The Power of the Dog (film)
| The Power of the Dog | |
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.jpg) Promotional release poster | |
| Directed by | Jane Campion |
| Screenplay by | Jane Campion |
| Based on | The Power of the Dog by Thomas Savage |
| Produced by | |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Ari Wegner |
| Edited by | Peter Sciberras |
| Music by | Jonny Greenwood |
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Running time | 126 minutes[1] |
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| Language | English |
| Budget | $30–39 million[3] |
The Power of the Dog is a 2021 Western drama film written and directed by Jane Campion, based on the 1967 novel of the same name by Thomas Savage. The film stars Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons, and Kodi Smit-McPhee. Shot mostly across rural Otago, the film is an international co-production between New Zealand, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
The Power of the Dog had its world premiere at the 78th Venice International Film Festival on September 2, 2021, where Campion won the Silver Lion for Best Direction. The film had a limited theatrical release in Australia and New Zealand on November 11, 2021, and in the United Kingdom on November 19; it was released to stream worldwide on Netflix on December 1. The film received acclaim from critics, who praised Campion's direction and screenplay, the score, and performances of the cast (particularly Cumberbatch and Smit-McPhee). It was named one of the best films of 2021 by American Film Institute, and received seven nominations at the 79th Golden Globe Awards, including Best Motion Picture - Drama, as well as ten nominations at the 27th Critics' Choice Awards, including Best Picture.
Plot[edit]
In 1925 Montana, wealthy ranch-owning brothers Phil and George Burbank meet widow and inn owner Rose Gordon during a cattle drive. The kind-hearted George is quickly taken with Rose, while the volatile Phil, much influenced by his late mentor "Bronco" Henry, mocks Rose's son Peter for his lisp and effeminate manner.
George and Rose soon marry. Rose uses George's money to send her son to college to study medicine and surgery, while she moves into the Burbank ranch house. Phil takes a dislike to her, believing she married George for his money. His rough ways and taunting manner unnerve her. George organizes a dinner party with his parents and the governor so they can meet Rose and hear her play their new piano. Rose is unable to play more than a few notes of the "Radetzky March" of Johann Strauss Sr. and is further humiliated when Phil belittles her. As the guests leave, she takes a drink of alcohol, something she was previously opposed to.
By the time Peter comes to stay at the ranch for the summer break, Rose has become an alcoholic. Phil and his men taunt Peter, and he sequesters himself in his room, dissecting animals and studying diseases. In a secluded glade, Phil masturbates with Bronco Henry's handkerchief. Peter enters the glade and finds a stash of magazines with Bronco Henry's name on them depicting nude men. He observes Phil bathing in a pond with the kerchief around his neck; Phil notices him and chases him off.
Phil begins to show decency to Peter, offering to plait him a lasso from rawhide and teach him how to ride a horse. After learning to ride, Peter heads out on his own one day and finds a dead cow, presumably dead from anthrax infection. He puts on gloves and cuts pieces of the cow's hide. Out on a fencing job, Peter and Phil corner and kill a rabbit, and Phil gets an open wound on his hand. Afterwards, Peter tells Phil about finding the body of his father, who had hanged himself, and cutting him down himself.
Seeing how much time her son is spending with Phil, Rose's alcoholism worsens. Upon learning about Phil's policy of burning the hides he does not need for himself, Rose defiantly gives them to local Native American traders who thank her with a pair of gloves. She then collapses from her rapid alcohol consumption and George tends to her.
With no hides to finish Peter's lasso, Phil is despondent and attempts to lash out at Rose before being stopped by George. Peter calms him down by offering him the hide he cut from the dead cattle, but does not tell Phil that the animal was diseased. Phil is touched and promises Peter they'll have a much better relationship from now on. They spend the night in the barn finishing the rope, and Phil tells Peter a story of how Bronco Henry saved his life by lying body-to-body with him in a bedroll during freezing weather. Phil does not answer when Peter asks if they were naked. They then seductively share a cigarette. When Phil does not show up for breakfast the next morning, George finds him sickened in bed and his wound heavily infected. A delirious Phil looks for Peter so he can give Peter the finished lasso, but George takes him away to the doctor before he can hand it over. In the next scene, George is seen picking out a coffin while Phil's body is prepared for burial.
At his funeral, the doctor tells George that Phil most likely died from anthrax, puzzling him, as Phil was always careful to avoid diseased cattle. Having not gone to the funeral, Peter opens a Book of Common Prayer to the burial rite and then flips to the Psalter and reads Psalm 22:20: "Deliver my soul from the sword; my darling from the power of the dog." Later he puts his finished lasso under his bed with gloved hands. As he walks down the hall he stops at a window and watches George and a now sober Rose return home and embrace. He turns away and smiles.
