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The Power of the Dog

F250

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Scraps

Scraps 13531

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Watched the first hour of it last night before I found something better to do.....like anything other than continue on.  

Will probably knock out the other half today sometime, but what an elongated piece of shit so far.  Snap to it bitch.  

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shadow_operative

shadow_operative 15931

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20 hours ago, Biff Tannen said:

Lol. 12 Oscar nominations. 

should be a shoo-in the category of "most boring, pointless, derivative movie of the year." here's the entire pitch for this movie:

"so uh, you guys ever seen There Will Be Blood"? ok. we're gonna film a movie that kind of looks like that, and hopefully reminds people of that."

"and?"

"and nothing. that's the movie. we'll film a couple of hours of people quietly talking, or eating, or whatever. it doesn't matter. just make it look kinda like TWBB."

"brilliant."

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wild_turkey

wild_turkey 3150

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Watched this last night, mainly because it got a ton of Oscar nominations.

Thought it was pretty meh. Felt like maybe it just didn’t resonate with me and everyone else would be praising it for reasons unbeknownst to me. The comments here seems like it’s universally underwhelming.

The setting was beautiful but those mountains clearly were not in Montana and that was distracting to me. It was filmed in New Zealand so that makes sense, but I get annoyed when movies pick a filming location that is obviously different from the story’s setting.

I was less impressed with Benedict Cumberbatch than some of you were. It felt like he was playing Christian Bale playing an angry cowboy. Seemed pretty one dimensional and he’s had better work. Not Oscar worthy IMO.

Macbeth or French Dispatch should’ve received Best Picture nominations over this.

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henrygandorf

henrygandorf 29174

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On 2/19/2022 at 6:47 AM, wild_turkey said:

The setting was beautiful but those mountains clearly were not in Montana and that was distracting to me. It was filmed in New Zealand so that makes sense, but I get annoyed when movies pick a filming location that is obviously different from the story’s setting.

i thought the movie was just ok but this type of criticism is and will always be bizarre to me.

if it was fantastic in every way but not shot where they said it was shot, would it really bother you?

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wild_turkey

wild_turkey 3150

Posted
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if it was fantastic in every way but not shot where they said it was shot, would it really bother you?


Yeah, maybe that’s just me, but it’s annoying when there are obvious geographical differences.

Would it bother you if a movie was set in LA but filmed in Miami and repeatedly showed the Miami skyline? Not saying it should bother you, just curious.
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henrygandorf

henrygandorf 29174

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1 minute ago, wild_turkey said:

Would it bother you if a movie was set in LA but filmed in Miami and repeatedly showed the Miami skyline? Not saying it should bother you, just curious.

 

i would hope to be predisposed to miss this type of director’s offerings. 

did it bother people that friends, seinfeld, and will and grace were shot in the valley instead of nyc?

i get that a western is different, but seems more like a pile-on complaint than a real flaw in the film. 

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Dbeasy

Dbeasy 14953

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Watched it the other night, knowing it was nominated for so many Oscars. We tried very hard to make it through an excruciatingly slow plot, making note of all of the little unsaid and hidden messages. But just after Phil be-friended Peter and all of the undertones started surfacing, we just couldn't take the extreme subtleness anymore. It was just boring. There were a few interesting elements, like cinematography, but bailed on it. Sometimes I think Hollywood gets enamored with movies just because there is a gay component. This movie insists upon itself. Thumbs down. Don't pass go. However I could see how some people with more patience for boring movies might like it.

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Reynolds Woodcock

Reynolds Woodcock 4656

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As previously stated I liked (not loved) Power of the Dog, but I listened to Maron's podcast with Sam Elliott on the way to work this morning and thought I was reading through Surly! Full summary here: Indie Wire 

Some choice quotes. By the way, Sam Elliott was born in Sacramento, California, grew up in Portland, Oregon, and has spent his entire adult life in Los Angeles. But he certainly spent his fair share of time on Western movie sets, and I guess his Texan parents regaled him with stories of the old west.

Quote

“What the fuck does this woman — she’s a brilliant director by the way, I love her work, previous work — but what the fuck does this woman from down there, New Zealand, know about the American west? And why in the fuck does she shoot this movie in New Zealand and call it Montana and say, ‘This is the way it was.’ That fucking rubbed me the wrong way, pal,” Elliott said. “The myth is that they were these macho men out there with the cattle. I just come from fucking Texas where I was hanging out with families, not men, families, big, long, extended, multiple-generation families…

 

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Mrs Whiggins

Mrs Whiggins 13049

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1 hour ago, Reynolds Woodcock said:

....“The myth is that they were these macho men out there with the cattle." [quoting from your quote]

I'm just a dumb woman, but I thought that was one of the points of the movie: that the American west was so much more complex and varied than what comprised the myth and what perspective was extracted for over a century for palatable consumption. (not talking about the scenery so much). That the emotions and motivations were common and similar enough, but that in this movie they run obliquely to archetypes often found in the west. Sorry if that sounded preachy, I found the movie compelling in a sad way, but I am sympathetic to the criticisms because they are not without merit.

