FOR RENT

3 & 4 Bedroom Apartments
$2100‑$2800 plus utilities.
Tenants pay electric to DTE
Showings scheduled M‑F 10‑3
w/ 24 hour notice required.
1015 Packard
734‑996‑1991

5 & 6 Bedroom Apartments
1014 Vaughn
$3250 ‑ $3900 plus utilities
Showings scheduled M‑F 10‑3
w/ 24 hour notice required
734‑996‑1991

 ARBOR PROPERTIES 
Award‑Winning Rentals in 
Kerrytown 
Central Campus, Old West 
Side, Burns Park. 
Now Renting for 2018. 
734‑649‑8637 | www.arborprops.com 

CENTRAL CAMPUS
7 BD furnished house, LR, DR, 2 
baths,kitchen fully equipped, w/d, 
int.cable, parking 4 ‑ 5. 
MAY to MAY. 
Contact: 706‑284‑3807 or 
meadika@gmail.com.

FALL 2018 HOUSES
# Beds Location Rent
 6 1016 S. Forest $4900
 4 827 Brookwood $3000
 4 852 Brookwood $3000
 4 1210 Cambridge $3400
Tenants pay all utilities.
Showings scheduled M‑F 10‑3 
w/ 24 hr notice required
734‑996‑1991

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Classifieds

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ACROSS
1 __ Lake, village
near Lake Placid
8 Skedaddles
15 Somewhat off
16 “Choose!”
17 Come through
18 Poker holding
19 A or O
20 Easy pace
22 Clipper trio
23 “Ninja Scroll”
genre
25 Domain
introduced in
2001
26 Rod Stewart’s
“__ May”
29 Shuttle site
31 Affirmative act
34 Outlying
community
35 Tesla, e.g.
36 “Not a chance”
37 “Zorba the
Greek” Oscar
winner Kedrova
38 Bottom of a food
chain?
39 Abruzzi bell town
40 Fertile soil
41 Picasso output
42 Mar. honoree
43 “r u kidding?!”
44 Team that pulls
for you
45 Like an earworm
46 Peugeot’s 208 or
308, e.g.
47 Tony winner
Menzel of
“Wicked”
49 Feature of many
a Hawaiian
restaurant
52 Cast off
53 Olympian queen
57 Lock-picking tool
59 Bar exhortation ...
and a hint to how
to answer five
puzzle clues
61 Highest
62 Consoles
63 Bun seeds
64 Request at a bar

DOWN
1 Actress
Thompson
2 Doomed
shepherd
3 Irk
4 Tequila, triple sec
and lime juice

5 Sweet Potato
Awareness Mo.
6 Emperor relative
7 Jewel box item
8 Eight bits
9 “Ick!”
10 Champagne and
orange juice
11 Utah’s state gem
12 Mmes. across
the Pyrenees
13 Down but not out
14 Rocky hills
21 Bourbon, water,
sugar and
garnish
24 Bird’s bill
25 Bonehead
26 __ Yello
27 Assumed truth
28 Soviet labor
camp
30 Oklahoma tribe
31 Sometimes
offensive, briefly
32 Dr. Phil was her
frequent guest
before getting his
own show
33 Eros or Eos
35 Real estate parcel
36 Whiskey, sweet
vermouth and
bitters
38 Dress style

42 __ Salvador
44 White rum,
sugar, lime juice,
soda water and
garnish
45 Pomelo relative
46 Beta follower
48 Playground
comeback
49 Amphibious
assault
transports, for
short

50 Botanical balm
51 Bites playfully
52 911 response 
gp.
54 Kitchen gadget
brand
55 One with second
thoughts
56 Abbey area
58 British author’s
conclusion?
60 Terre dans la
mer

By Stu Ockman
©2018 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
02/02/18

02/02/18

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:

RELEASE DATE– Friday, February 2, 2018

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle

Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

6 — Friday, February 2, 2018
Arts
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

FILM

“Three Billboards Outside 
Ebbing, Missouri” is the latest in 
the recent trend of movies that 
bathe themselves in nihilism 
to the point of becoming a joke. 
“Three Billboards” is one of 
those movies. It is so depressing, 
so filled with anger and hate 
and death and destruction that 
one wonders what the point of 
it all is, or perhaps what the 
point of watching the movie is. 
It’s well-produced, well-acted 
and competently directed, but 
the picture tries too hard to 
be important and forgets to 
actually tell a compelling story.
To be sure, there is an 
interesting premise at the heart 
of “Three Billboards,” but it 
is one that is stretched thinly 
over the film’s tediously long 
running time. The main story 
runs out of steam somewhere 
around the 70-minute mark and 
never recovers. There’s only so 
much you can do with a premise 
in which the answers to the 
film’s central questions are 
known to not exist almost from 
the first frame of the film.
Much has been made about 
how the movie deals with issues 
of class and race. Your opinion 
may vary but many may find it 
hard to root for the racist cop 
we hear has tortured people and 
whom we watch throw a man 
through a second story window 
of a building. The film attempts 
to turn this character into an 
antihero or at least someone we 
should root for later on, but for 
many audience members, it may 
be a difficult reach. The movie 
already asks us to continue 
rooting for Mildred even after 
she blows up an entire police 
station, something that is barely 
addressed in the rest of the film.
“Three 
Billboards” 
was 
advertised 
as 
a 
Cohen 
brothers-y 
or 
Tarintino-like 
action comedy, yet the movie 
is nothing like that at all. The 
film has some of the most 
unlikeable 
protagonists 
that 
were put on screen this year, 
and we’re not really given a 
good enough reason to care 
about them. The initial violence 
at the heart of the story is offset 
by more violent actions across 
the board to the point where 
the film is so awash in horrible 
things happening to various 
people that the viewer begins 
to become detached from the 
actual story, and eventually 
ceases to care.
Some 
people 
might 
like 
movies that offer no hope 
throughout 
their 
entire 
runtime. Others will not. The 
world we are in is dark enough as 
it is without our movies needing 
to also be dark and depressing 
Missourian 
wastelands 
in 
crisis. The film never tries to 
get into the deeper complexities 
of why the town itself barely 
cares 
about 
the 
atrocities 
committed, or why a new Black 
sheriff doesn’t seem concerned 
by the horrible crimes the 
police force perpetrated before 
he got there. It’s a shock-and-
awe film, smaller in scale than 
the superhero blockbusters that 
fill multiplexes in the summer, 
but no more intelligent. 

— Ian Harris, 
Managing Video Editor

“Three 
Billboards 
Outside 
Ebbing, Missouri” is a raw, 
emotional tidal wave of a film 
that offers one of the most 
brutally honest depictions of 
grief to ever reach the big screen. 
Frances 
McDormand 
(“Hail, 
Caesar!”) gives the performance 
of a lifetime as Mildred Hayes, a 
woman tormented by a mixture 
of guilt and seething rage at 
the world that has taken her 
daughter from her. McDormand 
communicates Mildred’s pain 
so effectively that it seems 
to permeate her every word 
and action, from her sarcastic 
remarks to her biting vulgarity. 
In Mildred, we see a woman who 
has coped with the indescribable 
pain of loss by becoming tough 

