The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Barry Pepper, January Jones, Dwight Yoakum
Directed by: Tommy Lee Jones
Rating: R
Genre: Western, Drama
2005

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A cowboy (Tommy Lee Jones) is determined to bring his deceased friend, Melquiades Estrada, back to Mexico to be buried. He kidnaps the U.S. border patrol officer (Barry Pepper) who accidentally killed Melquiades to help in the endeavor.

Review:
Tim: Critis loved this film, and despite a few bright moments, I honestly can't understand why. The movie is unique, but isn't particularly powerful or memorable. The story is interesting, but the film lags on and becomes boring as we wait for it to conclude. Director Tommy Lee Jones manages to give us several remarkable scenes, but the film as a whole just misses on impact. We don't are about the characters nearly enough to cause the level of emotional impact needed for this film to be successful.

This movie certainly has some strengths, but ultimately, it is too flawed. Jones is looking to create a realistic, human film. While he achieves this to some degree, the film is slightly too obscene to be enjoyable. Jones does manage to throw in some hilarious scenes, but these aren't enough to save the film.

The cast is very good. Jones is absolutely terrific. He is truly fascinating to watch on screen. Ironically, while Jones the director cannot give us an amazing film, it is Jones the actor whose amazing performance saves the film from being worse. Barry Pepper adds in a good supporting performance. These two actors work well together and account for all of the film's best moments.

The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada is a fine attempt by Jones to craft an important film. While this attempt falls just short, it was a worthwhile endeavor, and I look forward to future work by Jones, both in front of and behind the camera.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



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