--- title: "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri" critics_score: 81 critics_reviews: 19 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017): what the critics said Critics' score 81 from 19 reviews: 15 positive, 2 mixed, 2 negative. Most critics respond warmly to Martin McDonagh’s dark comedy, with praise concentrated on the performances and the writing’s mixture of anger, grief and humour. Frances McDormand is the clearest point of agreement: the reviews repeatedly credit her with making a furious, grieving mother compelling without making her easy to like. Sam Rockwell and Woody Harrelson also draw praise, while admirers find compassion in a screenplay that repeatedly unsettles expectations of a straightforward revenge story. The spread is wide, however, with a minority questioning the choices that admirers celebrate. Reservations centre on abrupt changes of tone, strained plotting and character development that some find unconvincing. Vulture finds that the shifts between melancholy and quirk become incompatible with the tragic premise, despite the strong performances. Film Comment offers a sharper dissent, finding the film too pleased with its own cleverness to be funny and its images undistinguished. ## Little White Lies — David Jenkins Rating 4/5/5. 9 January 2018. The film is sensational and an absolute joy, more about why people act than simple revenge; it balances splenetic farce with soulful lament. McDormand delivers a standout performance that makes viewers both love and loathe her character. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri/) ## Radio Times — Damon Wise Rating 5/5. A far more nuanced black comedy than an inspirational underdog story, with a beautifully scripted character study that turns on a dime. McDormand is fiery in the lead, and Rockwell's surprising redemption is the film's final coup de grâce. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-l3ar14/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri/) ## Empire — Terri White Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 8 January 2018. McDonagh delivers a complex, grey-shaded meditation on grief, loss and vengeance that defies expectations at every turn. The raw lead performances from McDormand and Rockwell, powered by a bold, hilarious and incendiary script, make it a potential awards-upsetter. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-review/) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 12 January 2018. The critic praises Martin McDonagh’s fiercely written tragicomedy as darkly hilarious and stabbingly pleasurable, highlighting Frances McDormand’s magnificent lead performance as a vigilante confronting police and personal tragedy. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/jan/12/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-review-frances-mcdormand) ## Total Film — Jamie Graham Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 8 January 2018. McDonagh’s third feature is a fiercely intelligent leap forward that mixes black comedy, revenge thriller and profound compassion. McDormand delivers a powerhouse performance as the grieving, rage-filled Mildred, supported by strong turns and a screenplay that constantly upends expectations. [Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-review/) ## Slant Magazine Rating 3.5/4. 13 September 2017. The critic calls the film the finest balance yet of McDonagh’s bleak sense of humor and offbeat moral sincerity, praising the stagey direction that defers to the actors' strong work especially McDormand's fierce performance. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri/) ## The AV Club — A.A. Dowd Rating B+. 9 November 2017. The critic highlights McDormand's riveting performance as righteous fury and the film's shift into a slow-roasting tragicomedy about grief and culpability that blows empathy in surprising directions. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/the-unpredictable-three-billboards-outside-ebbing-miss-1820287079) ## Evening Standard — David Sexton Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 15 November 2017. Festival review. The film pays homage to the Coen brothers and is elevated by Frances McDormand’s bleak, direct and unvanity-filled central performance. Sour and funny, it feels like the classic the Coens themselves might have made at their peak. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/venice-film-festival-2017-three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-review-a-classic-from-mrs-coen-that-brothers-forgot-to-make-a3682716.html) ## The i Paper — Matthew Turner Rating ★★★★. 11 January 2018. The film is a complex, provocative crime drama that raises issues without offering easy or conventional solutions. McDormand gives a magnificent, force-of-nature performance as the grief-stricken Mildred, backed by excellent work from Rockwell and Harrelson. [Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-review-116719) ## Time Out — Dave Calhoun Rating 4/5. 4 September 2017. A hugely entertaining and original grief-and-revenge tale with sparkling performances from McDormand and Rockwell; it takes black-comic paths while adding a new layer of compassion and versatility. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri) ## Vulture — David Edelstein Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 6 November 2017. The critic finds the film initially gripping with its mix of melancholy and quirk and strong performances but ultimately stops going along with the broad tone shifts and incongruities that clash with the tragic premise. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2017/11/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-movie-review.html) ## Film Comment — Nick Pinkerton Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 1 November 2017. The critic finds the film too clever to be truly funny and unable to locate a single distinguishing image. It has the makings of a crowd-pleaser but ultimately falls short in execution. [Read the review](https://www.filmcomment.com/article/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-review/) ## Screen Daily 4 September 2017. Festival review. A commanding McDormand performance anchors a quixotic, loose dark comedy that is rich, layered and often laugh-out-loud funny, though it trips over constant tonal shifts and fails to fully deliver on its promise. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-venice-review/5121735.article) ## Sight and Sound — Graham Fuller 10 January 2018. Martin McDonagh's small-town policing story has greater emotional depth than his previous offerings, thanks in part to Frances McDormand's sincere portrait of a grieving mother. The critic highlights the film's tragic poignancy and the late rapprochement between key characters. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/film-week-three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-bitterly-poignant-comedy) ## The Hollywood Reporter — David Rooney 4 September 2017. Festival review. The critic praises McDonagh's return to peak form with a corrosively humorous drama of injustice and imperfect redemption that showcases McDormand's formidable gifts alongside strong turns from Harrelson and Rockwell. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/three-billboards-ebbing-missouri-review-venice-2017-1034931/) ## The New Yorker — Anthony Lane 3 November 2017. Lane singles out McDormand's commanding, fibre-filled performance as giving the film its moral weight and notes how the story shifts from a quest for justice into explorations of human dissonance, revenge, and unexpected moral migrations among the characters. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/11/13/frances-mcdormands-cry-for-justice) ## The New York Times — Manohla Dargis 8 November 2017. The critic praises Frances McDormand's raw, heart-breaking performance as the grieving mother but finds that Martin McDonagh's restless mix of comedy, tragedy, and violence ultimately wears the viewer out. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/08/movies/review-three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-martin-mcdonagh.html) ## Variety — Owen Gleiberman 4 September 2017. Festival review. Gleiberman describes the film as a quirky emotional puzzle rather than a straightforward revenge tale, praising McDormand's passionate, conflicted performance as the element that welds the story together and makes it hold the viewer. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2017/film/reviews/review-three-billboards-review-frances-mcdormand-1202546444/) ## Den of Geek — Simon Brew Rating 5/5. 12 January 2018. The film is an immense achievement with brilliant writing and a small-town feel reminiscent of 1970s American cinema. Standout performances, particularly from Frances McDormand, bring humanity and complexity to flawed characters. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-review-2/) ## HeyUGuys — Stefan Pape Rating 5/5. 14 September 2017. Festival review. The film blends comedy and drama seamlessly in a vulgar, dark, and funny story about a grieving mother's fight against police inaction. It stands out for its strong performances, particularly from Frances McDormand, Sam Rockwell, and Woody Harrelson. [Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-review/) ## Deadline — Pete Hammond Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 10 November 2017. The critic calls it McDonagh’s best film yet, a dark and striking story powered by a strong ensemble cast led by brilliant performances from McDormand, Harrelson, and Rockwell. He singles out the excellent script with its way with lines and three-dimensional characters capable of redemption. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2017/11/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-review-strong-cast-powers-dark-and-striking-story-with-bite-1202206107/) ## NME — Olly Richards Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 8 January 2018. The film is a perfect balance of comedy and devastating emotion, with Frances McDormand delivering a career-highlight performance as the furious, grieving mother. McDonagh has created rich characters and found a throbbing heart in this story of private agonies. [Read the review](https://www.nme.com/reviews/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-film-review-2215668) ## The Wrap — Steve Pond Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 9 November 2017. The critic praises McDonagh for pulling off a difficult blend of dark themes with humor, violence, and moving elements, highlighting Frances McDormand's powerful performance as the standout force. He notes some pacing issues in the latter half but overall finds it a poignant story of flawed, funny people seeking redemption. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-review-frances-mcdormand-dark-bloody-funny/) ## Collider — Brian Formo Rating C. 9 November 2017. The critic finds the film a harsh catalogue of American hatred with some great moments and uncomfortable laughs, but it fails due to caricatured one-note characters, lazy plotting, and unearned redemption arcs. The stacked cast and dark humor are praised, but the lack of humility and absurd escalations of violence undermine it. [Read the review](https://collider.com/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-review/) ## The Ringer — K. Austin Collins Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 8 November 2017. The critic argues the film fails to live up to its incisive premise, delivering familiar and ultimately unearned redemption arcs along with false equivalencies and schematic storytelling. Strong performances and entertaining dialogue are noted, but the movie feels like clever engineering rather than moral truth. [Read the review](https://www.theringer.com/2017/11/08/movies/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-film-review-frances-mcdormand) ## The Playlist — Gregory Ellwood Rating A-/B+. 4 September 2017. Festival review. McDonagh delivers a brutally dark comedy that elicits unexpected emotional responses through an acting masterclass from Frances McDormand and Sam Rockwell. The screenplay is ingenious with strong turns, though some supporting elements and a lack of deeper systemic exploration are minor drawbacks. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-acting-masterclass-frances-mcdormand-sam-rockwell-review-20170904/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri.md