Not great news for the movie as it’s come to light that while Michelle Williams came in essentially for free to handle the reshoots necessary when Christopher Plummer was added to replace Kevin Spacey, co-star Mark Wahlberg was paid around $1.5 million.
More here on Plummer’s sudden addition to the cast and the hurried reshooting schedule all the actors had to take part in. Williams talks about that more herself here.
The Post
Another story, this time directly from screenwriters Liz Hannah and Josh Singer, about how they seized the opportunity to channel their own issues into this bit of history.
Thor: Ragnarok
It’s not *exactly* the version of the character played by Tessa Thompson in the movie, but the take on Valkyrie was popular enough that a new version of the Asgardian warrior who looks a lot like her film incarnation is joining a new “Exiles” series from Marvel.
Proud Mary
While I’ve seen a few more ads for the movie in the last couple days (likely the result of ad retargeting after I spent time on the official website), there’s still a general lack of urgency around the marketing, something Ira Madison III at The Daily Beast covers in-depth.
Three Billboards…
Co-star Sam Rockwell, who continues to win both awards and praise for his performance, is hosting “Saturday Night Live” this weekend.
I, Tonya
A bit more advertising has been done in response to the movie’s early awards season wins, including 15-second pre-roll spots on YouTube that call out how insane this true story is.
Warner Bros. worked with GIF platform Tenor (a Giphy competitor) on a sponsored Justice League GIF keyboard app takeover, offering exclusive GIFs from the film. That effort was promoted with a social media campaign as well.
That Superman’s part in the story was now public knowledge also meant the release of a new poster and banner that included him in the team lineup. These used the same artwork as was previously released, just with Superman now filling in a conspicuous gap.
Slightly spoilerish, but here’s a list of scenes from the trailers that didn’t make it into the finished film. Also kind of tipping the hat is a picture shared by Joe Manganiello of him in full Deathstroke gear.
Cavill was finally allowed to speak for himself and talk about Superman’s role in the story, including how the character changed due to the events of Batman v Superman.
Gillette continues to run social media ads for its movie-branded products, with a link to purchase those items at Walmart.
More details on the IMAX virtual reality experience that was offered in select cities here.
Much like Suicide Squad last year, reports are starting to emerge that studio micromanaging heavily influenced the final structure and tone of the film, something that’s been much-discussed by fanboys who believe there’s some magical, unadulterated “Snyder Cut” of the movie sitting in an archive somewhere.
The Florida Project
Another profile of director Sean Baker that presents him as a Hollywood outsider who’s eager to maintain that status and keep making his indie features.
Coco
Insights from writer/director Lee Unkrich and others here on how he and the rest of the Pixar team worked hard to make sure the movie was respectful of the culture being portrayed as possible. The same topic is covered here as well.
Actress Natalia Cordova-Buckley shared her thoughts on voicing the late real life artist Frida Kahlo and the experiences that led her to embrace such a challenge.
Lady Bird
Writer/director Greta Gerwig has continued making media appearances like this one to talk about the film and the satisfaction she felt by finally directing.
Roman J. Israel, Esq.
Director Dan Gilroy and star Denzel Washington talked here about how the former wrote the part specifically for the latter and how Washington boarded the project, helping to shape the character as filming went on.
Novitiate
Another interview here with writer/director Maggie Betts on the inspiration for the story and how she tackled such sensitive material.
Beauty and the Beast
The movie is returning to theaters in what appears to be not only an attempt to reach holiday audiences but also remind awards season voters of the costume design and more.
Call Me By Your Name
Buzzfeed posted a hit-piece on star Armie Hammer, pegging him as an entitled white guy who gets multiple shots at stardom because of his position while others are quickly discarded after multiple misfires. Hammer reacted to the piece in what is a pretty appropriate manner.
Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
Director Martin McDonagh spoke here about how he found star Francis McDormand and worked with her to get the story’s tone right.
A new short TV spot hits some of the same beats as were seen in the main campaign but with the addition of plenty of positive critics quotes.
There have also been some new character posters released that show the three leads surrounded by positive quotes praising the movie.
Blade Runner 2049
Director Denis Villeneuve offers some time-enhanced thoughts on making the movie and developing the characters in this interview.
Beach Rats
Director Eliza Hittman talks about the view of masculinity and other topics taken in the film here.
The Disaster Artist
A couple new TV spots have been released by A24, one that shows the enthusiasm of Wiseau in making the movie and one that shows he refuses to accept the negativity of others.
Strong performances anchor the campaign for a story of a mother’s grief.
Director Martin McDonagh steps outside of the world of comic violence he’s well known for to bring us this week’s new release Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. This time around Frances McDormand stars in a story that involves a mother’s righteous anger, allegations of police indifference and the lengths that mother will go to in order to solve a problem the authorities won’t.
McDormand plays Mildred, whose daughter was killed months ago but whose murder has remained unsolved. Frustrated by inaction, Mildred decides to call out the police in a very public way, by broadcasting their inability to arrest the killer on a serious of billboards on the edge of town. That, along with her other brash behavior, brings her into conflict with the police force, including Willoughby (Woody Harrelson) and Dixon (Sam Rockwell), who don’t take kindly to being called lazy or worse.
