The power of the dog
Jane Campion’s first film in twelve years is a seedy western featuring four of the best performances of the year.
With The Power of the Dog, Campion deconstructs the western, the masculine gender par excellence, to dissect masculinity, it could not be otherwise than with a harsh, harsh and tragic vision of the most deeply rooted vices and power dynamics in the which is her first movie ever starring a man, Benedict Cumberbatch, as well as a stunning Jesse Plemons in the supporting role. The result is a seedy western with four compelling performances that has received critical acclaim.
The film follows wealthy brothers Phil (Benedict Cumberbatch) and George Burbank (Jesse Plemons), who are two sides of the same coin. Phil is graceful, cool, and cruel, while George is impassive, fussy, and kind. Together they are co-owners of a huge ranch in Montana. It is a place where the rapid modernization of the 20th century continues and the figure of Bronco Henry, the greatest cowbow Phil has ever known, is revered. When George secretly marries a town widow, Rose (Kirsten Dunst), Phil, shocked and furious, wage a relentless sadistic war to destroy her completely using his timid son, Peter (Kodi Smit-McPhee), as a pawn.
The director mentioned in an interview for IndieWire that the title, The Power of the Dog, refers to “all those deep and uncontrollable impulses that can come and destroy us” and, indeed, for journalists, the film is a “torrent of emotions” that are channeled through the characters, “and an exploration of identity, legacy and masculinity as sensitive as it is bleak,” says Espinof. The Power of the Dog is, for most, one of the most impressive, complex, unpredictable and wicked works of 2021.
Although the four actors have been praised, it is Cumberbatch who has led the positive reactions, for the experts, the actor has delivered the best performance of his career to date, taking over the film and raising the tension when he shares the scene with Kodi Smit-McPhee. A film about men and masculinities that adds a unique perspective within the western.
Finally, we must mention that it is the work so polished, subtle and disturbing of Jane Campion that has been highlighted, even some reviewers have wondered why in twelve years the director has deprived us of her talent after seeing such a nuanced and nuanced piece. with which he shows a lot of confidence.
Don’t look up
The problems of the present that portend perfectly plausible disasters, at least in fiction, continue to generate original ideas like the one in the movie Don’t Look Up, which premiered on Netflix on Friday, December 24. Nobody can be surprised that the film directed by Adam McKay (The Big Short) and co-written with David Sirota explores the possibility of the destruction of the earth, although in this case it is approached from the comedy.
To do this, he focuses on the story of two mediocre astronomers Kate Dibiasky (Jennifer Lawrence), an astronomy graduate student, and her professor, Dr. Randall Mindy (Leonardo DiCaprio). Together they discover something amazing: there is a comet orbiting in the solar system. The problem? Which is on a direct collision course with Earth. The other problem? That nobody cares.
Apparently, warning humanity of the arrival of a planet killer the size of Everest is inconvenient. With the help of Dr. Oglethorpe (Rob Morgan), Kate and Randall embark on a media tour that takes them from the office of the nonchalant President Orlean (Meryl Streep) and her servile son and chief of staff, Jason (Jonah Hill), to the broadcast of ‘The Daily Rip’, a lively morning show hosted by Brie (Cate Blanchett) and Jack (Tyler Perry).
With only six months to go for the comet to crash, managing the daily news stream and gaining the attention of a social media-obsessed public before it’s too late… it’s surprisingly comical. But what do you have to do to make the world look up?
The cast is completed by Mark Rylance, Ron Perlman, Timothée Chalamet, Ariana Grande, Scott Mescudi (aka Kid Cudi), Himesh Patel, Melanie Lynskey, Michael Chiklis and Tomer Sisley.
Unforgivable
On December 10, Netflix released Unforgivable (The Unforgivable), its new movie directed by Nora Fingscheidt and starring Sandra Bullock. Based on the British miniseries Unforgiven (2009), the film tops the ranking of the platform’s most popular productions these days.
The official synopsis of the film states: “After serving a sentence for a violent crime, Ruth Slater (Bullock) is released from prison and tries to reintegrate into a society that refuses to forgive her for her past. The harsh criticism from all who they used to be part of her life and lead her to seek one last chance to redeem herself: to find her younger sister, whom she was forced to abandon long ago. “
Written by Peter Craig, Hillary Seitz, and Courtenay Miles, the film stars Vincent D’Onofrio, Jon Bernthal, Richard Thomas, Linda Emond, Aisling Franciosi, Rob Morgan, and Viola Davis.