and callous, a veneer that falls 
away only a few times throughout 
the film to reveal just how much 
she longs to have her daughter 
back. 
One of the film’s hallmarks 
is its focus on dichotomy. At 
times devastatingly tragic and 
at others laugh-out-loud funny, 
occasionally at the same time, the 
film’s performances serve as the 
cornerstone to bring audiences 
on the same emotional journey as 
the characters. Each character in 
the film is granted an extensive 
emotional range to explore, and 
it’s that same extensive array 
that makes the film so impactful; 
the tone shifts from serious to 
hilarious to tragic in a matter of 
minutes, but this juxtaposition 
never feels unnatural. In fact, 
it’s that very oscillation between 
emotional extremes that allows 
the film to depict the volatility 
of grief with such keen accuracy. 
“Three Billboards” knows that 
emotions are never cleanly tied 
with a bow; Mildred’s loss shows 
us that sadness is seldom just 
sadness, and Willoughby’s idyllic 
final day with his family shows 
us that joy is seldom just joy. It’s 
these conflicts that arise from 
the characters’ own emotions 
– coupled with the cast’s adept 
ability to portray them – that 
make the film so intensely human. 
“Three Billboards” seems like 
a film that would deliver a brutal, 
pessimistic view of humanity. 
The film is steeped in tragedy and 
shows people at their absolute 
worst, 
desperately 
clawing 
after love or power or control in 
whatever way they can. In spite 
of that, however, it never fails to 
come through to show people at 
their best, with their incredible 
capacity for kindness, empathy 
and ultimately, redemption. It’s 
a film that shows human nature 
for all that it is, and is one of the 
greatest films to come out in this 
decade. 

— Max Michalsky, 
Daily Arts Writer

“Three 
Billboards” 
is 
entertaining 
because 
it 
is 
ridiculous, which, I’m certain, 
is not what the filmmakers 
intended. If the objective is to 
convince an unassuming audience 
in less than two hours that 
people are selfish and evil, then 
the movie is indeed a smashing 
success. But if humanity is meant 
to be portrayed with any sense 
of subtlety or subtext, “Three 
Billboards” fails tragically on all 
accounts.
Perhaps “tragic” is the key 
word here, since the film is so 
preoccupied with shoving every 
imaginable tragedy down the 
throat of its audience. It collects 
just about all the Oscar-worthy 
buzzwords: rape, murder, suicide, 
homophobia, 
racism, 
police 
brutality, 
domestic 
violence, 
arson, depression, alcoholism, 
disability and misogyny, just 
to name a few. And if that isn’t 
enough, the script throws in a 
half-baked 
monologue 
about 
the Catholic Church for good 
measure. Surely, you must be 
feeling something now, right?
And then there’s the flashback 
scene, which is, in one word, 
infuriating. Just before the film 
goes 
into 
completely 
insane 
territory, from where there is no 
return, a standalone flashback is 
tucked into the otherwise linear 
story for the singular purpose of 
throwing another punch. And 
even though it’s supposed to hurt, 
it doesn’t even break the skin. In 
the only scene where we see her 
raped and murdered teenage 
daughter, 
Mildred 
(Frances 
McDormand, 
“Hail, 
Caesar!”) 
passionately yells, “I hope you 

get raped!” as she watches her 
daughter barge out the door in a 
way all strong-headed teenage 
girls supposedly do. Frankly, 
the flashback is insulting. Not 
only is the writing inorganic and 
reduces 
the 
mother-daughter 
relationship to a stereotypical 
caricature of petty drama, it 
presents a source of guilt for 
Mildred 
that 
is 
completely 
unnecessary and unrelated to the 
rest of the narrative. Isn’t losing 
a child enough? Clearly, “Three 
Billboards” follows the “more the 
merrier” approach to suffocating 
its audience.
On one point, I will concede: 
Across the board, the acting is 
superb. Frances McDormand is 
nothing short of fantastic and her 
supporting cast delivers exquisite 
performances that are indeed 
worthy of Oscar nominations. 
The meat of the film, however, 
lacks any sort of nuance, and 
therefore the film will meet its 
fate as “that sad Oscar film” in the 
not too distant future. All show 
and no follow-through, “Three 
Billboards” fails to say anything 
profound at all, even though it 
tries really, really hard.

