Written by Sarah Ralph, Photo courtesy of Netflix
Netflix’s newest film “The Power of the Dog” experienced its Southeastern premiere Tuesday night, Oct. 26, at none other than the SCAD Savannah Film Festival. Students and patrons of the festival even got to meet with one of the members of the star-studded cast, Kodi Smit-McPhee, as he accepted SCAD’s Discovery Award before the film started. While this film has been labeled a drama and western, it is by far the scariest film I’ve seen leading up to Halloween.
The film takes place in 1925 Montana and follows the story of the Burbank brothers, Phil and George, played by award-winning actors Benedict Cumberbatch and Jesse Plemmons. The two brothers are vastly different from one another. Phil is a filth cattle rancher that embodies the definition of toxic masculinity. Whereas George is a refined and distinguished gentleman who is visually a well-kept and wealthy man. The trouble between the brothers, however, comes not from their own relationship but from George’s new marriage.
While this western lacks the extremely long unbroken eye contact and gun-drawn standoffs at high noon we’ve come to know from the genre, the film tackles the harsh and unforgiving realities of mental warfare. Cumberbatch ruthlessly tortures Kirsten Dunst’s character Rose and her son Peter (Smit-Mcphee) throughout the entirety of the film. So much so, their most suspenseful unnerving fights have absolutely no dialogue whatsoever. This role is an entirely new direction for Cumberbatch and he melts seamlessly into the role of the absolute worst brother in law in cinematic history.
This film is also a complete rebrand for Writer and Director Jane Campion. Most known for her female-dominant casts and stories such as, “The Piano” and “The Portrait of a Lady.” Campion dives headfirst into a predominantly male cast and genre to tackle the topic of toxic masculinity. Ever since its premiere at the Venice film festival critics and fans around the world have been raving about the film’s high chances to take home Oscar gold this awards season.
The film is visually stimulating. The cinematography alone deserves every award made for films to date. The film was not shot on location in Montana but from Campion’s home country of New Zealand. The rolling hills and barren landscapes perfectly illustrate the scenic isolation of the American wild west. The color grading and lighting artistically captures the rich and overwhelming dark grittiness of the Burbank estate. Every frame is a gothic horror come to life.
Furthermore, it’s impossible to address the horror of this film without also discussing the spine-chilling soundtrack. Much like “Once Upon a Time in the West” Phil is very similar to the Harmonica man. His sinister whistling and his haunting banjo playing allude to his looming presence over a petrified Rose and Peter. Always watching them under a microscopic lens to dissect every one of their insecurities driving both of them absolutely insane. Cumberbatch and Dunst don’t even have to be in the same room for his menacing presence to trigger a panic attack for her. Campion’s lack of dialogue in these scenes is truly masterful. The music alone is more powerful than any dialogue that could have been exchanged between the two characters. Overall my greatest regret was the film wasn’t labeled as the suspenseful horror it so clearly is.
