The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005) - May 28, 2019 (Sony)

[Abdrewes]

special features and extras

• audio commentary with tommy lee jones, dwight yoakam and january jones.

• theatrical trailer

[Abdrewes]

Sorry for the belated thread. I was shocked to see there was none when I went looking for some convo about this release.

[KubrickKurasawa]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

Sorry for the belated thread. I was shocked to see there was none when I went looking for some convo about this release.

Show's you just how popular Westerns are anymore. To bad.

[Jorvic]

It's a film that rewards patience. Among the many highlights, there's a memorable conversation between the Pete Perkins character and the blind man with the radio.

Judging by its box office performance and general neglect, perhaps people were put off by the pacing.

The picture quality on the Blu-ray was decent.

Can't help but compare it to the later No Country for Old Men.

Both are great works.

[rocknblues81]

Originally Posted by KubrickKurasawa

Show's you just how popular Westerns are anymore. To bad.

Culture is mostly suburban or urban now and so this isn't surprising.

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by KubrickKurasawa

Show's you just how popular Westerns are anymore. To bad.

I don't think that has anything to do with it.

This is a fantastic film but it's not something that's going to appeal to a lot of folks, it's mostly a complex character study with a deliberate pace and a long title that's hard to pronounce for many.

Also, without getting into a debate over what and what doesn't constitute a western, for most people Westerns are fast-paced shoot 'em ups that take place during the Old West (late 1800s, very early 1900s). I wouldn't use this film's popularity or lack thereof as some sort of gauge for the popularity of westerns, or vice versa.

[Member-222782]

I hadn't realized there was a US release - I imported a UK Blu-ray a few years ago. Fine film but I wouldn't call it a traditional Western. Contemporary drama with Western tendencies or Western adjacent?

[rocknblues81]

I view it as a western. The themes, the characterizations and such make it close enough to me. I count No Country for Old Men as a western also.

It's like the 80's and early 90's take on noir. Some differences compared to the old days, but still noir. Same here. Not every western is a fast paced shoot'em up. Characterizations
, themes, principles and culture aspects matter.

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by rocknblues81

I view it as a western. The themes, the characterizations and such make it close enough to me. I count No Country for Old Men as a western also.

It's like the 80's and early 90's take on noir. Some differences compared to the old days, but still noir. Same here. Not every western is a fast paced shoot'em up. Characterizations
, themes, principles and culture aspects matter.

Okay, not necessarily pace, but for me it's not truly a Western unless it takes in that time period and I suspect it's the same for a great many people.

What it boils down to is I don't think that the overall lack of interest in this film can be attributed to a lack of interest in westerns, because I don't think many people view this is as being one.

[rocknblues81]

Originally Posted by RCRochester

Okay, not necessarily pace, but for me it's not truly a Western unless it takes in that time period and I suspect it's the same for a great many people.

What it boils down to is I don't think that the overall lack of interest in this film can be attributed to a lack of interest in westerns, because I don't think many people view this is as being one.

How many successful westerns have they been in the last decade in terms of money? The Assassination of Jesse James didn't make any money either. Neither did The Proposition?

You have the 3:10 to Yuma remake but even that was 15 years ago now. Not to mention that Bale and Crowe were in their prime, James Mangold was fresh off Walk the Line. It was kind of an exception.


It's going to be hard to sell a western in today's pop culture. The genre has mostly been dead (with only a couple of exceptions) for a couple of decades in terms of being able to make money.

[rocknblues81]

https://screenrant.com/no-country-fo...-water-better/

I'm fine with calling them "neo westerns".

The Neo-Western subgenre became very popular in the 2000s and 2010s. The subgenre mostly adopts the elements of old Westerns such as gun violence, a rugged fashion sense, dangerous outlaws, skilled lawmen, desert-like settings, and fixes them in the modern world.

Most of the more successful westerns from the last 20 years have some more modern sensibilities to them. And honestly, it's not Like even the most successful neo westerns tore up the box office.

A Randolph Scott western surely isn't going to interest many people today.

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by rocknblues81

How many successful westerns have they been in the last decade in terms of money? The Assassination of Jesse James didn't make any money either. Neither did The Proposition?

You have the 3:10 to Yuma remake but even that was 15 years ago now. Not to mention that Bale and Crowe were in their prime, James Mangold was fresh off Walk the Line. It was kind of an exception.


It's going to be hard to sell a western in today's pop culture. The genre has mostly been dead (with only a couple of exceptions) for a couple of decades in terms of being able to make money.

I've already spelled out the reasons I think this film was not very successful, and that it being a western (or not being a western) had nothing to do with that.

I'm not necessarily arguing with you that westerns these days aren't the goldmine they used to be, but if you're talking about something like The Assassination of Jesse James, again, that's another film whose lack of success can be attributed to things like length and it being more of a slow-paced character study.

