsuitable men.

The quirky tone takes a little getting used to, but once you acclimatise, the film is highly enjoyable.

Zellweger is excellent as always – highly watchable and sympathetic.

There are hints of Woody Allen (especially his Blue Jasmine) crossed with the parent/child drama of Anywhere but Here.

Fury (2014)

Brad Pitt stars as Collier, a tough American sergeant commanding a Sherman tank (named Fury) on missions through Germany towards the end of World War II. The film focuses on his relationship with his crew and how they adapt to a new, naive young recruit (Logan Lerman) joining their team despite having no military experience.

The set pieces are violent and dramatic. An extended scene set in a house with two German women is especially powerful. 

It’s atmospheric and it looks convincingly grey, bleak and muddy.

Brad Pitt has rarely impressed me as an actor but he’s at his best here, finding a depth and charisma that sometimes eludes him in lesser roles.

3:10 to Yuma (2007)

Western. 

Arizona, 1884. Christian Bale plays Dan Evans, a rancher who – desperate for money – takes on a job escorting a dangerous criminal named Ben Wade (Russell Crowe) to the train that will transport him to Yuma Territorial Prison. There, he will be hung. But Wade is a psychopath with an uncanny intelligence and has other ideas. 

Crowe is absolutely perfect for the role because the plot hinges on the power of his charisma and magnetism. He bewitches those around him and somehow gets inside their minds, like a cowboy version of Hannibal Lector. 

Adapted from a short story by Elmore Leonard and directed by James Mangold, it’s excellently paced and visually impressive. There are strong performances by Ben Foster (as a truly nasty member of Wade’s gang), Logan Lerman (as Evans' teenage son) and Gretchen Mol (as Evans’ wife). Peter Fonda also appears.