The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada

When actors turn director, the better actors are generally fine directors and the terrible ones are usually every bit as terrible behind the lens. Tommy Lee Jones is, fortunately, a fine actor and his directorial feature debut, the rather overindulgently titled The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, has been largely well received, picking up a couple of awards at Cannes. This does appear to be one of those films that divides critics across the Pond, those in the US being almost overwhelmingly very positive (including favourable comparisons with Sam Peckinpah), whereas those in the UK seemingly less impressed.
Ever since Ennio Morricone started giving the wild west his distinctive musical tone, any film set in the area (if not the period) seems set to receive music that, at the very least, owes some debt to Morricone's style. Three Burials is no exception, although his rather more recent score for U-Turn is perhaps a better point of comparison, as is the early Beltrami work, The Minus Man. The music is scored for a small string ensemble, filled out with guitars, both electric and acoustic, accordion and assorted percussion and ethnic instruments. The tracks are generally rather brief, highlighting the rather nihilistic tone of the film. Obvious melody is rather thin on the ground, but the tone is strong enough to carry the drama. The final pair of score cues, Forgiveness and Goodbye, are somewhat more melodically memorable and form a rather more humane conclusion to an otherwise slightly inhospitable score.

Splitting the album almost evenly with Beltrami's underscore are a variety of country songs which are variously quirky (notably You Can't Rollerskate in a Buffalo Herd - a mistake I'm sure we've all made) and both break up the rather oppressive tone of the score, but also compliment it. The 'Exclusive' final track by Lila Downs is especially lovely and I would suggest that the songs should not be passed in favour of Beltrami's music alone. As pure music, the score isn't nearly so accomplished as Morricone's extensive catalogue; the brevity of some of the tracks means that the ideas don't always coalesce as well as they might (the final two tracks being notable exceptions). However, for those who like their film music a little offbeat, worth a listen.