Exposing the ugly underbelly of a small Midwestern town

Rating: 7/10 (24 November 2017)

"Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" (2017 release; 115 min.) brings the story of Mildred Hayes. As the movie opens, we see her driving by several unused dilapidated billboards near her house. She inquires with the Ebbing Advertising Agency (located across the street from the Police Department), and decides to put up three billboards. Combined, they read: Raped While Dying/And Still No Arrests"/How Come. Chief Willoughby? We learn that her daughter Angela was murdered 7 months ago, and that no suspects have been identified by the cops. OF course, this public shaming does not sit well with Chief Willoughby, and he decides to pay Mildred a visit (his first since the murder, Mildred remarks). At this point we're 10 min. into the movie but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.
Couple of comments: this is the latest movie from writer-director Martin McDonagh, who previously gave us "In Bruges" and "Seven Psychopaths". While those movies were over the top in many ways, here McDonagh goes a more subtle yet still hard-hitting way in looking at how one strong-willed woman upsets the fabric of a little Missouri town and along the way exposes its ugly underbelly. If you have seen the movie's trailer (and it was hard to escape that in recent weeks), one might expect something very similar, at least in style, to McDonagh's earlier movies, rip-roaring from start to finish. But that is not the case at all. Yes, of course there are those moments, but there there are also many other scenes in the movie that are reflective and outright touching. As hard-boiled as Mildred seems to be, the real hurt and grieving she displays on occasion says a lot more about her than when she kicks some school kids in a place where it hurts (yes, she really does). McDonagh brings out wonderful performances, none more so than the one-of-a- kind Frances McDormand as Mildred. McDormand must at this point surely be considered the front-runner for the Best Actress Oscar early next year. But she gets plenty of help, including Sam Rockwell (as the sleazy and racist officer Dixon), and Woody Harrelson (as Chief Willoughby),
"Three Billboards" premiered this Fall to immediate critical acclaim, which for the most part is well deserved. (I personally felt a bit let down by the movie's concluding 15 min., which of course I will not spoil.) The Thanksgiving early evening screening where I saw this at in Ft. Myers FL, was attended nicely (about 15- 20 people) but nowhere near a sell-out. It will be interesting to see how the movie does at the box office as it gets a wider release in weeks to come. Martin McDonagh is certainly no ordinary writer- director and if you appreciate hiss off-kilter approach, you will welcome his latest. I encourage you to check out "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri", be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.