Cast[edit]
- Benedict Cumberbatch as Phil Burbank
- Kirsten Dunst as Rose Gordon
- Jesse Plemons as George Burbank
- Kodi Smit-McPhee as Peter Gordon
- Thomasin McKenzie as Lola
- Genevieve Lemon as Mrs. Lewis
- Keith Carradine as Governor Edward
- Frances Conroy as Mrs. Burbank
- Peter Carroll as Mr. Burbank
- Alison Bruce as Governor Edward's wife
- Sean Keenan as Sven
- Adam Beach as Edward Nappo
- Maeson Stone Skuccedal as Edward Nappo's son
- Alice Englert as Buster
Production[edit]
It was announced in May 2019 that Jane Campion was to write and direct the film with Benedict Cumberbatch and Elisabeth Moss cast to star.[4] Paul Dano entered negotiations to join the film in September.[5] He would be confirmed to star the next month, with Kirsten Dunst cast to replace Moss in her role.[6] However, by November, Dano also dropped out due to scheduling conflicts with The Batman. Jesse Plemons was cast to replace him.[7] In February 2020, Thomasin McKenzie, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Frances Conroy, Keith Carradine, Peter Carroll, and Adam Beach were confirmed to be cast in the film.[8]
Filming began in New Zealand on January 10, 2020[9] in the Maniototo, located in Central Otago, and also took place in the coastal Otago city of Dunedin[10] and the town of Oamaru.[11] Production on the film was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, although Cumberbatch, Dunst, and Plemons reportedly remained in New Zealand during the country's lockdown. After border exemptions were granted for cast and crew, production resumed on June 22, 2020.[12]
Release[edit]
The Power of the Dog had its world premiere at the 78th Venice International Film Festival on September 2, 2021, and had Special Presentation screenings at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival and Telluride Film Festival that same month.[13][14] By the end of its run, the film screened at film festivals in Charlottesville,[15] London,[16] Middleburg,[17] Mill Valley,[18] Montclair,[19] New York (centerpiece screening),[20] San Diego,[21] San Sebastian,[22] Savannah,[23] and Zurich.[24] The film also played at the 52nd International Film Festival of India in November.[25]
The film began a limited theatrical release in the United States and the United Kingdom on November 17, 2021, prior to streaming on Netflix worldwide on December 1.[26][27] The film's limited release in Australia and New Zealand commenced early on November 11, with theatrical distribution in both countries handled by Transmission Films, prior to its Netflix release.[28][29]
Reception[edit]
Box office[edit]
Although Netflix does not report box office grosses of its films, IndieWire estimated the film made $125,000 from 40 theaters in its opening weekend, and a total of $160,000 over its first five days.[30]
Audience viewership[edit]
Over its first five days of digital release, The Power of the Dog was watched by 1.2 million households in the U.S., according to Samba TV. The film played best in coastal cities like Portland[disambiguation needed] and Boston. Internationally, it was streamed by 92,000 UK households, 37,000 German households, and 16,000 Australian households over its first five days.[31]
Critical response[edit]
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 95% based on 284 reviews, with an average rating of 8.40/10. The site's critics consensus reads, "Brought to life by a stellar ensemble led by Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog reaffirms writer-director Jane Campion as one of her generation's finest filmmakers."[32] According to Metacritic, which assigned a weighted average score of 88 out of 100 based on 57 critics, the film received "universal acclaim".[33]
Reviewing the film for The Hollywood Reporter, David Rooney wrote: "This is an exquisitely crafted film, its unhurried rhythms continually shifting as plangent notes of melancholy, solitude, torment, jealousy and resentment surface. Campion is in full control of her material, digging deep into the turbulent inner life of each of her characters with unerring subtlety."[34] Conversely Owen Gleiberman of Variety wrote: "All of this should build, slowly and inexorably, in force and emotion. But for a film that’s actually, at heart, rather tidy and old-fashioned in its triangular gamesmanship, The Power of the Dog needed to get to a more bruising catharsis. In its crucial last act, the film becomes too oblique."[35]
The film was criticized by PETA for what appears to be animal cruelty during filming. In one scene Benedict Cumberbatch whips a terrified horse and in another he castrates a bull.[36]
Accolades[edit]
Campion won the Silver Lion for Best Direction at Venice.[37] She will also be honored with the "Mind the Gap - Best Innovation" award at Mill Valley.[18]
At TIFF, the film was second runner-up for the People's Choice Award.[38]
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