Wordiezett So much average

SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Brent Burkwell Well, unless you are a liberal, or you are a conservative with your head firmly up your keester, you will likely despise this move as much as I do, along with the left wing lunatic, Tommy (I think I'm a cowboy) Jones. As usual, Jones makes plenty of nasty comments about border patrol officers the same way he did in one of the Men In Black pictures, totally out of place in a comedy by the way. He obviously joins democrats in embracing those who have zero respect for the US border. If Jones and the effeminate Barry Pepper think that Mexico is so fabulous, full of the best the world has to offer, why not move? I know that IMDB is full of left wing lunatics, likely the staff shares Jone's left wing politics, but maybe even left wing fools can grasp the fact that no nation without a border has ever existed, it never will. There is NO utopia, it isn't possible. The United States Constitution applies ONLY to CITIZENS of the United States of America and those who have immigrated legally have the permission of the government to conduct business in the USA or even apply for citizenship. Why is it only Mexicans are allowed to flaunt law? Why not Africans? How about Israelis? No? I didn't think so. This movie is about democrat voter roles, the democrats care nothing for the USA, they simply want power, uninterrupted power. And millions of illegal aliens can give them this power and that is why they are for open borders, no other reason. The Democrat party, party of slavery, Jim Crow, Plessy VS Ferguson/separate but equal, segregation etc etc etc. The high and mighty democrats have a history of racism, while Republicans have always stood for freedom AND the law. If you don't allow this post, you're an idiot.

Bernie Sauer The murdered body of Melquiades Estrada is buried in a hurry because the shooting and the politics are too complicated to stand trial near the Mexican border. Best friend of Estrada, Pete Perkins (Tommy Lee Jones) realizes that no further investigation of the murder will ensue, so he takes justice into his own hands by kidnapping the border patrolman who took Estrada's life and forces him at gunpoint to disinter Melquiades from his grave and transport him to home soil in Mexico for a proper burial. Unbeknownst to the patrolman (Barry Pepper of Saving Private Ryan), this road trip to the cemetery will be hot, dusty, and grueling as Pete flirts with madness and his own reconciliation.Tough, sporadically funny, and definitely grisly, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada is a successful modern-day western. You have your whiskery hero with a cowboy hat who lives by his own code, several bonding moments between stubborn men, retribution for the coward character, and the lesson that maybe vengeance isn't always the best solution. Add a few flashbacks, and, of course, a woman to complicate things, and you are all set.It just so happens that this is also a directorial debut for Tommy Lee Jones, who captures the western beautifully with the help of some radiant cinematography by Chris Menges of The Mission and a cunning script by Mexican writer Guillermo Arriaga of 21Grams and Amores Perros. Film buffs will catch glimpses of the same grittiness seen in Sam Peckinpah's Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia and similar morality lessons seen John Huston's The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. True, Jones's film may not be an original, but it does play as a homage to the memorable classics. I believe this was one of the best films of 2005, but I am also reluctant to recommend the film because the western genre is so frowned upon these days with such an upsweep of reality T.V. and short attention spans. My suggestion is to watch this movie simply for the sake of Tommy Lee Jones's extraordinary performance. Or, see it because it contains one of the best lines at the end of a film. Or, see it because it was one of the most overlooked gems of last year, and you will be so grateful for being one of the few to have experienced it!

