THE POWER OF THE DOG
Cert 12A ★★★★
In cinemas now, on Netflix from December 1
Working off Thomas Savage’s novel, The Piano director Jane Campion has corralled a great cast for a slow-burning family drama set on Montana ranch in 1925.
A career-best Benedict Cumberbatch plays tightly coiled Phil Burbank who runs the family business with his elder brother George (Jesse Plemons).
The two men couldn’t be more different.
While Phil is a muck-covered cowboy fuelled by self-loathing and testosterone, the snappily attired George is a sensitive soul who prefers dinner jackets to chaps and the modern motor car to the humble horse.
Their relationship unravels when George marries troubled widow Rose (Kirsten Dunst) and moves her to the ranch with her medical student son Peter (Kodi Smit-mcphee).
As misogynist Phil drives Rose to the bottle, Campion turns the screw as a deep-seated family rift threatens to explode.
Despite some gorgeous cinematography, this can be a tough watch, but Cumberbatch makes it impossible to look away. This is a meaty role and the London-born actor attacks it with relish.