The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada's Recent Activity

list The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada's Recent Activity - Spout http://www.spout.com/ Recent community activity around The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada on Spout Copyright 2005-9 Spout, LLC Spout RSS http://www.spout.com/images/SpoutLogoRSS.jpg The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada's Recent Activity - Spout http://www.spout.com/ 136 30 Film:The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada http://www.spout.com/films/The_Three_Burials_of_Melquiades_Estrada/263221/default.aspx

Title: The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
Year: 2005
Director: Tommy Lee Jones
Plot: Veteran screen star Tommy Lee Jones makes his directorial debut with the fractured tale of murder and injustice on the U.S.-Mexico border scripted by Amores perros and 21 Grams screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga. Mike Norton (Barry Pepper) is a fresh-faced Border Patrol officer in Cibolo County, Texas whose dedication to his new job leaves his lonely wife Lou Ann (January Jones) with little to do but spend her days at the local diner, where she strikes up a friendship with waitress Rachel (Melissa Leo). Despite her own status as a married woman, Rachel is unfulfilled in her marriage and is intimately involved with both rugged rancher Pete Perkins (Tommy Lee Jones) and local Sherrif Belmont (Dwight Yoakam). Soon after Pete hires Mexican illegal Melquiades Estrada (Julio Cesar Cedillo) as a ranch hand, the growing bond between the pair is suddenly shattered when, in a moment of panic on a routine patrol, Mike hastily guns down the innocent Melquaides. When an enraged Pete learns that Mike had unceremoniously buried the illegal immigrant in an unmarked desert grave and local authorities opt to overlook the case, he kidnaps the crooked lawman and sets out to ensure that justice is served with or without the involvement of the local police force. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Times Tagged: 5
Number of Lists: 12
Number of blog posts: 4
Number of discussion threads: 1
SpoutRating: 3
]]>Fri, 28 Dec 2007 12:05:35 GMTThe Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada2005Tommy Lee JonesVeteran screen star <a href="/players/P____36238/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Tommy Lee Jones</a> makes his directorial debut with the fractured tale of murder and injustice on the U.S.-Mexico border scripted by <a href=/films/154697/default.aspx style='text-decoration:underline'>Amores perros</a> and <a href=/films/230102/default.aspx style='text-decoration:underline'>21 Grams</a> screenwriter <a href="/players/P___297412/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Guillermo Arriaga</a>. Mike Norton (<a href="/players/P___234983/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Barry Pepper</a>) is a fresh-faced Border Patrol officer in Cibolo County, Texas whose dedication to his new job leaves his lonely wife Lou Ann (<a href="/players/P___298504/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>January Jones</a>) with little to do but spend her days at the local diner, where she strikes up a friendship with waitress Rachel (<a href="/players/P____41835/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Melissa Leo</a>). Despite her own status as a married woman, Rachel is unfulfilled in her marriage and is intimately involved with both rugged rancher Pete Perkins (<a href="/players/P____36238/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Tommy Lee Jones</a>) and local Sherrif Belmont (<a href="/players/P____78034/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Dwight Yoakam</a>). Soon after Pete hires Mexican illegal Melquiades Estrada (Julio Cesar Cedillo) as a ranch hand, the growing bond between the pair is suddenly shattered when, in a moment of panic on a routine patrol, Mike hastily guns down the innocent Melquaides. When an enraged Pete learns that Mike had unceremoniously buried the illegal immigrant in an unmarked desert grave and local authorities opt to overlook the case, he kidnaps the crooked lawman and sets out to ensure that justice is served with or without the involvement of the local police force. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide5Slightly Tagged (1-5)12413http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/t78846zlt1u.jpghttp://www.spout.com/films/The_Three_Burials_of_Melquiades_Estrada/263221/default.aspxFilm Spout Post: Top 5 westerns http://www.spout.com/blogs/paul/archive/2007/7/13/13865.aspx

