Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri - 2017
Three Billboards is NOT a perfect film. It can actually be argued pretty convincingly that it’s riddled with inconsistencies. Many of the people taking these stances view the film as overtly political. They recognize the value of a rage-filled woman on an almost righteous quest for justice (in this post-Weinstein era), while simultaneously lambasting a cantankerous and racist cop who appears to be “redeemed.” As such, they find the film tone deaf, untrue to life at best, and offensive at worst.
There is some truth to these claims. For starters, the director Martin McDonagh is an Irish playwright. In the past, he’s made films with the same acerbic wit in the context of Irish culture (In Bruges). In this case, he appears to have chosen a place which resembles small town, middle America, yet he’s unable to completely shake free of his home domain. So, Three Billboards becomes this weird amalgam of Irish class struggles and broad stereotypes about red-state America, all stuck in a place which doesn’t actually exist. (The film was actually shot in Asheville, NC).
But, the haters are missing some things too. For starters, McDonagh, as I’ve said, is a playwright. Three Bills is much more stage play or morality tale than mockumentary. It should be viewed as such. His characters, this place, their way of life have more in common with Flannery O’Connor than with Ferguson, MO (again a misstep on his part, for Flannery was more southern than midwestern). In attempting to bring his characters to life, he stepped on the hotbed tripwire of racial minorities and the police and was probably unprepared to hash through it completely.
So, it may sound like this film is undeserving of acclaim. But this is not at all the case. Then, what does carry the film through? Well, how about this: as a stage play it has tremendous value. Moreover, it’s also very enjoyable. It features incredible writing that blazes off the page in places. Some lines are poignant, but many are delivered with ferocity akin to chucking Molotov cocktails into a police station. It’s equal parts tragedy and hilarity. But above all, the performances are uniformly fantastic. McDormand will likely win for her portrayal of a woman in search of what so many of us seek. Making things right. Solutions to brokenness. On the other hand, while Rockwell is despicable, he finds a beating heart to pursue justice in his own way. In his actions, we’re really treated to a three-dimensional view of a human being. That is to say, even the broken can find within them the ability to reach out and help another person.
In the end, Three Billboards is far less about “redemption” than resignation. It exists within a world noting how incomplete and ineffective our efforts to do good will always be. How unsatisfying what we discover will be, and how we work out vengeance in a land hastening to damnation. In a world busted beyond repair, solutions are far less than perfect. So is this picture. Maybe that’s something we can all get behind.
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