December 27, 2017, (2017) theater. Seeing the trailer and reading a few of the glowing reviews, I was totally jazzed to see this Martin McDonagh (writer/director) film The acting definitely is the highpoint of the trip: Francis McDormand, Woody Harrelson, Sam Rockwell, Clark Peters, Lucas Hedges, and Peter Dinklage stand out among an excellent cast and reward the viewers with really fine performances Accents come and go, but their intense intelligence and chops makes this one worth the visit Excellent cinematography highlights the setting in rural Missouri (although it’s actually North Carolina). A comic/tragedy morality play, this is not a study in jurisprudence or the positives or negatives of policing, although police brutality and racism and traditional homophobia figure prominently. It is, rather, an exercise designed to get us to a point where we, like the characters, come to understand that even our pain, rage, hatred, etc don’t get us very far when carried to the point of violence; they will eat us alive and will undo us in the process Played by McDormand, Mildred Hayes has lost her daughter in a brutal rape/murder and nothing has come of what seems a dormant investigation Months have gone by and, overwhelmed by her fury, guilt, and despair, she rents three billboards and calls out the police chief, Willoughby (Harrelson), for his inactivity Rage escalates as her demands infuriate the white locals and especially a rather slow-witted cop Dixon (Rockwell), who is both a racist brute and incredibly protective of Willoughby. Her pain will not be resolved until the evil-doer is brought to justice. Paradoxically, Willoughby is the humane center of the film despite his acceptance of his officers’ racist brutality There are flat qualities to this progression and it meanders through the process a bit, but the script has sharp moments as well What a joy to hear the Four Tops on the soundtrack, and hearing Baez do “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” led me to think again about how that song fits with the whole conversation about the Confederate Battle Flag, and I think that was the point in using it. Time for this one to go too?