![]() ![]() The Power of the Dog almost seems to revel in its narrative gaps. It's clear Peter's unhappy with the treatment Phil has been meting out on the increasingly vulnerable Rose, but there's no way he's a match for the bullying Phil. Peter is played by Kodi Smit-McPhee, who's been here before in another Otago-shot western - Slow West. ![]() She turns to drink - rather quickly, I would have thought - and initially doesn't notice that Phil is taking a suspicious interest in sensitive son Peter. So he feels both excused - and in some twisted way, morally bound - to break her down, maybe to force her to leave.Īs played by Kirsten Dunst, Rose is easily broken down, particularly since new husband George is often away on business and unable to protect her. Phil gets it into his head that Rose has an ulterior motive in marrying the wealthy George. ![]() Phil is horrified.Īs the name suggests, The Power of the Dog is based on status, reminding everyone who the top-dog on the ranch is. But brother George steps in and not only comforts Rose but marries her. Mother and son are reduced to tears by the taunts of Phil and his cowhands. The prime object of Phil's derision is the widow who runs the local restaurant - Rose - and her son Peter, who shows signs of being creative - not something you want to admit to in Montana apparently. Despite their mansion out in the prairie - great work from production designer Grant Major - the brothers seem to share a bedroom.Īnd despite Phil's strident homophobia, he seems to idolize his old mentor - now deceased - with feelings stronger than ordinary friendship, shall we say? There are curious notes right from the start. Brother George - Jesse Plemons - is more easygoing. Phil - Benedict Cumberbatch - is a nasty piece of work from the start, with a line in vicious sarcasm. Many of her films reflect a complicated relationship with 'toxic masculinity' - and The Power of the Dog is that in spades.īased on an old western novel, The Power of the Dog is about brothers Phil and George Burbank, co-owners of a big cattle ranch in Montana. New Zealand can boast a number of world-leading filmmakers, but Jane Campion may have the edge, critically.Īn Oscar, a Palme D'Or at Cannes, Best Director at Venice and dozens more awards over the years - it's no surprise she's so revered by her peers.
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