We propose a non-iterative multi-resolution motion estimation strategy, involving block-based comparisons in each detail band of a Laplacian pyramid. A novel matching score is developed, together with a novel strategy for combining the matching scores across resolutions. The proposed matching score is based on a non-linear transformation of the Laplacian detail subbands, yielding a 2-bit representation that also has computational advantages. In a dense motion estimation setting, with synthetic content, the proposed method is shown to produce smoother and more robust estimates than MSE, including a multi-resolution MSE matching strategy, while providing much better localization of the motion discontinuities.