‘Three Billboards’ a dark yet surprisingly satisfying film

‘Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” explores themes of grief, broken families, and the concept that every person is a shade of gray. But as dark and depressing as this might sound, this is a pitch-black comedy of the best kind.

After some time has passed since her daughter’s murder with no suspects arrested, Ebbing resident Mildred Hayes (Frances McDormand, who absolutely deserves an Oscar nod here) rents three broken-down billboards outside town to post ads that challenge the local police department, which she believes failed her and her daughter.

Woody Harrelson plays Police Chief Bill Willoughby, the man Mildred personally calls out on her billboards. Though viewers might expect him to end up being the antagonist, that could not be further from the case. Willoughby’s side of the story, and his character arc, are much more than what a lesser writer would have turned him into, becoming a satisfying catalyst for several unexpected plot turns.

Sam Rockwell plays a piece of human garbage as Officer Jason Dixon, an underling in Willoughby’s department who’s essentially a racist mama’s boy with a pet turtle. His bumbling idiocy, violent tendencies and short temper are the results of his upbringing and pathetic home life, and he frequently is the butt of ridicule in the film. But even his arc is totally unexpected and surprising, despite the movie richly introducing all of the central players so well within the first act.

The cast is rounded out by several great supporting performances who all have their own subplots and lives within Ebbing. Peter Dinklage and Caleb Landry Jones stand out as a car salesman and an advertising broker, respectively, who are both intertwined in and affected by the fallout of the billboard conflict.

Which brings us to the true villains in “Three Billboards”: death and grief, conflict with oneself and, worst of all, hatred. Moments of dark humor lighten the mood in a movie full of characters who all deal with grief and anger in sometimes volatile ways.

Each character’s greatest obstacle is inner conflict, even though they lash out at one another onscreen. Death, while final for those it touches, can cause terrible reactions by those left to suffer the aftermath — or be a bittersweet and necessary change for others.

There is a strand of the movie that has something to say about hatred, in terms of both blind racism and anger in the wake of death. And while anger may consume some of the characters throughout, the movie isn’t completely driven by the concept. There are as many different shades of anger and hatred as there are of morality amongst the characters, ranging from despicable and foolish (Rockwell’s Dixon) to the all-consuming and self-destructive anger fueling Mildred. Each character’s anger is a reflection of the lives they have lived, but it doesn’t completely define them.

Writer-director Martin McDonagh already has proved himself as an excellent director, but here he reaches award-winning status as a writer. “Three Billboards” certainly deserves at least two award nominations: one for McDormand’s performance, and the other for McDonagh’s original screenplay.

He has a fantastic knack for character and story development, and he’s no slouch in the dialogue department, either. Every strand ties up perfectly, with satisfying conclusions to each character’s arc — both lead and supporting roles.

“Three Billboards” may not be for everyone. It’s a incredibly dark comedy with more drama than laughs. But when the movie makes light of its morbid and angry subject material, the moments of comedy are of the laugh-out-loud variety.

The only other filmmakers who could have pulled off this movie as well as McDonagh did are perhaps Joel and Ethan Coen, whose work probably has had some influence on McDonagh’s own writing and filmmaking, from the looks of it.

Most people would be at least entertained by “Three Billboards,” if not pleasantly surprised by such a terrific movie that seems to have come out of nowhere.

Note: Though this critic hasn’t seen McDonagh’s highly praised “In Bruges” (which is reportedly a must-watch), his “Seven Psychopaths” is a violently hilarious thriller that also stars Harrelson and Rockwell. That film flew under the radar, but makes for a great movie night. If you haven’t seen it already, it’s absolutely worth a rental.

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“Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” is currently playing at the Riverside Cinemas, 1017 S. Boone St. in Aberdeen.

George Haerle holds a bachelor’s degree in creative writing for media and lives in Cosmopolis.