The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005)

Director:

Tommy Lee Jones

Writer (WGA):

Guillermo Arriaga (written by)

Release Date:

3 February 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Crime | Drama | Western

Tagline:

Nobody is beyond redemption.

Plot:

Ranch hand Pete Perkins looks to fulfill the promise to his recently deceased best friend by burying him in his hometown in Mexico.

Plot Keywords:

Mexico | Mexican | Texas | Desert | Promise

Awards:

4 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Tommy Lee Jones	...	Pete Perkins
Barry Pepper	...	Mike Norton
Julio Cedillo	...	Melquiades Estrada (as Julio César Cedillo)
Dwight Yoakam	...	Belmont
January Jones	...	Lou Ann Norton
Melissa Leo	...	Rachel
Levon Helm	...	Old Man with Radio
Mel Rodriguez	...	Captain Gomez
Cecilia Suárez	...	Rosa
Ignacio Guadalupe	...	Lucio
Vanessa Bauche	...	Mariana
Irineo Alvarez	...	Manuel (as Irineo Álvarez)
Guillermo Arriaga	...	Juan
Josh Berry	...	Border Patrolman
Rodger Boyce	...	Salesman

Also Known As:

Three Burials: The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (Australia) (DVD box title) (UK) (DVD box title)
The 3 Burials of Melquiades Estrada (USA) (alternative spelling)
The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (International: English title)
Trois enterrements (France)

MPAA:

Rated R for language, violence and sexuality.

Runtime:

121 min | Argentina:121 min (Mar del Plata Film Festival) | Turkey:107 min (TV version)

Country:

USA | France

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | UK:15 | Netherlands:12 | Ireland:15A | Brazil:14 | Argentina:16 | Singapore:M18 | Australia:M | Iceland:16 | Portugal:M/16 | Canada:14A (Ontario) (Canadian Home Video rating) | Germany:12 (f) | USA:R (No. 42191) | Finland:K-13

Filming Locations:

Big Bend National Park, Texas, USA

Company:

Europa Corp.

Trivia:

Much of the movie was shot on Tommy Lee Jones's own ranch.

Goofs:

Continuity: At 1:51:24, when Pete stands on a hill ovelooking the captive sitting in the bushes, his hat is a wide brim sombrero; it's usually a conventional straw Stetson.

Quotes:

Border Patrolman: How many got away?
Mike Norton: Three.
Border Patrolman: Well, someone's got to pick strawberries.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Three Burials: Making the Music (2006) (V)

Soundtrack:

WeatherPP3

- Strong piece of work from Tommy Lee Jones..

The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada

Directed by Tommy Lee Jones (2005)

I have always liked Tommy Lee Jones as an actor. He has made some really great performances in the movies JFK, Heaven & Earth, and The Fugitive. And otherwise he has always been good, although he got some typecast in some stereotype roles. In 1995 he debuted as a director on TV, with the movie The Good Old Boys, which I sadly haven't seen. Now, he has joined some of his famous and acknowledged colleges like Clint Eastwood, Mel Gibson, Denzel Washington, and made the step from actor, to actor & director in his own very first motion picture - The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada.

In this movie, Tommy plays the lead as Pete Perkins, who under some mysterious circumstances, finds out that his best friend has got killed. As a consequence of this, he reacts strong and dramatically, wanting to fulfil his old promise to his, now gone, friend.

The script is written by Guillermo Arriaga, and he mixes the characters and the beautiful landscape into an original story, dealing with many subjects. As said before, the movie is beautifully filmed and good edited. Aside from the director, the shooting star – Barry Pepper – delivers another very good and solid performance! He is a very good actor, which I hope to see a lot from in the future…

All in all a solid, and good piece of movie craft from Tommy Lee Jones, which I know respect more than ever!

8/10