The Power of the Dog — Movie Review
by KJ Proulx
I’ve said many times that the western genre is hit or miss for me as a whole. When a great western comes along, I’ll sing its praises and sometimes they’re some of the absolute best films out there at the time. For me, after so many westerns over the decades, it takes a lot for one to feel different or stand out among the rest. The Power of the Dog has just hit Netflix and I believe it deserves every ounce of praise it’s been receiving. Especially if you’re a fan of this type of tone/feel, here’s why I’d recommend this one.
The year is 1925. Phil Burbank (Benedict Cumberbatch), a rancher through and through, is struggling to come to terms with the fact that the world around him is changing. Stuck in his very ignorant ways and refusing to even do the simplest tasks, such as bathing, he decides to seclude himself. Struggling with his own sexuality, he and his brother George (Jesse Plemons) venture into a town and meet Rose (Kirsten Dunst) and her son Peter (Kodi Smit-McPhee). George, forming a real relationship with this woman, allows Phil to become far too close to her son. This in turn sparks some chemistry or lack thereof.
Going into this film, I really wasn’t aware of the premise itself. I had heard cliff notes, but I’ve even kept my description a little vague because where this film ends up feels incredibly worthwhile. There are going to be viewers who will be lost when watching the final moments, but upon reflecting back on the events of the film, it all made enough sense and satisfied me. The final couple of scenes really goes for it in the way that it relies on its audience to have followed each line of dialogue. If you have done so and really think about the final shot of the film, I think you may love this one as I did.
I’ll admit that I’m pretty unfamiliar with the work of Jane Campion, who wrote and directed this film. She has quite a few independent projects under her belt that I may just have to seek out since visiting this film. The way she is able to get certain performances out of this cast simply blew me away. It was also nice to see Kirsten Dunst in a very solid role once again (in which she delivered quite well). It also goes without saying that yes, Benedict Cumberbatch is fantastic as always. It really came down to the vulnerable performance by Kodi Smit-McPhee for me. His mannerisms for this character just felt very authentic and I couldn't take my eyes off the screen, thinking about what this character was really feeling deep down.
Overall, The Power of the Dog probably won’t hit everyone the same way that it hit me, but that’s what movies are supposed to do. I can see people who really connect with the ending, arguing with someone who equally hated it and can probably stir up quite the debate. I for one loved how this film ended, simply due to the fact that it was all done with visual storytelling and callbacks to previous lines of dialogue. Now streaming on Netflix, if The Power of the Dog sounds like something you may be interested in, then you probably will be. Great storytelling and filmmaking all around.
Rating: 4.5/5
Check out the trailer below:
