"Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" is one of the best films by Martin McDonagh. Two of his stars were awarded the Oscar.
The film "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" (2017) was on everyone's lips in the 2017/2018 award season. The rather bulky title of the deep black tragicomedy by director Martin McDonagh (50) shouldn't deter anyone. The weird story about death, mourning, revenge and purification is one of the best films in recent years and can be seen on Monday, July 27th at 8:15 p.m. in the first. Not only leading actress Frances McDormand (60) was awarded the Oscar for her performance as best leading actress. This film is really big cinema.
Frances McDormand demands justice
Mildred Hayes (McDormand) collected all her savings and a little more. The divorced, single mother doesn't want to use the money to finance a vacation or a new place to stay. She rents three ramshackle billboards outside her tranquil hometown for the $ 4,000 and pillories the popular police chief Willoughby (Woody Harrelson, 59) with them.
It has been seven months since Mildred's daughter was raped and murdered. There is no suspect, the investigations by the local police are largely closed. But tough Mildred does not want to and cannot accept it and deliberately starts a small war with her campaign. Not just with the police, but with almost every one of the weird residents of the small town. It doesn't take long before their campaign for justice makes national waves.
Two Oscars for two strong performances
"How's the 'torturing negro' business, Dixon?" Asks Mildred smugly. Said Dixon (Sam Rockwell, 51) is not only incredibly simple, but also a racist, mother's son … and policeman – not the best of all combinations. "You can't say that! It's now called 'torturing colored people' business," he replies, completely free of irony. McDormand at one end and Rockwell at the other end of the intelligence scale of this verbal skirmish is the highlight of "Three Billboards" and makes it all too clear why the two have won all the prizes for their performances. Rockwell won the first Oscar of his career as best supporting actor for his performance.
The film doesn't make the mistake of denying characters like Dixon the space to develop. In addition, the film does not only focus on the main character. The acting talent is spread over several shoulders on "Three Billboards". Woody Harrelson, as a respected, seriously ill police chief, also gets his memorable moments. Just like "Game of Thrones" star Peter Dinklage (51) or Caleb Landry Jones (30) in supporting roles.
McDormand as bitter, grieving and extraordinarily vulgar Mildred Hayes is of course the heart of the film. Fully deserved, she bagged her second gold boy in 2018 (the first was in 1997 for "Fargo" by the Coen brothers). The famous director-brothers couple is a good cue. Already at "See Bruges … and die?" (2008), filmmaker McDonagh had established an essentially similarly slanted figure drawing as the Coen brothers, but without simply copying their style. With "Three Billboards" he managed to top his equally great previous film again in this regard.
Rigorous social criticism
In contrast to the latent and less latent racist residents of Ebbing, Mildred Hayes does not discriminate. With rare exceptions, she simply despises everyone around her and thus brings a strange form of equality towards people. You don't make friends with such an attitude, with which the riot brush can live more than.
And so a group of young people is kicked in the soft tissues (boys and girls) until one of the kids comes out as a bottle thrower. She advises the pastor, who wants to bring her to reason, to take care of the countless child abusers in the church. And the reporter, who hypocritically calls for an end to the small war, smashes at her: "It means shit, you handicapped cow. This is just the shitty beginning. Send it in your 'Good Morning Missouri' breakfast television shit, you bitch ! ".
The examples show that "Three Billboards" might be too rough for some viewers. In addition, the streak that is teeming with social criticism may be too striking for them – somehow appropriate for a film that revolves around billboards.
Perhaps because "Three Billboards" with its admittedly very critically presented criticism all too often hits the mark, there were only two Oscars from the seven nominations. At the end of the day, however, the film brings the constructive message among the people that even the most narrow-minded and flawed person has the potential to be a hero.
Conclusion
Even if the films of the Coen brothers come to mind first, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" is unique, for some people it might be too spicy, very big film food. However, the ensemble of the Oscar-winning artists Frances McDormand and Sam Rockwell, which is extremely impressive, is worth the reputation.