Post By: paul
Post To: paul on spout.com
Post Date: 7/13/2007 4:00:27 PM
Body: UnforgivenOnce Upon a Time in the WestHeaven's GateMcCabe and Mrs. MillerThe Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada Originally posted on:Schwinnfender
]]>Fri, 13 Jul 2007 20:00:27 GMTpaulpaul on spout.com7/13/2007 4:00:27 PMUnforgivenOnce Upon a Time in the WestHeaven's GateMcCabe and Mrs. MillerThe Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada Originally posted on:Schwinnfender Spout Post: The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada http://www.spout.com/blogs/jimbell/archive/2007/2/22/5693.aspx

Post By: JimBell
Post To: JimBell Blog
Post Date: 2/22/2007 1:09:00 PM
Body: The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005) (R) is a message movie. Judging the movie on its own terms, we ask how clear the message is and how effectively it is developed. First, though, a sketch of the plot: A racist young border patrol officer (Barry Pepper) shoots an illegal alien (Melquiades Estrada) working as a ranch hand for Pete Perkins (Tommy Lee Jones). The officer covers up the fatal mistake (burial number one) and mentions it to no one but is troubled by his careless murder. The local Texas bureaucracy also covers up the killing, first by refusing to investigate and then, when they know what happened, by refusing to press charges. They quickly inter the body (burial number two). But Melquides had been Pete’s best friend, and when Pete learns via the grapevine who killed his friend, Pete takes justice into his own hands. He kidnaps the guilty officer, makes him dig up the corpse, and forces him to accompany him and the body on a trek to the spot in Mexico where Melquiades wanted to be buried (burial number three). The film has two messages: one does not work and the other does. The film criticizes the way in which Americans treat Mexicans. The screenplay by Guillermo Arriaga portrays every American negatively—the police chief is corrupt and sexually impotent, the border patrol officers are racist and contemptuous, the only two women specialize in boredom and gratuitous sex, and so on. The only exception is, of course, Pete, who speaks Spanish, likes Mexicans, and could more or less pass as Mexican. All of the Mexicans we meet are good people who simply want a better life. Not that we get to know any of them in any depth, but, for example, Melquiades is a generous and gentle soul who would give his exceptional horse to his friend, who would feel petrified going into a motel room with a sexy young thing he did not really know. The criticism of American attitudes toward Mexicans does not work because it is so lop-sided that it is better described as “racial correctness” rather than “racial understanding.” But the other, and dominant, message is one of doing what is right. The young border patrol officer, Norton, refuses to own up to what he did but instead tries to make it all disappear, sweep it under the carpet, cover his ass, and deny everything. The bureaucracy irresponsibly hides behind its own regulations, using internal secrecy to undermine justice. But Pete thinks the young killer should admit his mistakes, change his ways, and say he is sorry. Unless you, the viewer, get that this is what the movie is about, you will be bored silly because almost nothing overtly exciting happens in a journey that must take up half the movie. First Pete confronts Norton with his crime by making him dig up the body. Then he introduces Norton to Melquiades’ life—his house, his table, his mug. The young thug is forced against every fibre of his being to drink water from the filthy wet-back’s mug. And that is just the start of the journey of redemption. Along the way, Norton spends day after day with a man who is honest and fair. For example, at one point Pete undoes Norton’s handcuffs and gives him back his cowboy boots “because we have to walk now” up a steep slope, and he adds that if Norton tries to run, he will shoot him. By this point, Norton knows what this means: They have to walk now because the slope is too steep for the horses, and if he tries to run, he will be shot. Weird, but Norton gets used it. Along the way, a Mexican saves Norton’s life, and Norton helps the Mexicans shuck corn. Slowly the arrogance, racism, and self-absorption diminish. Still, on the third burial, Norton is reluctant to ask his victim’s forgiveness. But he does. Ironically, while this slow and painful character growth has been going on, Norton’s cute young wife has declared him “beyond redemption” and left him. But when Pete says Norton can keep the second horse and rides away, Norton calls after him, in the last line of the movie, “You’ll be all right?” The egocentric young jerk has grown enough to actually think of someone other than himself. This impressive character transformation is believable because it takes so long. The character change develops the message of taking responsibility for your actions instead of hiding behind the skirts of the bureaucracy. Inevitably, given the political climate in North American and the wiring of the human brain, some people will want to politicize this message of redemption. The film critic for the influential Village Voice criticizes Peter for being “unquestionably right, stubborn, unflappable, adorably gruff, distrustful of social education, naturally at one with ‘the West,’ so bullshit-free he'd rather not talk than say something imprecise.” The problem is that “this slope-headed paradigm is so attractive to Americans, and [that] we have lately gone so far as to elect it to president. [Director Tommy Lee] Jones might be a low-profile Democrat, but in his movies he's our living neocon nightmare.” But I’d ask this: Is saying you’re sorry for hurting someone right wing or left wing? Does speaking in an honest and straight-forward manner mean that you are a laissez-faire capitalist or that you believe in labour unions and socialized medicine? Does honouring your best friend mean that you are a fundamentalist neo-conservative or a bleeding heart liberal? Most of the important issues in a person’s life and in our society are not a matter of right wing or left wing.Jim Bell
