‘Three Billboards’ more visible
Film about sexual violence has new relevance.
It has a heck of a long title, but Three
Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri just might be the movie of the moment. The film from Martin McDonagh ( In
Bruges), in theaters Friday in New York and Los Angeles (nationwide Dec. 1), roots itself in the fury of a mother, Mildred Hayes (Frances McDormand), whose daughter has been raped and killed and seemingly forgotten by laconic local police. Dissatisfied with a sevenmonth-long investigation that’s going nowhere, Mildred sends the authorities up in flames by renting three billboards outside her small town.
In block letters, the caustic mom takes on the police chief (Woody Harrelson), demanding to know why more isn’t being done.
“They say hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, but Mildred Hayes would put the fear of God in the devil himself,” USA TODAY’s Brian Truitt wrote in his review.
By the way, it’s also a comedy. Now observers are wondering if increased topicality may send Three Bill
boards cresting a wave of indignation past best-picture favorites that focus on stories of white men, like World War II tales Dunkirk and Darkest Hour.
“This was going to be a best-picture contender anyway,” says Anne Thompson, editor at large for film news site IndieWire, noting the film’s equally deft storytelling around men’s confusion and frustration about sexual violence. “This is just adding wind to the sails.”
After a strong debut on the festival circuit and a 97% “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the film arrives as conversations around sexual harassment and assault are hitting a national high.
That’s not necessarily enough to push it to the top of the best-picture race, says Tom O’Neil, founder of prognostication site GoldDerby.com. “I don’t think it’s a realistic rival to win at this point. But that can change,” he says.
What’s notable this year, he says, is a best-picture category that looks stacked with films about the female experience, from The Shape of Water and Three Billboards to I, Tonya and Lady Bird.
“It’s rare that films shot from a female perspective are welcomed to the Oscar race in the best-picture contest,” he says. “When you look down the list, it’s very noticeable that we’re seeing a lot of girl power in the mix.”
Audience reaction has been telling. In September, Billboards was a surprise winner of the audience award at the Toronto International Film Festival.
In the thick of the sexual harassment scandal, “you can’t help but bring real life into the theater,” says Amy Nicholson, critic for Variety and Uproxx, who witnessed whoops and cheers inside an L.A. industry screening last week.
“The atmosphere in the room, whenever Frances dug in her heels and refused to back down, was really electric and cathartic,” she says. “It felt amazing to watch a woman who had passed her breaking point, passed her threshold of dealing with nonsense.”
And historically, voters like to send a message on Oscar night, O’Neil says: “Oscar voters are not all the time voting for the best movies but the most important ones — movies that make a statement.”