Until the town dwarf (Peter Dinkage) sets her straight (“And you think I’m not a catch”), she assumes she’s above prejudice.
She’s been hardened, by events and guilt, to the point of excess. Though self-righteous (and, for the most part, justifiably so), Mildred is hardly perfect. If the script doesn’t quite do right by Willoughby, it is otherwise superb, centering the film on the trials and transformations of Mildred and her equally angry, racist counterpart, police officer Dixon (an on-pitch performance by Sam Rockwell). Another fine performance by Harrelson is tarnished only by the casting of his wife (Australian Abbie Cornish), who is too young for the role and can’t get her accent right, and by some mawkish scenes later in the film (watch for the picnic with the kids), punctuated by an all-too-perfect, smarmy Willoughby letter, which makes him come off as some version of Grand Master Yoda.
While undergoing personal and family problems of a high order, and troubled by Mildred’s billboards, he’s willing to explain to the victim’s mother why the case hasn’t been solved, though not why he’s failed to communicate with her. He’s not the bad cop we’re expecting, but a thoughtful, intelligent, knowledgeable, introspective man, who understands civil rights. ‘Three Billboards’ proves to be a surprisingly complex, psychological drama. Rather than a one-dimensional McDormand vehicle, “Three Billboards” proves to be a surprisingly complex, psychological drama, as its protagonists come to terms with anger, childhood trauma, parental guilt, disfigurement, impending death and, above all, the difficulty of knowing the truth, whether about the murder case or themselves. It is worthwhile, and it isn’t just more-of-the-same, although entertaining, vitriolic Mildred takes most of the film to settle down, and then just a bit. That’s all in the trailer, and critical moviegoers will wonder if it’s worthwhile sitting through two hours of more-of-the-same, with McDormand doing her thing, powerful as it is. “Still No Arrests? How Come, Chief Willoughby?” She responds with three huge, red, country-road billboards, Burma-shave style, calling to account the police and their chief (Woody Harrelson). Mildred’s heard nothing from the police for seven months. Mildred (Frances McDormand) is a crusty, foul-mouthed, kick-’em-in-the-groin, 55-year old woman on a mission: justice for her teenage daughter, who has been kidnapped, raped, murdered, and buried.
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