— Danielle Yacobson, 
Managing Arts Editor

Irreconcilable Differences:
debating ‘Three Billboards 
Outside Ebbing, Missouri’

COMMUNITY CULTURE
Bennett, Hirshfield and 
simply stunning writing

One of my favorite events to 
attend on campus has always 
been the Helen Zell Visiting 
Writers Series. So when I made 
my way over to the University 
of Michigan Museum of Art 
to hear Brit Bennett and Jane 
Hirshfield read their work, I 
had high expectations.
The 
writers 
did 
not 
disappoint. Held under the 
soothing lights of the Helmut 
Stern Auditorium, Brit Bennett 
and Jane Hirshfield delivered 
readings filled with genuine 
emotion and gorgeous writing.
Bennett received her MFA 
from the University. The last 
time she did a reading at that 
podium was when she read an 
early draft of “The Mothers.” 
On Thursday, she read from 
the final draft of the book, now 
a New York Times bestselling 
novel and set to be adapted 
into a film by Warner Brothers, 
with Kerry Washington as the 
producer.
Her prose was simple but 
moving. 
Reading 
from 
the 
middle of her novel, Bennett 
took us through the lives of her 
characters, Luke and Aubrey, 
after their friend Nadia leaves 
town to attend college. Nadia’s 
mother 
recently 
committed 
suicide and Nadia dates Luke, 
an ex-football player suffering 
from an injury. Nadia’s God-
fearing friend Aubrey meets 
Luke 
during 
his 
physical 
therapy, while Nadia is at the 
University of Michigan. Though 
I haven’t read her novel, I was 
completely immersed in the 
story after two sentences.
Bennett’s success with “The 
Mothers,” her debut novel, 
served 
as 
an 
inspirational 

moment for me and the many 
aspiring authors in the audience. 
Bennett’s lyrical writing is 
impressive yet effortless, and 

each sentence is packed with 
momentum: “So even though 
we hadn’t known where she’d 
come from, we’d understood 
why Aubrey Evans couldn’t stop 
crying when the pastor asked 
what gift she’d come forward 
to receive and what she’d 
whispered, salvation.”
I’m still wondering what 
happens to Nadia, Luke and 
Aubrey. If you’re looking for 
something new to keep you up 
at night, then Bennett’s novel 
may be the answer.
Jane Hirshfield, author of 
eight collections of poetry, 
also delivered an eloquent and 
uplifting reading. She stopped 
and took the time to talk 
through some of her concerns, 
ranging from politics to the 

environment to the everyday 
problems we face.
“One 
of 
the 
ways 
of 
navigating differences is being 
permeable to them. Walls don’t 
work,” she said.
Hirshfield’s 
poetry 
is 
a 
meditation 
on 
humanity. 
Though her poems initially 
seemed 
simple 
to 
me, 
looking back at them left me 
with 
questions 
and 
many 
interpretations. 
“Let 
the 
envious gods take back what 
they can,” from her poem “Each 
Moment a White Bull Steps 
Shining into the World,” is 
particularly chilling, and I can’t 
help but wonder who exactly 
Hirshfield is thinking about.
She 
talked 
about 
the 
background 
of 
her 
poem 
“Washing Doorknobs,” which 
appeared in The New Yorker 
in Oct. of 2010, explaining 
how every New Year’s Eve she 
thoroughly cleans her house, 
polishing each doorknob before 
ringing in the new year.
“Sometimes I go out and 
party too,” she said, jokingly.
Throughout her reading, it 
became clear that Hirshfield 
is an incredibly compassionate 
and gentle person, and finds 
herself 
deeply 
affected 
by societal issues such as 
environmental 
disasters. 
Many people in the audience 
hummed in agreement with her, 
appreciative of the opportunity 
to hear a discussion on these 
problems.
It’s always nice to see the 
growth of writers, and pairing 
Bennett with Hirshfield showed 
how far an author can progress 
with their initial passion for 
writing. 
Both 
Bennett 
and 
Hirshfield kicked off the series 
this semester on a high note, 
and I’m looking forward to 
seeing what comes next.

NITYA GUPTA
Daily Arts Writer

FOX SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES

One of the most 

brutally honest 

depictions of 

grief to ever 

reach the big 

screen

‘Billboards’ fails 

to say anything 

profound at all

Brit Bennett 

and Jane 

Hirshfield 

delivered 

readings filled 

with genuine 

emotion and 

gorgeous 

writing

The Helen Zell Visiting Writers Series continues to inspire 
and impress with moving prose and motivating discussion