]]>Thu, 22 Feb 2007 18:09:00 GMTJimBellJimBell Blog2/22/2007 1:09:00 PM The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005) (R) is a message movie. Judging the movie on its own terms, we ask how clear the message is and how effectively it is developed. First, though, a sketch of the plot: A racist young border patrol officer (Barry Pepper) shoots an illegal alien (Melquiades Estrada) working as a ranch hand for Pete Perkins (Tommy Lee Jones). The officer covers up the fatal mistake (burial number one) and mentions it to no one but is troubled by his careless murder. The local Texas bureaucracy also covers up the killing, first by refusing to investigate and then, when they know what happened, by refusing to press charges. They quickly inter the body (burial number two). But Melquides had been Pete’s best friend, and when Pete learns via the grapevine who killed his friend, Pete takes justice into his own hands. He kidnaps the guilty officer, makes him dig up the corpse, and forces him to accompany him and the body on a trek to the spot in Mexico where Melquiades wanted to be buried (burial number three). The film has two messages: one does not work and the other does. The film criticizes the way in which Americans treat Mexicans. The screenplay by Guillermo Arriaga portrays every American negatively—the police chief is corrupt and sexually impotent, the border patrol officers are racist and contemptuous, the only two women specialize in boredom and gratuitous sex, and so on. The only exception is, of course, Pete, who speaks Spanish, likes Mexicans, and could more or less pass as Mexican. All of the Mexicans we meet are good people who simply want a better life. Not that we get to know any of them in any depth, but, for example, Melquiades is a generous and gentle soul who would give his exceptional horse to his friend, who would feel petrified going into a motel room with a sexy young thing he did not really know. The criticism of American attitudes toward Mexicans does not work because it is so lop-sided that it is better described as “racial correctness” rather than “racial understanding.” But the other, and dominant, message is one of doing what is right. The young border patrol officer, Norton, refuses to own up to what he did but instead tries to make it all disappear, sweep it under the carpet, cover his ass, and deny everything. The bureaucracy irresponsibly hides behind its own regulations, using internal secrecy to undermine justice. But Pete thinks the young killer should admit his mistakes, change his ways, and say he is sorry. Unless you, the viewer, get that this is what the movie is about, you will be bored silly because almost nothing overtly exciting happens in a journey that must take up half the movie. First Pete confronts Norton with his crime by making him dig up the body. Then he introduces Norton to Melquiades’ life—his house, his table, his mug. The young thug is forced against every fibre of his being to drink water from the filthy wet-back’s mug. And that is just the start of the journey of redemption. Along the way, Norton spends day after day with a man who is honest and fair. For example, at one point Pete undoes Norton’s handcuffs and gives him back his cowboy boots “because we have to walk now” up a steep slope, and he adds that if Norton tries to run, he will shoot him. By this point, Norton knows what this means: They have to walk now because the slope is too steep for the horses, and if he tries to run, he will be shot. Weird, but Norton gets used it. Along the way, a Mexican saves Norton’s life, and Norton helps the Mexicans shuck corn. Slowly the arrogance, racism, and self-absorption diminish. Still, on the third burial, Norton is reluctant to ask his victim’s forgiveness. But he does. Ironically, while this slow and painful character growth has been going on, Norton’s cute young wife has declared him “beyond redemption” and left him. But when Pete says Norton can keep the second horse and rides away, Norton calls after him, in the last line of the movie, “You’ll be all right?” The egocentric young jerk has grown enough to actually think of someone other than himself. This impressive character transformation is believable because it takes so long. The character change develops the message of taking responsibility for your actions instead of hiding behind the skirts of the bureaucracy. Inevitably, given the political climate in North American and the wiring of the human brain, some people will want to politicize this message of redemption. The film critic for the influential Village Voice criticizes Peter for being “unquestionably right, stubborn, unflappable, adorably gruff, distrustful of social education, naturally at one with ‘the West,’ so bullshit-free he'd rather not talk than say something imprecise.” The problem is that “this slope-headed paradigm is so attractive to Americans, and [that] we have lately gone so far as to elect it to president. [Director Tommy Lee] Jones might be a low-profile Democrat, but in his movies he's our living neocon nightmare.” But I’d ask this: Is saying you’re sorry for hurting someone right wing or left wing? Does speaking in an honest and straight-forward manner mean that you are a laissez-faire capitalist or that you believe in labour unions and socialized medicine? Does honouring your best friend mean that you are a fundamentalist neo-conservative or a bleeding heart liberal? Most of the important issues in a person’s life and in our society are not a matter of right wing or left wing.Jim Bell Spout Post: my 2006 movie list http://www.spout.com/blogs/wonga/archive/2007/1/2/4939.aspx

