- THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING MISSOURI RATING MOVIE
- THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING MISSOURI RATING FULL
Following a rudimentary check of the legal restrictions on billboard advertising, she has three signs put up, their blunt messages in boldface uppercase on a blood-red background reading, in order: Raped While Dying And Still No Arrests How Come, Chief Willoughby? It’s been months since Mildred heard a word from cops about the investigation of her teenage daughter’s horrific rape and murder by incineration, so she takes radical steps to light a flame under the ass of local law enforcement. Fox Searchlight has a real ripper on its hands with this one, even if it likely won’t be for mainstream tastes. A stupendous showcase for the formidable gifts of McDormand that also provides plum roles for Woody Harrelson and Sam Rockwell, this is a corrosively humorous drama of festering injustice, Shakespearean rage, grave reckoning and imperfect redemption, which unfolds with the epic dimensions of a classic Western showdown. Instead, they loom like desolate memories of a time of prosperity and happiness, suggesting a Walker Evans image of a Great Depression highway to a place beyond hope.Īfter the entertainingly larkish but low-caloric carnage of Seven Psychopaths, McDonagh returns here to the peak form of his debut feature In Bruges, and of his best work for the stage. There’s no such reassurance in the tattered signage standing abandoned in the morning mist in the opening shots of Martin McDonagh’s blisteringly funny and richly textured third feature, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. It’s the richness and complexity of the characters that allows this film to work.The roadside billboard is an iconic feature of the Americana landscape, with quaintly illustrated graphics welcoming travelers, offering hot coffee, comfort food and a warm hotel bed, or bidding farewell to those departing, often with a folksy “Y’all come back now”-type sentiment. He’s magnetic in every scene he’s in.īut behind all those great performances are some strong, effective supporting portrayals as well: Abbie Cornish as Willoughby’s wife, Anne Peter Dinklage as the “local dwarf” (who has one of the best monologues) Caleb Landry Jones as the representative of the ad agency that owns the billboards and John Hawkes as Mildred’s ex-husband. Woody Harrelson, who uses his natural charm and likability to make Chief Willoughby seem like a pillar of decency. He is one of Hollywood’s most underrated actors but after this performance, the transformation will be complete to one of the most sought-after actors in the biz. Sam Rockwell should also get some Oscar consideration for his portrayal of Dixon a despicable human being.
She plays Mildred with such zest and zeal that you can already make her the odds-on favourite to win Best Actress at every award show she is nominated in. What truly makes this film tick is Frances McDormand who plays a flawed character that you can’t help but cheer for, even if you know her methods are probably doing more harm than good.
There are many messages at play that are as big and as bold as the messages on those three billboards. Director McDonagh does a masterful job of putting together one of the greatest dark comedies that I have ever seen on screen. But those assumptions are deceiving and just like the town of Ebbing, Missouri, there is something bubbling just below the surface.įor all of its dark humour, there are moments of redemption and heartbreak that rip at your soul. Most of the film is focused on Mildred, Willoughby and Dixon and at first glance, they are characters who seem familiar with a predictable story.
THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING MISSOURI RATING FULL
The text of those billboards provides the narrative but that only sets off a chain of events that takes the viewer down a dizzying rabbit hole full of hilarity and dramatic twists. The billboards don’t really sit well with some of the townsfolk but especially with Chief Willoughby (Woody Harrelson) and his brutish and racist deputy officer Dixon (Sam Rockwell), a manchild who walks around with a gun and a short fuse. 'Justice League' is a super mess of failure.