Clean crisp scenes where actors are left to tell a brilliant story

Rating: 9/10 (23 February 2018)

It's the story of a griveing mother desperate to get closure on the rape and murder of her teenage daughter. Played by Frances McDormand, Mildred Hayes tries to provoke the local police into action by erecting three billboards lambasting the local Police Chief. In this dark comedy she is what all of us wish we could be so often. Ruthless
Woody Harrelson playing Chief Willoughby, shows the equally soul-destroying aftermath that a case of this nature leaves for not only the family, but the those charged with picking up the pieces. Desperately trying to make progress on a case that left nothing but hurt and misguided blame. His execution of this role brings this movie to an equilibrium of sadness, hope and peace.
While Harrelson and McDormand show their experience on the set and their performances compliment each others' entirely, the stand out for here is Sam Rockwell. He plays a new cop on the force who is almost everything all at once. Terribly ignorant and corrupt but true and loyal to the end. His character is so off kilter it's spot on.
Director Martin McDonagh stays true to his theatrical form delivering clean crisp scenes where actors are left to tell a brilliant story. Screenplay and editing also gets the thumbs up with a perfect run time and probably the most honest ending a film could have.