TIFF 2021 Reviews ‘The Power of The Dog’

Academy Award-winning director Jane Campion returns with her latest “The Power of The Dog” and she brings us a bold cinematic experience of the Western genre that targets Cowboy Masculinity and isolation. After 12 years since her last film, The Power of The Dog is bound to get an Oscar nominee.

Phil and George Burbank (Benedict Cumberbatch and Jesse Plemons) are brothers who co-own a cattle ranch in Montana Hill, with Phil being the more careless and vile toxic character and George being the more humble and lovable character. Though the brothers are very opposites, they’ve worked together to create a living while growing their business. Then one day, George meets Rose (Kirsten Dunst) who he quickly marries and they take in her son Peter (Kodi Smit-McPhee) and move into a Burbank home, with Phil making things very challenging living together.

Campion does an excellent job of creating the beautiful human emotions in each other these characters, especially Phils. Cumberbatch’s performance as Phil is one of the best I’ve ever seen, We definitely see an Oscar nom coming in here for best actor. Phil creates a beautiful and vulnerable bond with Peter, and you go from hating a character to feeling some type of way for him. Campion really brings her visual style to life here and creates emotion through working with each actor and helping them become vulnerable. 

This is probably Cumberbatch’s best performance yet and the strongest film of 2021, we were shocked it didn’t win TIFF‘s people choice award.

Check out the trailer below!

Netflix releases The Power of The Dog on Netflix on Friday, November 17, 2021