Believe it or not,Paramount+has an original action series currently topping the streaming charts across the globe. It’s calledThe Last Stand of Ellen Coleand starsInsidiousalum Lin Shaye in the leading role. Shaye plays Ellen, an older woman who has to resort to violence to protect her home from a corrupt contractor.
However, there is a very similar, award-winning movie from 2017 you should check out. While the film very much has a coat of dark humor,Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missourihas a strong moral and emotional complexity about it as well. American actress Frances McDormand steps into the shoes of Mildred Hayes, a woman who cannot find the strength to cope with the rape/murder of her teenage daughter, Angela. Along with actors Woody Harrelson and Sam Rockwell, who play the chief of police, Bill Willoughby, and a police officer named Jason Dixon, respectively, a story of one woman’s plight comes crashing through a small town. She’s just trying to protect the memory of her young daughter while others can’t seem to get past the shock of seeing three giant signs.
‘Three Billboards’ Features a Mother on a Quest To Save Her Daughter’s Memory
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri
Mildred may not have the lethal prowess that Ellen supposedly shows(the synopsis states that she’sa trained killer), but she does what she must to keep the police department’s attention. This includes — just as the title of the movie states — buying three massive billboards calling out what she sees as Willoughby’s neglect in her daughter’s case. Well, she also blows up the police station by throwing Molotov cocktails from across the street.These brave womenstand tall against the current authoritative regime; there’s no question there.
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Even though we don’t know much past the premise of Ellen Cole’s story, she takes matters into her own hands to fight for what’s right.Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouritakes this one-woman army story and replaces the secret backstory tropeofthe female protagonistwith emotional arcs for the numerous characters. There was a reason the crime drama won at the 2017 Academy Awards, Golden Globes, and Saturn Awards. In between Mildred’s moments of putting up a sarcastic front with the cops, there are some somber scenes, too.
‘Three Billboards’ Has Characters With Depth
There are a few intimate moments when she tries to fill the void in her heart by talking to a lone deer who visits her by the billboards or having her feet talk with one another when she’s alone. The audience also sees that her daughter’s room hasn’t been altered since that fateful night. There may be moments of dark humor, butThree Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouriisn’t afraid to confront grief and loss in a profound way.
Not only is Ms. McDormand a force of nature when it comes to displayinga mother amid anguish, but through their characters, Harrelson and Rockwell display very complicated archetypes. At first, they are both stereotypical small-town cops who put bigotry before anything else. Circumstances force these officers to share the same feelings as Mildred, and it’s a wonderful story arc to see, even if it does come at a cost.
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This movie shows us that while there are forces that you may not be able to control in life, how you react is up to you. Just like Ellen, Mildred never backs down from her tragedy and finds possible closure in the process.Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouritakes a creative path and subverts the typical crime movie finale.The movie’s conclusionis played out by Ms. Hayes, who comes up with the answer she sought out so badly, which is all for naught.
This is just like how the ups and downs of a real-life disappearance case would inevitably mock an unfortunate victim’s family. Mildred then decides that a scapegoat would be better than nothing and sets off with a surprising ally to possibly exact revenge. They question their actions at first, but then set off anyway. This hesitation shows that the characters still have a moral compass intertwined into their person, and these subtle layers of storytelling easily make this 2017 film a timeless classic.Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouriis currently available to rent onPrime Video,YouTube, andApple TV.
