The Power of the Dog

“Adapted from Thomas Savage's dramatic novel of the American West” and “directed by Jane Champion” are two phrases I never expected to put together, yet The Power of the Dog is just that.

Champion’s films (The Piano, Portrait of a Lady) are generally a work of castration to its characters and well, mankind. Fittingly, her first movie in a decade delivers an actual one. The gritty cowboy scenes with animals may beg you to look away, but it is boorish cowboy Phil Burbank (Benedict Cumberbatch) who is the real horror. 

It's a performance that you just can’t look away from.

Phil is somewhere between a nuisance and a terror to this brother (Jesse Plemons) and family (Kirsten Dunst, Kodi Smit-McPhee) who all inhabit a 1925 cattle ranch. Both big and intimate in story and visuals, Champion directed the film with bold precision in both open-air settings and tight, light-filled corners. Its beauty is a testament to Champion's auteur skills—as is her handling of building momentum for the final turn. Champion kept me guessing at the path and the ending and I was truly surprised at the final landing place. A rare feat.

In a nutshell: Expertly crafted storytelling; a dark but excellent 2021 film.

Award Potential: Cumberbatch has never been better and newcomer Smit-McPhee is a standout. Although Cumberbatch reportedly did not shower throughout the shoot, he’ll be showering and dressing up for the red carpet (Best Actor) as well as Smit-McPhee (Best Supporting Actor).

The film, director, cinematographer, screenplay, and technical categories should round up tons of Academy Award nominations. If there’s room, Plemons and Dunst may be there in supporting categories as well. The film has already received a Golden Globe and NY Film Critics nod for Best Picture as well as a landside of Critics list wins.

At this point in the Oscar race, which is perhaps too soon to say this, it looks like we'll have women director wins back to back (following Chloe Zhao's win for Nomadland). 

Where to see it: Out of theaters; now on Netflix

The Ten Buck Review: Worth ten bucks