The Power Of The Dog 2021

 

There is plenty of meat on this sad and crushing film to get discussions about it going into 2022 and probably beyond. Set amid the sprawling landscapes of Montana in 1925, that is really New Zealand standing in for this terrain. This is another Cain and Able tale that is based on a novel by the gay and closeted writer Thomas Savage.

The narrative is about two rancher brothers one good and one not so good who live in a large mansion like house set down in this beautiful vision of the west. This house points to other films set in vast western lands in the early days of the 20^th Century including “Days Of Heaven” and “Giant” both with big mansions plopped down in vast barren plains filled with tension and remorse along with lots of dark woods and plenty of objects. Dark and light.

The dark brother, Phil is shocking in his meanness filled with homophobia and misogyny that is rooted deep into his soul and physical being. Played with great depth by Benedict Cumberbatch, Phil has many secrets lurking deep within himself that are showed to us in bright and sometimes obvious ways. Nothing wrong with that. The other brother, George is played with reserve, patience  and kindness by Jesse Plemons who unlike his brother dresses in neat suits and Eastern delight. He is not weak just sensitive and aware and who shared a bedroom with his brother from childhood until the day he wed. 

The residues of these deep sad ghosts show themselves to us rapidly and with force. Into this troubled family comes Kisten Dunst as Rose and her soft, sensitive and effeminate son Peter played by newcomer Kodi Smit-McPhee, both of whom work at the town’s only restaurant, serving up fried chicken for rowdy town folks and ranch hands. Peter makes paper flowers to decorate the tables, and there is a cherished love between mother and son.

Phil belittles them both, using the paper flowers to light his cigarette and teases and taunts the boy for his ways. Jesse who is married to Dunst in real life, falls madly in love with her, and comforts her when she breaks down in uncontrollable tears because of the tossing that Phil does to her son. They soon marry and it’s a terrible time for Rose as she tries to maneuver around the house and the awful things that Phil pulls on her. Peter her son is away at school to learn to be a surgeon but he is soon back with her at the mansion of pain. He is also at the mercy of Phil who still teases and taunts him, but is soon trying to win him over by teaching him how to be a cowboy, how to ride a horse and how to be a “man.” Meanwhile Peter is accidentally discovering hidden facts and secrets about Phil and his long dead friend and mentor Bronco Henry. There is darkness within Peter also, even though he wears a white cowboy hat, while Phil is in black. These are old standby Hollywood western symbols going back to the silent days. 


The women are far and few between in the film, there are the town whores who entertain some of the ranchers and cowboys, and the two woman who staff the kitchen. Meanwhile to kill her pain Dunst is sneaking booze and is quietly becoming an alcoholic which is visible to all including Phil who holds this over his brother and Dunst. The film is full of homoerotic images and scenes: A shared smoke between Phil and Peter, A hidden box of male physic magazines, a nude swimming hole scene with the cowboys of the ranch that is right out of a Thomas Ekins painting. The title of the film is taken from a Psalm “Deliver my soul from the sword: my darling from the power of the dog. This is not an easy film to embrace or like and will confuse and bore audiences looking for thrills, and those expecting a traditional western. It’s stayed with me days after my seeing it, and that is a good sign of something worth while. One of the ten best films of the year.