The Posters
We see the backs of the three titular billboards at the very bottom of the first poster, a police cruiser driving past on the rural highway they’re placed along. The rest of the image, though, is of the beautiful big skyline of Missouri at dusk, the dark clouds dominating the sky as the sun sets in the distance. Aside from the cast list and title, the other element on the poster is the name-dropping of a couple of McDonagh’s other well-loved movies.
The theatrical poster featured the same dark, barren landscape photo as the first, but with photos of the three primary cast members included on the side each appearing in a cut out of the state of Missouri.
The Trailers
As the first trailer starts we meet Mildred Hayes as she’s fixing to buy some billboard ads. The reason, we find out, is that she wants to keep the pressure on the local sheriff who has yet to find the person who killed her daughter. Mildred has little patience for anyone who gets in her way which, combined with no discernible social skills, means she cuts a swath through the town’s populace, most of whom have turned against her in some manner. The sheriff isn’t thrilled at someone besmirching his name in this manner. Her actions become increasingly outrageous, though, including an attack on a dentist and setting a building on fire.
It’s all played with a slightly comic tone, helped largely by McDormand’s performance. She’s such a foul-mouthed delight in this trailer that it immediately shot to the top of the list of movies I want to see. While the subject matter is rough – anytime you’re dealing with dead kids it’s not shallow waters we’re in – the take looks darkly funny.
Another short trailer was focused more on the struggle Mildred is going through in the wake of her daughter’s death than on the actions she takes as the result of justice not being served. There’s some of that here, but it’s mostly about the quieter aspects of the story and the torment she still feels.
Online and Social
You can watch the trailer again when the official website loads and you should absolutely do so.
After that end, the site is exactly what you’d expect from Fox Searchlight. The “Cast” section has comments by or about each of the leads, including the three mentioned earlier as well as John Hawkes and Peter Dinklage. Same with “Filmmakers” for McDonagh. “Story” has a brief synopsis and “Videos” has the two trailers.
Persistent on the site in the lower left are prompts to get tickets or watch the trailer again along with links to the movie’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram profiles.
Advertising and Cross-Promotions
TV commercials like this one recapped the basic points of the plot, showing how Mildred is taking matters into her own hands to express her displeasure at the failure of the police to find her daughter’s killer. They play up the dark comedy of the story and show off the performances, which are two major selling points. Some were more overtly violent than others, but they all made the same overall appeal.
Media and Publicity
The movie was announced as one of those that would screen at the Toronto International Film Festival. It also was slated for the Venice Film Festival and Fantastic Fest.
Around the time of Venice and Telluride McDormand was interviewed about her tendency to take on quirky characters, her love of the character and her propensity for colorful dialogue.
While McDormand was hailed as wonderful as usual, Rockwell’s performance became a constant theme of the buzz that came out of the festival screenings, hailed as a highlight in a career full of notable performances. It was such a hit it won the Audience Award there.
Rockwell talked here about how he got involved, how he viewed the character and more. Another piece shortly after that continued calling out the actor’s performance, pegging it as worthy of awards consideration. McDormand also got the same level of ongoing attention for her turn as the wronged mother.
Overall
While the movie hasn’t gotten nearly the level of advertising or publicity as some other releases, it seems more vital as a cultural statement than much of what’s hit theaters recently. With a story that, based on what’s shown on the campaign, deals with a woman breaking the expectations of society while drawing attention to police indifference toward the poor, it’s very much in the “pulled from the headlines” mold. Watch the trailers or read some of the press coverage and you’ll see it’s extremely current in what’s being said and the message it’s presented to the audience.
That’s all very important, but on the other hand this is simply being sold as a darkly comic drama featuring outstanding performances from always reliable and supremely talented actors. Putting McDormand and Rockwell together in a film doesn’t seem fair, though neither was pairing her with William H. Macy 20+ years ago. The cultural message is being sent to some while the simple appeal of the actors and a compelling story is being sent to others.
PICKING UP THE SPARE
You can watch the first 10 minutes of the movie online (legally) now.
The movie’s conceit of using three billboards to convey a message has been adopted by various social issues and coincided with an overall growth in the out-of-home ad market. A trade group gave the filmmakers a shoutout for all that with a billboard of its own.
Co-star Sam Rockwell, who continues to win both awards and praise for his performance, is hosting “Saturday Night Live” this weekend. It’s not exactly about the movie but Nancy Fletcher at The Drum uses the titular outdoor ad units and how they’re portrayed in the film to talk about the out-of-home advertising industry as a whole.
That Superman’s part in the story was now public knowledge also meant the release of a new poster and banner that included him in the team lineup. These used the same artwork as was previously released, just with Superman now filling in a conspicuous gap.
Gillette continues to run social media ads for its movie-branded products, with a link to purchase those items at Walmart.
Director Martin McDonagh steps outside of the world of comic violence he’s well known for to bring us this week’s new release Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. This time around Frances McDormand stars in a story that involves a mother’s righteous anger, allegations of police indifference and the lengths that mother will go to in order to solve a problem the authorities won’t.
We see the backs of the three titular billboards at the very bottom of the first poster, a police cruiser driving past on the rural highway they’re placed along. The rest of the image, though, is of the beautiful big skyline of Missouri at dusk, the dark clouds dominating the sky as the sun sets in the distance. Aside from the cast list and title, the other element on the poster is the name-dropping of a couple of McDonagh’s other well-loved movies.
Cinematic Slant 