Post By: wonga
Post To: wonga's filmblog
Post Date: 1/2/2007 3:21:00 PM
Body: i saw 97 movies last year and it was hard to narrow them down but these are my favorites from 2006 for whatever reasons (i tried for 10 but just couldn't make it)! some are from 2005 and were seen later. i hope 2007 is half as good...TOP 15 LIST FOR 2006 MOVIES Sweet Land The Departed Paradise Now Three Burials Of Melquiades Estrada Neil Young: Heart Of Gold The Heart Of The Game Little Miss Sunshine Shopgirl Quinceanara Transamerica Shut Up And Sing The Prestige The Illusionist The History Boys Charlotte’s WebHONORABLE MENTIONBabel Casino Royale Cave Of The Yellow Dog Deja Vu Half Nelson Hollywoodland Kinky Boots Running With Scissors Stranger Than Fiction The Devil Wears Prada The Namesake The Notorious Bettie Page The Queen Who Loves The Sun Wordplay
]]>Tue, 02 Jan 2007 20:21:00 GMTwongawonga's filmblog1/2/2007 3:21:00 PMi saw 97 movies last year and it was hard to narrow them down but these are my favorites from 2006 for whatever reasons (i tried for 10 but just couldn't make it)! some are from 2005 and were seen later. i hope 2007 is half as good...TOP 15 LIST FOR 2006 MOVIES Sweet Land The Departed Paradise Now Three Burials Of Melquiades Estrada Neil Young: Heart Of Gold The Heart Of The Game Little Miss Sunshine Shopgirl Quinceanara Transamerica Shut Up And Sing The Prestige The Illusionist The History Boys Charlotte’s WebHONORABLE MENTIONBabel Casino Royale Cave Of The Yellow Dog Deja Vu Half Nelson Hollywoodland Kinky Boots Running With Scissors Stranger Than Fiction The Devil Wears Prada The Namesake The Notorious Bettie Page The Queen Who Loves The Sun Wordplay Spout Post: Re: Telling A Story Backwards http://www.spout.com/groups/PulpFiction1975/Re_Telling_A_Story_Backwards/66/3136/1/ShowPost.aspx

