I’d ordered a DVD of this film months ago when it first came out, and then forgot all about it. Yesterday I was pleasantly surprised when it landed on my doormat, and I discovered that playwright Martin McDonagh has written a really great screenplay here; a quirky plot that when you watch the film you wish that you’d thought of it first!
Mildred Hayes’ daughter Angela was raped and murdered, but 8 months’ later the police in Ebbing, Missouri, led by Chief William Willoughby, do not seem to be making much progress in finding her killer.
A new road has been built into Ebbing, and the old road is now the one less travelled, so to speak. Mildred is driving along the old road and thinks of a way to utilise the three old billboards doing nothing at the side of the road. She enlists the help of advertising agent Red Welby and pays for three adverts to be posted onto the billboards. When the police and the townsfolk get to read the adverts it causes a storm of protest, which is further whipped up by the local TV news station.
Mildred is not flavour of the month, especially as Chief Willoughby (played by Woody Harrelson) has problems of his own, but she has brought attention to her cause in the most direct way she can think of. It’s a wonderful, gritty performance by Frances McDormand as Mildred, who is struggling to come to terms with not only her daughter’s death, but also the fact that her husband has left her for a 19 year old girl. Ms McDormand won an Academy Award for Best Actress for playing Mildred, and when you watch the film you’ll understand why.
There is a smattering of humour in the script to offset what some might think of as a depressing plot. There are quite a few f-bombs, so don’t watch if you are offended by bad language. Sam and I were glued to our seats for the whole 2 hours without even a break for a cup of tea!Definitely five stars for this one – a most original plot.
dgkaye said:
Fab review Stevie, thanks. I wanted to see this film and now I can’t wait! 🙂
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Stevie Turner said:
You’ll love it!
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dgkaye said:
Oh I know I will! 🙂
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Stevie Turner said:
Yes she is. A totally unglamorous role, and she was very convincing as Mildred Hayes.
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watchingthedaisies said:
I have not seen this yet but Frances McDormand is a terrific actress.
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Stevie Turner said:
Thanks for linking up.
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tidalscribe said:
Yes I loved it and also wrote about it in my blog this week as it has really ‘stayed with me’. We finally got around to going to the new too big Odeon I have been avoiding. The film was so good I didn’t notice if I liked the cinema or not.
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Stevie Turner said:
It’s one of those quirky films isn’t it? I love those types.
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M.L. Davis said:
Agree, loved the movie 🙂
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jenanita01 said:
I was intrigued when this film won all those Oscars, and looking forward to seeing it!
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Stevie Turner said:
I’m sure you’ll love it.
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ksbeth said:
i loved it too!
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Michael said:
I agree Stevie, it was a great movie and yes I too was glued to my seat throughout.
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