Tonight on Netflix: If You Miss Yellowstone, This Gritty Western with Benedict Cumberbatch is a Must-See

In December 2021, director Jane Campion returned to the spotlight with a dark and unconventional Western: The Power of the Dog. This film brought together an impressive cast including Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons, Kodi Smit-McPhee, and Thomasin McKenzie.

The Harshness of the West

The story introduces us to brothers Phil and George Burbank (played by Cumberbatch and Plemons), who hail from Montana. They are complete opposites: Phil is sophisticated, intelligent, and cruel, while George is calm, meticulous, and kind-hearted.

Together, they run the largest ranch in the Montana valley, a region still untouched by the rapid modernization of the 20th century, where masculinity is upheld and Bronco Henry, the greatest cowboy Phil ever met, is revered.

When George secretly marries Rose, a young widow, Phil becomes furious and sets out to destroy her. He cunningly uses her son Peter, a sensitive and effeminate boy, as a pawn in his ruthless and merciless strategy…

A Standout Role for Cumberbatch

Winner of the Silver Lion for Best Director at the Venice Film Festival 2021, The Power of the Dog is not your typical Western. The stunning landscapes, captured with restrained artistry by Jane Campion, merely gloss over the underlying tension in the story. Benedict Cumberbatch has never been more terrifying and malevolent, delivering a performance that shakes and grips the audience.

Cumberbatch, reminiscent of Daniel Day Lewis in There Will Be Blood, dominates the film like a dark omen, sending shivers down our spines with every appearance. More than a Western, Campion weaves a profound psychological drama exploring a corrupted form of masculinity that thrives on cruelty as a vulture feasts on its prey.

Though the story is set in Montana, similar to the various series by Taylor Sheridan like Yellowstone, the atmosphere here is quite different. It’s harsher, more rugged, and every minute builds more tension, leading to a climax that leaves no one untouched.