The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada

Don't worry, they'll get him buried correctly one of these times.

I saw a number of lower-budget films this weekend, but mostly they aspired to be like their older, richer cousins. Night Watch and eXistenZ emulated, but sadly couldn't quite pull off, the established Hollywood style. Three Burials on the other hand, is an absolute denouncement. Tommy Lee Jones finally gets his chance to direct, and apparently wanted to do things a bit differently. I was reminded of the directorial works of Clint Eastwood and Robert Redford. I guess working within the system for so long makes one hunger to do something more meaningful when given license.

You would think some focus groups would have warned him against using the name "Melquiades" in the title. Half of America can't pronounce it (which means half of America won't go see it.) Similarly, you'd think they would wait on the release of such a powerful drama in order to garner more Oscar votes. I left feeling like this film is clearly better than any movie that's currently under consideration for the best picture award for 2005, but I'm sure people will forget by next year's Academy Awards. My hope is that Jones got that feedback and did whatever he wanted to do anyway.

Beyond superficial differences, Three Burials diverges from the mainstream because it is not a typical revenge film. Though Barry Pepper's character is despicable through the first half of the film, we aren't led to hate him, and we're certainly not given the "reward" of seeing him blown in half by an angry shotgun. (Sorry Walter and Steve.) Instead, we're given the reward of seeing him cry, of seeing a plausible redemption... a cinematic feat much more difficult to achieve.

And finally, the cinematography and the acting are fantastic. Pepper should be nominated for best actor, Melissa Leo for supporting actress, and Dwight Yoakum deserves mention for his continuing greatness as a character actor.