Post By: paul
Post To: PulpFiction1975
Post Date: 10/3/2006 2:44:40 PM
Body: If you haven't seen Nolan's first film, Following, you should see it immediately. I also enjoyed the non-linear technique in Tommy Lee Jones' recent film The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada.
]]>Tue, 03 Oct 2006 18:44:40 GMTpaulPulpFiction197510/3/2006 2:44:40 PMIf you haven't seen Nolan's first film, Following, you should see it immediately. I also enjoyed the non-linear technique in Tommy Lee Jones' recent film The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada. Spout Tag:murder http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/murder/MemberTagFilms.aspxmurder
Number of films tagged: 8748

Number of people who tagged: 157

Number of times used: 830

]]>Fri, 04 Dec 2009 02:57:25 GMT8748157830Tag Spout Tag:mexico http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/mexico/MemberTagFilms.aspxmexico
Number of films tagged: 677

Number of people who tagged: 40

Number of times used: 74

]]>Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:32:32 GMT6774074Tag Spout Tag:kidnap http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/kidnap/MemberTagFilms.aspxkidnap
Number of films tagged: 19

Number of people who tagged: 12

Number of times used: 19

]]>Thu, 12 Feb 2009 22:41:27 GMT191219Tag Spout Tag:sheriff http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/sheriff/MemberTagFilms.aspxsheriff
Number of films tagged: 700

Number of people who tagged: 11

Number of times used: 22

]]>Tue, 15 Sep 2009 19:53:34 GMT7001122Tag Spout Tag:fivestar http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/fivestar/MemberTagFilms.aspxfivestar
Number of films tagged: 94

Number of people who tagged: 5

Number of times used: 100

]]>Sat, 08 Sep 2007 03:28:23 GMT945100Tag Spout Tag:do-what http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/do-what/MemberTagFilms.aspxdo-what
Number of films tagged: 2

Number of people who tagged: 2

Number of times used: 2

]]>Sat, 12 Aug 2006 02:38:16 GMT222Tag Spout Tag:ranchhand http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/ranchhand/MemberTagFilms.aspxranchhand
Number of films tagged: 50

Number of people who tagged: 2

Number of times used: 2

]]>Thu, 30 Oct 2008 18:03:23 GMT5022Tag Spout Tag:waiterwaitress http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/waiterwaitress/MemberTagFilms.aspxwaiterwaitress
Number of films tagged: 383

Number of people who tagged: 2

Number of times used: 2

]]>Thu, 09 Jul 2009 13:13:22 GMT38322Tag Spout Tag:mexicana http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/mexicana/MemberTagFilms.aspxmexicana
Number of films tagged: 6

Number of people who tagged: 1

Number of times used: 6

]]>Fri, 16 Jun 2006 12:55:54 GMT616Tag Spout Tag:rancher http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/rancher/MemberTagFilms.aspxrancher
Number of films tagged: 92

Number of people who tagged: 1

Number of times used: 1

]]>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 13:02:48 GMT9211Tag Spout Tag:vivatommylee http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/vivatommylee/MemberTagFilms.aspxvivatommylee
Number of films tagged: 1

Number of people who tagged: 1

Number of times used: 1

]]>Thu, 27 Jul 2006 20:08:30 GMT111Tag Spout Tag:border-geographic http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/border-geographic/MemberTagFilms.aspxborder-geographic
Number of films tagged: 228

Number of people who tagged: 0

Number of times used: 0

]]>Thu, 21 May 2009 13:01:42 GMT22800Tag