The Power of the Dog: A Review
Oh, hey. I’m going to go ahead and release this one early since Sam Elliott has been carrying on about it. I have some complaints; they aren’t the same as his. In fact, I’m not even going to link to his complaints because they are hateful and ludicrous.
So, here’s the deal: Benedict Cumberbatch plays a cowboy named Phil, a real man’s outdoorsy man, who isn’t into new-fangled things like cars or pianos or his brother’s (Jesse Plemmons) taking a wife (Kirsten Dunst). He makes his sister-in-law’s life a living hell. He makes fun of his new nephew (Kodi Smith-McPhee), too, because his nephew is indoorsy and loves science and his mama. IMDB describes Phil as charismatic. I would describe him as an asshole.
As you have have guessed this is not my favorite kind of movie. One of my first notes, written while watching the film, was “Lord, preserve me from artsy films where I don’t know what’s going on.” If you like to know what’s going on in the movie you’re watching, you will probably share a similar frustration. I did understand the film at the end but only because I know some things about cattle. Ryan was confused. He looked up reviews and discovered that some folks who are fans of Campion’s work were also confused. One mentioned having to watch the movie twice to fully understand it. Eh, I prefer to understand my movies the first time through.
Let’s address Elliott’s tirade. Over the course of the movie, we find out that Phil is probably gay but repressed because Wild West? The cowboys really do like to run around shirtless and go skinny dipping. Phil has a stash of nudie mags. I do not have a problem with this in the least. To each their own.
I will say, however, that I thought the homoerotic imagery was. . . not in the least subtle. Another of my movie journal notes was “the mastubatory symbolism in this film is enough to make Freud face palm.” I mean, it’s a lot. Fence posts, horn on the saddle pommel, whips. If the Batch could lovingly caress it in a suggestive way, he did. More distressingly, there’s a bull castration scene, a dead cow, a dissected rabbit. This movie ain’t for the faint of heart.
As for where the movie was filmed? I’m not about to say Campion can’t find an Old West movie in New Zealand. For heaven’s sake, spaghetti westerns were a thing.
At the very least, I can say I wasn’t bored. Confused at times, but not bored. It’s a really pretty film that, like many Oscar films, could use some clarity in story telling.
This movie is for people who
love aesthetically pleasing films
love metaphor/imagery in film
love character studies
have a high tolerance for ambiguity
love Benedict Cumberbatch
This movie isn’t for people who
want to know exactly what is going on in the story
want a character they can root for (Maybe you can root for Peter?)
are sensitive to animal pain/death
are squeamish about masturbatory imagery
don’t want to see the Cumberpeen or the Cumberbutt.
#MondayMovies disclaimer: This blog is just for my thoughts. Sure, I’m a writer and an English major so I have some idea—we would hope—of how stories work. I’m also a flawed human being with my owns likes and dislikes, though, so please watch any movie you like and love it or hate it or just go for the popcorn.