23 February 2022

Obliqueness

Benedict Cumberbatch in "The Power of the Dog"

Last night, courtesy of Netflix,  I watched "The Power of the Dog" directed by Jane Campion. Set in rural Montana in the  1920's, it is a haunting, beautifully crafted and artful film.

I could summarise the plot quite easily but that would give the game away for readers who haven't yet seen "The Power of the Dog". Rough and ready rancher Phil Burbank is played brilliantly by Benedict Cumberbatch. He is the central character - a brooding, troubled figure who lives with shadows of the past - especially an old cowboy called Bronco Henry. Of him, Phil says, "Greatest rider I ever knew...He taught me to use my eyes in ways that other people can't."

What do we want from films? Do we want clarity, resolution, explanation, certainty? If that is what you crave, you won't find such fulfilment with this film. Ultimately what you find is suggestiveness, mystery, words unspoken and rope ends not tied up. There's a sense in which you have to make your own conclusions instead of having them presented to you on a plate.

I agree with film critic David Rooney:"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."

Visually, it is quite stunning. Though filmed in the Otago region of New Zealand, the imagery provides an authentic  "feel" of the Montana wilderness in the early twentieth century with crumpled hills in the distance.

There was something quite surreal about it all. I found I had to suppress some nagging practical questions - such as: Where is the creek and the green woodland in relation to the grand Burbank ranchhouse?  Why is the ranchhouse so big and why does it appear so uncluttered outside?  Where is the nearby town in relation to the ranch? But in the end such queries didn't seem to matter. Best to just go with the flow and accept the separate reality of this brilliant artifice disguised as just another cowboy western.

Kirsten Dunst as Rose Gordon in "The Power of the Dog"

43 comments:

  1. To be honest with you, I could not finish this movie. The tension between Kirsten and Benedict, made me a little sickish. It was a lot like my previous marriage, trying hard to make things work, small nuanced slights that went unnoticed by everyone but the two of us. It was sickening, really, and I was surprised to find myself responding so emotionally to a film.

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    1. Sorry you didn't see it through to the end Debby.

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  2. I wasn't too sure I was going to enjoy this film when we watched it at the weekend. In fact I thought it was brilliant. I also felt suitably smug because I figured out what was going to happen at the end.

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    1. Glad you also enjoyed it very much Sue. I still have several thoughts and ideas about the ending.

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  3. I really enjoyed it too. It's a beautiful movie.

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    1. It held my attention throughout. Spellbinding really.

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  4. Hmm... both your review and the comments so far do not make me any the wiser as to whether I want to see this or not. Maybe not, although it would certainly mean discovering a very different side to Cumberbatch, whom I respect as an actor but have never quite warmed to as a man.

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  5. I watched the trailer and it made me feel too tense. Too much anger and bullying. I looked up the store and was satisfied by the end but couldn't watch it.

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    1. Do you mean you looked up the "story" Nurse Lily?

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    2. Yes. Damn, I need to proofread better.

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  6. This one is in our Netflix Queue to be mailed to us in DVD form. I could stream it on the other side of Netflix but right now our Queue is nearing empty so I am not streaming them when I could. First world problem for sure.

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    1. You have left me feeling confused Ed but never mind.

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    2. I never thought about it but here is why you are confused. Here in the U.S., Netflix has two businesses. One is the streaming side which you are a member. The other side is a mailout DVD side which is how they started back in the day before streaming came along. You select movies you want to watch and put them in your Queue online and then they will mail them too you as you return previous ones you have watched. While the streaming side is very limited due to licensing agreements, the DVD mailing side enables us to watch any movie there is. Hope that clears it up and just doesn't muddy the waters further.

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    3. Thanks for the clarification Ed. Here the streaming side has become very popular in the last four years and was given a massive boost by COVID lockdowns.

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  7. I loved this movie. I loved the scenery, the time period, the brilliant acting and the story. It occurred to me as I was reading your review, however, that as much as I loved it, I could not watch it again. I felt for Kirsten a little too deeply and I'm not sure I could go through that emotional ride again.

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    1. Glad it was a moving experience for you too Melinda.

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  8. This sounds like a film I would enjoy. I hated the recent Oscar nominated movie I saw--what a lousy first trip back to the cinema after the past 2 years of watching only Netflix and Prime in my house.

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    1. This is also heavily Oscar nominated Margaret.

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    2. I do NOT recommend "Licorice Pizza."

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    3. I prefer a simple margarita.

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  9. Will check it out thanks for the film review YP.

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  10. Cumberbatch is, as always, brilliant. It's a great film.

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    1. Benedict Cumberbatch has taken on a wide variety of roles but I think this was his most successful film role to date.

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  11. I had not wanted to watch this movie, but thanks to your review, I am going to watch it. It sounds intriguing.

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    1. "Intriguing" is the right word Terra.

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  12. We enjoyed this film. I thought Benedict Cumberbatch did an excellent job, although at the beginning he seemed an odd choice for the character he played.

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    1. I think this was his finest film role so far. Brooding and somehow tormented.

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  13. I also loved the movie. I read the book before I saw the movie and that helped to explain a lot. My only complaint is that the mountains in the background look nothing like the mountains here in Montana.

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    1. I have never been to Montana so I apologise for suggesting that the film provides an authentic "feel" of the Montana landscape.

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  14. I watched it a little while ago and while i recognise it's brilliance, loved the look of it, I wouldn't really say I enjoyed it.
    I found the psycho son more disturbing than Cumberbatch

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    1. There's a suggestion that Peter Gordon may have deliberately infected Phil with anthrax. Peter wore surgical gloves when he skinned the dead calf but Phil washed the hide with his bare hands.

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  15. You had to work on this one to stay with it.

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    1. Yes. I had suppress practical doubts.

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  16. It doesn't sound like my kind of movie, I'll wait until it gets to television, then give it a go, if I don't like it I can change the channel or put on a dvd.

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    1. There is a RIVER in the film River. Phil (Cumberbatch) goes skinny dipping there so you might like it after all!

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  17. I don't have Netflix, so your reviews, no matter how interesting they are, are lost to me. Your comment to Jennifer, would deter me - I don't do brooding and tormented!
    These days I rarely watch films, even when shown on TV. Being I hour ahead, they often don't end until after midnight. As an early riser that's a tad too late!

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    1. A good film once in a while remains a true delight for me - especially at the cinema.

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  18. I really wanted to see this movie after I saw the trailer - and being from the actual South here in the States, I cannot bear to listen to Benedict's version of a Southern accent. Is that snooty? Probably. But COME ON, accent coaches, come on, Jane Campion and Benedict, you can do better! It's an over-drawl that isn't even remotely believable, and even though the movie could be enjoyable, I'd be cringing every time he speaks. Sigh.

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    1. Last time I checked, Montana was not in The Deep South Karla.

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  19. I think that it was one if not the best film I have ever seen. All aspects cinematography, acting and story-line were superb.

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    1. Don't forger the Oscar-nominated music Claudia. It enhanced the drama very effectively.

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Mr Pudding welcomes all genuine comments - even those with which he disagrees. However, puerile or abusive comments from anonymous contributors will continue to be given the short shrift they deserve. Any spam comments that get through Google/Blogger defences will also be quickly deleted.

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