The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada

REVIEW
Illegal alien Melquiades Estrada is buried three times: once by the man who shot him; once by the local government; and once by his best friend, to whom he has lied. Tommy Lee Jones’ first-time feature directorial effort bears the haggard face of truth and the quiet soul of a child’s fairy tale. The dusty border town in which an epic journey begins is populated by an arresting collection of characters; from Rachel, Melissa Leo’s cantankerous and knowing waitress, to Mike Norton, Barry Pepper’s overzealous, gung ho and not-too-bright border patrol agent, to Pete Perkins, Jones’ craggy and stalwart ranch foreman, to Melquiades, Julio César Cedillo’s romantic and fantasizing laborer. In a world where justice is a relative value, not an absolute commitment, a man who keeps his promises is worth more than gold. Pete vows to take his friend’s body back to his home in Mexico, back to his beautiful wife and family, for whom he has pined during these long years of separation. He corrals the unwilling Norton as his aide, and they embark on an odyssey of tribulation and discovery. They traverse a landscape as rugged as the people who populate it, a countryside that makes strong demands on its inhabitants. In a life that is a constant succession of unfair negotiations, it is our dreams that keep us alive and offer the hope of redemption and absolution in a world where sometimes the only justice is to insure a proper burial. The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada is a most satisfying and rewarding film experience.