Frances McDormand, Woody Harrelson and Sam Rockwell in the Martin McDonagh movie ‘Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri’

Filmed in Sylva, North Carolina and set as the fictional town of Ebbing, Missouri, the Martin McDonagh written and directed movie Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017) presents a darkly comedic drama. The film was released in the United States in November 2017 and the United Kingdom in January 2018.

(From left, Frances McDormand as Mildred Hayes and Peter Dinklage as James in the Martin McDonagh movie Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri).

Mildred Hayes, portrayed by Francis McDormand, draws attention to her daughter’s unsolved rape and murder by renting three roadside billboards. Hayes’ teenage daughter Angela, portrayed by Kathryn Newton, had been taken from her grieving and angry mother seven months before the beginning of the movie. Three disused billboards are rented by Hayes with a pointed message for the local chief of police: “Raped While Dying”, “And Still No Arrests?”, “How Come, Chief Willoughby?”

(From left, Lucas Hedges as Robbie Hayes and Kathryn Newton as Angela Hayes in the Martin McDonagh movie Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri).

Portrayed by Woody Harrelson, pancreatic cancer-stricken Chief of Police Bill Willoughby fails to apprehend the guilty following another earnest to do so. Alcoholic police officer Jason Dixon, portrayed by Sam Rockwell, finds a similar lack of success when trying to intimidate billboard renter Red Welby, as portrayed by Caleb Landry Jones, into taking the billboards down. Geoffrey, the dentist sympathetic to Willoughby as portrayed by Jerry Winsett, finds out in a dramatic way that pressuring an angry and grieving mother bent on obtaining some measure of justice will end in a comedically dark way.

(From left, Abbie Cornish as Anne Willoughby and Woody Harrelson as Bill Willoughby in the Martin McDonagh movie Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri).

Stressors and pressures of a personal and amplified within the community perspective follow from examples like the above. Mildred’s relationship with her son Robbie Hayes, as portrayed by Lucas Hedges, would become strained due to the billboards. Charlie Hayes, Mildred’s abusive ex-cop ex-husband portrayed by John Hawkes, reveals that he had turned down the couple’s now deceased daughter shortly before her death when she, Angela, had wanted to live with him once again.

(From left, Sam Rockwell as Jason Dixon and Sandy Martin as Jason Dixon’s mother in the Martin McDonagh movie Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri).

Drama in unexpected measure follows Chief Bill Willoughby’s death at his own hand, with the partial hand of that justice being administered through subsequent police chief Abercrombie. Clarke Peters portrayed Abercrombie. A convoluted circumstance of the drama extends the hands of justice through Willoughby, Abercrombie, Mildred Hayes and James, with James portrayed by Peter Dinklage, into a hospital room reconciliation with Red Welby.

(Caleb Landry Jones as Red Welby in the Martin McDonagh movie Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri).

Many senses of interpersonal debt, partial truth and emotional need that draws out depth for the multiple characters of this film preceded and follow the dynamics of the characters within Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. It takes leaps of character, and an emotional journey within a number of them, to lead the landing point of the movie to a misguided journey seeking satisfaction through emotion destined, through a proxy for feeling, destined for the state of Idaho. That past decisions have been revealed as unsatisfying, misguided and, despite being made with the best of judgments given partial information, does not deter the path left for Mildred Hayes and Jason Dixon at film’s end.

I grant Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri as directed and written by Martin McDonagh 4.25-stars on a scale of 1-to-5.

Matt – Wednesday, May 15, 2024

Keanu Reeves, Dennis Hopper and Sandra Bullock in the Jan de Bont movie ‘Speed’

In coming across a list of favorite movies since 1992 attributed to Quentin Tarantino recently, my expectation didn’t immediately think of the Jan de Bont directed movie Speed (1994) starring Keanu Reeves, Dennis Hopper and Sandra Bullock. The fresh look at the film happily offered more than I remembered.

(From left, Keanu Reeves as Jack Traven and Jeff Daniels as Harry Temple in the Jan de Bont movie Speed).

Working as bomb disposal experts for the Los Angeles, California Police Department‘s SWAT team included Jeff Daniels as Harry Temple and Keanu Reeves as Jack Traven. Our first introduction to these all stars comes when Traven and Temple thwart an attempted extortionist bombing in an elevator.

(Joe Morton as Lieutenant Herb ‘Mac’ McMahon in the Jan de Bont movie Speed).

The averted tragedy takes a pair of unique turns that saves the day twice, resulting in the promotion of Harry Temple following the incident. It was praise from Lieutenant “Mac” McMahon, as portrayed by Joe Morton, that in part sees Harry ascended to detective.

(From left, Dennis Hopper as Howard Payne and Sandra Bullock as Annie Porter in the Jan de Bont movie Speed).

Despite the superior work in averting one disaster, the suspense, action and danger of bomber Howard Payne, as portrayed by Dennis Hopper, has not come to an end with one averted attempt at making death in large numbers. Circumstances represent themselves when Payne reemerges with an attempt to repeat the extortion again. This time, Payne has attached the bomb to a bus that will explode if the bus slows to less than 50 miles per hour. Passengers leaving the bus also prompts an explosion.

(The bus in the Jan de Bont movie Speed).

Passenger Annie Porter, as portrayed by Sandra Bullock, just barely becomes a passenger on the ill-fated bus. Porter is joined with passengers Ortiz and Doug Stephens, portrayed by Carlos Carrasco and Alan Ruck, respectively. The drama of keeping the bus going, with Jack Travern interacting with a second attempt to end Payne’s revenge, become the drama that we witness through the remainder of the film.

(From left, Alan Ruck as Doug Stephens and Carlos Carrasco as Ortiz in the Jan de Bont movie Speed).

Speed offered a solid portion of good versus evil, wrong versus right, suspenseful intrigue that asks you to suspend a degree of disbelief. The movie doesn’t take itself too seriously, and there is suspense for the characters that women and men can find emotionally satisfying. That a love interest of sorts is formed between Traven and Porter is the whip cream and cherry that tops the dish of ice cream that is Speed. I give Speed 3.75-stars on a scale of 1-to-5.

Matt – Wednesday, April 14, 2021