Charismatic rancher Phil Burbank inspires fear and awe in those around him. When his brother brings home a new wife and her son, Phil torments them until he finds himself exposed to the possibility of love.
Chuck says:
Without question, Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog,” is one of the finest films of the year, a complex, subtle examination of prejudice and repression that proves hard to shake. The sort of movie that’s becoming all too rare, it’s a multi-layered narrative that invites you to rediscover it on multiple viewings as the nuances at play will be seen in a different light once you reach its devastating conclusion.
Taking place on a ranch in Montana during the 1920’s, the story focuses on brothers George and Phil Burbank (Jesse Plemons and Benedict Cumberbatch), who’ve been charged with running their family’s ranch, each going about it in decidedly different ways. While the former is reserved and employs a quiet sense of authority, the latter is a braggart, who intimidates and bullies anyone he sees as a threat. They couldn’t be any more different in demeanor, yet their bond is deep and intense, exemplified by the fact that they continue to sleep in the same bed though they’re both well in their 30’s.
Things take a turn when George marries Rose (Kirsten Dunst), a widow with a teenage son, Peter (Kodi Smith-McPhee). This stuns Phil and when they come to live on the ranch, he sees their presence as a threat that must be dealt with. And while the psychological abuse he inflicts on Rose is more overt, his approach towards Peter is far more subtle. Initially humiliating him, the older man ultimately takes the boy under his wing, hoping to alienate him from his mother in an effort to ultimately break her.
What ensues is a fascinating character study in which we come to see not only the effects of his abusive behavior on those around him but his own tragic nature as well. Cumberbatch giving a titanic performance reveling not simply in the character’s grandstanding moments but also in those in which Phil lets his guard down and we’re able to see him as vulnerable and, ultimately, somewhat sympathetic. Watch his eyes throughout – they are the instruments through which he conveys everything about Phil, the mirror to his troubled, confused soul. This is deft film acting at its finest.
The danger Cumberbatch’s co-stars face is being blown off the screen by his sheer presence. However, Campion’s casting is spot on, as she’s tapped more than capable actors to go toe-to-toe with him. Plemons wisely underplays in the face of Cumberbatch’s broad turn, countering him with a reserved approach, bringing a strength in his bearing that never flags and compliments his co-star nicely. Dunst is equally fine, her character initially strong and capable, slowly fraying in the face of a damaged man she fails to understand. As for Smit-McPhee, he’s the stealth agent of the piece, slowly and deftly revealing more of Peter as the film progresses, ultimately showing us the depth of the still waters the character contains.
Campion suffers no fools and her approach here is deliberate and purposeful. There are no throw away moments, many scenes containing a purpose that often only reveals itself later. Its impact resonates as it sheds light on human nature that’s insightful, one the viewer can’t help but apply to themselves and those in their lives. Its surprising sense of poignancy rips through you as “Dog” examines the dangers of living in denial and the tragedy that results when we deny ourselves the very thing that gives us a reason for being.
4 Stars
