Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (Soundtrack)

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Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Soundtrack by Carter Burwell
Cover

Publication
(s)

November 10, 2017

Label (s) Varèse Sarabande Records

Title (number)

19th

running time

44:06

The music for the film Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri was composed by Carter Burwell . The soundtrack was released on November 10, 2017 by Varèse Sarabande Records . At the 2018 Academy Awards , Burwell was nominated for an Oscar for his work in the Best Film Music category.

Emergence

The music for the film Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri was composed by Carter Burwell . In the dark comedy by Martin McDonagh , the 50-year-old Mildred Hayes leaves in the peaceful village Ebbing large-format advertising posters on decades unused billboards attach to the police force to act. The sentences “Raped While Dying”, “Still No Arrests?” And finally “How come, Chief Willoughby?” Can be read in large black letters on the roadside. Mildred's daughter Angela had been raped and murdered near her parents' home seven months earlier. The body was cremated, but the perpetrator has not yet been caught. Sheriff Bill Willoughby and Officer Jason Dixon of the local police force are, in Mildred's opinion, making too little effort to solve the case. There is still no trace of a prime suspect in the murder case. Mildred is as hurt and angry about the behavior of the law enforcement officers as on the first day and declares war on the police chief. Even reporters from a television station report on the extraordinary action.

Mildred Hayes declares war on Woody Harrelson in the role of Sheriff Bill Willoughby, here on the set

Despite the rural-looking Americana scenario and the dramatic depth of the story, which is expected to be musically inspiring in itself, Burwell struggled to find the right approach to the score and was ultimately inspired by something unusually mundane: the Costume design of the film. Burwell recalls, “I noticed that Mildred changed her outfit when she was on the warpath and that other characters also changed their looks as they switched between the roles they played in this small town. I got the feeling that violence and revenge are the main themes of the film. Since there are so many fully-fledged characters in history, I took an approach from Ennio Morricone's film music from his spaghetti westerns (which I love) and gave each character a distinctive musical signature that stays with them even with changing alliances . But in the end it seemed too daring, and some of the main characters, like Sam Rockwell's , remained without scenes until shortly before the end of the film. I decided to just focus on Mildred - see the movie from her perspective and play the game as she sees it. When she's at war, a stomp-and-drum march is played. When she thinks about her loss, it's a soulful guitar ballad. There is also a melody for death that is never far away. As the story and relationships evolve, those strong colors are put aside and the themes weave more subtly until they are barely distinguishable for the last few feet of the film. "

Burwell's contribution to the score is a little over 20 minutes. The soundtrack album released by Varèse Sarabande also contains a handful of songs, all of which appear prominently in the film and are used in an important way and serve as key elements in individual scenes, such as two versions of Townes Van Zandt's Buckskin Stallion Blues , one of them in one new cover version by Amy Annelle, a version of Walk Away Renee from The Four Tops and a version of The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down by Joan Baez .

Mildred is at the center of the story. The opening queue, Mildred Goes to War, is a combination of instruments including guitars, banjos, tubular bells and percussion instruments, and also includes stomping and clapping.

publication

The soundtrack includes 19 pieces of music and was released on November 10, 2017 by Varese Sarabande . On February 28, 2018, pieces from the film music specially arranged for the Oscar concert were played live by the Los Angeles Philharmonic .

Track list

  1. Mildred Goes to War (1:22)
  2. The Deer (2:06)
  3. Buckskin Stallion Blues - Townes Van Zandt (2:59)
  4. A Cough of Blood, A Dark Drive (2:37)
  5. I've Been Arrested (0:38)
  6. Fruit Loops (1:29)
  7. His Master's Voice - Monsters Of Folk (4:49)
  8. Billboards On Fire (2:24)
  9. Slippers (1:19)
  10. The Last Rose of Summer - Renée Fleming , Jeffrey Tate & The English Chamber Orchestra (4:51)
  11. My Dear Anne (2:35)
  12. Walk Away Renee - The Four Tops (2:44)
  13. Billboards Are Back (1:24)
  14. Collecting Samples (1:15)
  15. Sorry Welby (1:43)
  16. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down - Joan Baez (3:23)
  17. Countermove (1:56)
  18. Can't Give Up Hope (0:30)
  19. Buckskin Stallion Blues - Amy Annelle (3:21)

reception

Thomas Hartmann from MDR Kultur says: “Not only once does the soundtrack to Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri give you the feeling that it is taking you back in time. In the time of the Wild West . [...] There are songs by Townes van Zandt, the Four Tops, Joan Baez. Some of them just add to the score, round it off, but that can't be said of every composition that comes up. When, for example, The Last Rose Of Summer from Friedrich von Flotow's opera Martha sounds, it is more like a counterpoint, an ironic break. One that has to be set with great sensitivity, because this album should still work as a total work of art. "

For Jonathan Broxton, Mildred Goes to War is one of the best and most memorable things Burwell has written in a long time.

Mihnea Manduteanu wonders how Carter Burwell could write such music that is so simple yet so powerful, and how a minimal number of instruments can convey so many emotions.

Awards (selection)

British Independent Film Awards 2017

  • Award for Best Film Music (Carter Burwell)

Golden Globe Awards 2018

Academy Awards 2018

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. a b c d Jonathan Broxton: Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri - Carter Burwell In: November 24, 2017.
  2. a b Thomas Hartmann: More than just film music - the soundtrack for “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” In: mdr KULTUR. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
  3. 'Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri' Soundtrack Announced In: filmmusicreporter.com, October 13, 2017.
  4. Details for 2018's Oscar Concert Announced In: filmmusicreporter.com, February 1, 2018.
  5. Mihnea Manduteanu: Soundtrack review: Three billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri In: soundtrackdreams.com. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
  6. Peter White: 'The Death Of Stalin' Wins Three British Independent Film Awards In: deadline.com, November 23, 2017.
  7. Winners & Nominees 2018 In: www.goldenglobes.com. Retrieved July 28, 2020.