Django Unchained, The Revenant and True Grit are all westerns that did very well at the box office in recent years and also garnered critical acclaim.

[rocknblues81]

Originally Posted by RCRochester

I've already spelled out the reasons I think this film was not very successful, and that it being a western (or not being a western) had nothing to do with that.

I'm not necessarily arguing with you that westerns these days aren't the goldmine they used to be, but if you're talking about something like The Assassination of Jesse James, again, that's another film whose lack of success can be attributed to things like length and it being more of a slow-paced character study.

Django Unchained, The Revenant and True Grit are all westerns that did very well at the box office in recent years and also garnered critical acclaim.

Two of the three are also directors that help sell the movie. QT is his own brand at this point. You go see a QT movie because it is a QT movie. No matter if it a western or a Crime Drama people will be interested because of his style. Death Proof being the exception.

I think some of True Grits success can be linked to No Country for Old Men.

The success of westerns in the last 20 years can largely be linked to who was involved.

I don't think we are that far apart here though. I do think that some people don't realize that traditional westerns are slow movies by today's standards.

It takes the right people to be involved for a western to even do acceptable business now.

One could argue that Three Burials is slower paced than even old westerns, but TLJ alone wasn't going to sell a movie at that point.

Honestly though... Most people probably do not know that this movie even exists.

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by rocknblues81

Two of the three are also directors that help sell the movie. QT is his own brand at this point. You go see a QT movie because it is a QT movie. No matter if it a western or a Crime Drama people will be interested because of his style. Death Proof being the exception.

The success of westerns in the last 20 years can largely be linked to who was involved.

I don't think we are that far apart here though. I do think that some people don't realize that traditional westerns are slow movies by today's standards.

It takes the right people to be involved for a western to even do acceptable business now.

That's no different than the success of movies involving the likes of Roy Rogers, Clint Eastwood or John Wayne.

There are also a lot of the more "traditional" westerns on the streaming services. They obviously appeal to a certain demographic but it's not as dead of a genre as many people think.

And, yeah, "neo-western" is a good description for films like this and No Country For Old Men.

[Purplenoon]

Just watched this for the 3rd or 4th time. This is a magnificent western. Period. When it takes place is immaterial. Tommy Lee should take the director’s chair more often. His next one, THE HOMESMAN is equally good. Interesting that Three Burials predated No Country For Old Men by a couple of years. The fact that he acts in these movies is just the icing on the cake.

[Member-222782]

I wouldn't say Westerns are dead. They're still being made today but some kind of fly under the radar or go straight to streaming and/or disc and then quickly disappear. Westerns have also been popular on premium cable channels with series like Hell On Wheels, Deadwood and more recently Yellowstone. Once in a while a very good Western is made (Open Range, The Proposition, The Hateful Eight) but audiences for this genre do seem to be dwindling, sadly. Sometimes all it takes is a good and high-grossing film to revitalize the genre.

[rocknblues81]

Originally Posted by RCRochester

That's no different than the success of movies involving the likes of Roy Rogers, Clint Eastwood or John Wayne.

There are also a lot of the more "traditional" westerns on the streaming services. They obviously appeal to a certain demographic but it's not as dead of a genre as many people think.

And, yeah, "neo-western" is a good description for films like this and No Country For Old Men.

Yeah, but streaming is different. Will a family pay lots of money to go to the movies to see a western? When I say it is basically dead I am talking about making money at the movies.

It's complicated. I don't think you have many people in the biz that care about making them... And the people behind it have to be certain people. Then you add the trends in the country.

Tom Hanks just did one with Paul Greengrass and it only made 12 million I think. But Tom Hanks and Paul Green grass doing a western doesn't give me confidence. So I skipped it.

But the Coens I think built credibility with say rural and middle America do to Oh Brother, Where Art Thou and No Country. The former is especially popular with rural people that I know. It made True Grit an easier sell I think.

[Jorvic]

In terms of the film itself: it is one of Tommy Lee Jones' best performances. His intensity in the lead role is almost frightening at times.

Plenty of able support from Melissa Leo, Dwight Yoakam (so often great at playing cowardly and/or generally dislikeable characters) and Levon Helm.

The landscape is used (as are a number of other things) in a manner that recalls classic Western territory. The film plays with the idea of an obsessive quest in different ways. Not surprisingly, there's what seem like some visual echoes of Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia. Though it has some startling moments of violence, the narrative maintains a very deliberate pace.

Certainly a film worthy of a higher status – or perhaps wider audience – than it currently has.

[Member-222782]

One thing is certain: this film would look gorgeous in 4K.

[sb5]

Is this the best Blu Ray for this movie still? It looks like 101 Films released it in the UK last year. Is it any different AV-wise? Can’t find any reviews/comparisons of it.