James Lewis (jklewis54) The directorial debut of Tommy Lee Jones may likely provide deep insight into Jones' own faith and the influence of author Flannery O'Connor. "The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada" provides a vista of the bleakness of man's sinfulness, and his need for grace and redemption. An easier to pronounce and less enigmatic title could have been "The Redemption of Mike Norton", but that would have been too revealing.The film, like the southern border wilderness where it is set, exposes the true nature of man – a dichotomy of the spiritual and mundane. As in our American judicial system it endorses vengeance as well as provides opportunity for forgiveness and rehabilitation. A powerful modern-day Western, "Three Burials" is written by Guillermo Arriaga, an award-winning Mexican screenwriter acclaimed for "Amores Perros" and "21 Grams." This screenplay does justice to Jones' focus in the film on death and redemption as most of Arriaga's stories have death as a central theme, likely a factor of his being raised in one of Mexico City's more violent barrios. It is evident these men have collaborated on a film that embodies laconic pace and visceral images in a western context; both can be viewed as an extension of Jones' Harvard thesis on author Flannery O'Connor:The film's O'Connor connection is not haphazard, with Mr. Jones identifying her, and the book of Ecclesiastes, as primary influences on the story. "You look for the allegorical intentions of what we're taught in the Bible, and then find some way to have it revealed or expressed by common experience. You'll find this happening over and over again in O'Connor, who was a rather classical Catholic thinker who wrote about nothing but backwoods north Georgia rednecks." In that same interview, Mr. Jones continues: "Ecclesiastes is essential to the movie as well. . . . It has to do with the passage of time. You want to start thinking as an actor that the past, the present, and the future are occurring simultaneously, and God requires an accounting of all three." There is ample evidence of a powerful link of this film to the book of Ecclesiastes and the stories of Flannery O'Connor; both of their themes are integral to this film: "Barry Pepper talked about the influence of the Bible and the works of Flannery O'Connor on The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, written and directed by Tommy Lee Jones. O'Connor is important to the way this movie is constructed," he continues. ''What you do is you consider some so-called religious thinking without the didacticism of the classical approach. You look for the allegorical intentions of what we're taught in the Bible, and then find some way to have it revealed or expressed by common experience." Jones adds: Also, family members of the film's co-producer, Michael Fitzgerald, are executors of O'Connor's literary estate. ''So we both knew our O'Connor rather well, and it was just a natural approach for me." The viewer is treated to a colorful and varied screen; from the opening pastel credits, wide rambling hills, mountains, and desert, to the stark filtered colors of the café and morgue. Jones accomplishes a remarkable task in directing, as well as doing some of his own camera work, and as lead actor. In front of the camera Jones heads the cast as Pete Perkins, a ranch foreman, who takes on a Mexican drifter, Melquiades Estrada (Julio Cedillo) who is obviously in the U.S. illegally. Pete seems taken with the man, who answers the question of what he does as: "I'm just a cowboy."For my full review (contains spoilers) with a view of Ecclesiastes: http://alturl.com/ghjbb

Samiam3 I think Werner Herzog would admire The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada. Among other things, it is a story of a man's obsession. As I watched, the names Quentin Tarantino, Sergio Leone, and the Coen bros. also came to mind in several places. Despite an ending that feels unfinished, and some mildly unbelievable story material, The Three Burials is an exceptional modern day western. Tommy Lee Jones is at the top of his game, and he is equally skilled behind the camera as he is in front of it.Texan cowboy Pete Perkins, becomes a fugitive from the law, when he attempts to fulfil a promise he made to his Mexican friend Melquiades. If he were to die, Pete was to take his body across the border to his hometown deep in the Mexican hills. One sunny day, two border guards find the kid's body lying in the desert with a bullet hole in his chest. Pete is distraught, but when finds out who is responsible for the death of his friend, he kidnaps that person, digs up Melquiades body from his 'American' grave, and he makes for Mexico, while the law comes after him.In Tarantino fashion, the movie is split into chapters, and a large section of the first half is out of sequential order. Oddly though, it feels so natural that is wasn't until the end of the first act in which I realized that two flashbacks had already gone by, (and believe me I was paying attention).The simple fact that The Three Burials is able to get my attention and then hold it for two hours, must count for something. The story is a slow mover, and when I look back on it, not a whole lot happens. One could almost look at the film as more character driven than plot driven, but it's pretty solid all the way through.The second half of the film is a gorgeous nature trip of cinematic proportions as we work our way through the desert to Mexico. If there is one moment I wont forget, there is a crane shot as Perkins starts descending on horseback down a mountain slope only a meter and a half wide. As the camera moves towards the precipice, you'd swear you were about to fall off. (or you would if you were watching on the big screen)Overall, The Three Burials of Melchiades Estrada, is a pretty impressive piece of filmaking. It may not be the most emotional of films, but it's engaging.