Maybe I missed the mark with understanding the movie, like the rest of life, I'm one who doesn't mind a slow start if it leads somewhere....

 

*as far as location shooting--used to bug the hell out of me as a child to watch Little House reruns and be like, 'um, yeah, that looks a lot more like California hills...' although I think they also filmed elsewhere in the southwest.

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Reynolds Woodcock

Reynolds Woodcock 4656

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1 hour ago, Mrs Whiggins said:

I'm just a dumb woman, but I thought that was one of the points of the movie: that the American west was so much more complex and varied than what comprised the myth and what perspective was extracted for over a century for palatable consumption. (not talking about the scenery so much). That the emotions and motivations were common and similar enough, but that in this movie they run obliquely to archetypes often found in the west. Sorry if that sounded preachy, I found the movie compelling in a sad way, but I am sympathetic to the criticisms because they are not without merit.

Maybe I missed the mark with understanding the movie, like the rest of life, I'm one who doesn't mind a slow start if it leads somewhere....

 

*as far as location shooting--used to bug the hell out of me as a child to watch Little House reruns and be like, 'um, yeah, that looks a lot more like California hills...' although I think they also filmed elsewhere in the southwest.

I think you understand the movie quite well. Campion was clearly trying to present characters filled with complexities that weren't depicted in the Western stereotype (e.g., gay men, alcoholics struggling with depression, etc.), while also trying to tell an intriguing story, while also shooting a technical masterpiece.  Plenty of valid criticism for this film: it was plodding at times, the ending of the surface-level story was fairly predictable, some of the characters were overly exaggerated, and, I guess, it wasn't shot in Montana (for me, whogivesashit.gif). But criticism levied by a drug-store cowboy like Sam Elliott that the film inaccurately portrayed a stereotype that made him wealthy, just falls a bit flat. 

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Carl Spackler

Carl Spackler 3461

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On 3/1/2022 at 10:03 AM, Mrs Whiggins said:

I'm just a dumb woman, but I thought that was one of the points of the movie: that the American west was so much more complex and varied than what comprised the myth and what perspective was extracted for over a century for palatable consumption. (not talking about the scenery so much). 

I agree with you that this seemed to be one of the points of the movie. 

But I read Elliott's comments in a somewhat different light.  I think he was trying to express his understanding that cattle operations tended to be extended family affairs (only the really big operations had a lot of hands regularly employed), and that the situations in Power of the Dog where the hands were looking like catalog models cavorting around didn't strike him as the way things really were.  At least that's what I think he was trying to get across.  He didn't express himself particularly well in that regard, so maybe my interpretation of his comments is wrong.     

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Carl Spackler

Carl Spackler 3461

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Just now, Carl Spackler said:

I agree with you that this seemed to be one of the points of the movie. 

But I read Elliott's comments in a somewhat different light.  I think he was trying to express his understanding that cattle operations in the American West 100+ years ago tended to be extended family affairs (only the really big operations had a lot of hands regularly employed), and that the situations in Power of the Dog where the hands were looking like catalog models cavorting around didn't strike him as the way things really were.  At least that's what I think he was trying to get across.  He didn't express himself particularly well in that regard, so maybe my interpretation of his comments is wrong.     

 

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Reynolds Woodcock

Reynolds Woodcock 4656

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4 hours ago, Carl Spackler said:

I agree with you that this seemed to be one of the points of the movie. 

But I read Elliott's comments in a somewhat different light.  I think he was trying to express his understanding that cattle operations tended to be extended family affairs (only the really big operations had a lot of hands regularly employed), and that the situations in Power of the Dog where the hands were looking like catalog models cavorting around didn't strike him as the way things really were.  At least that's what I think he was trying to get across.  He didn't express himself particularly well in that regard, so maybe my interpretation of his comments is wrong.     

Eh, I like Sam Elliott, but listening to the podcast I don't think his point was limited to what you are saying. He was basically offended by an advertisement describing the movie as a take down of the "American Myth", which he took personal offense to given that he of course has had a hand in perpetuating said myth. He was also miffed by the "homosexual" nature of the cowboys throughout the entire movie. Maron said, "yeah, I think that was the point". Nothing to get worked up about, just not a very thoughtful take by him. 

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Carl Spackler

Carl Spackler 3461

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1 hour ago, Reynolds Woodcock said:

Eh, I like Sam Elliott, but listening to the podcast I don't think his point was limited to what you are saying. He was basically offended by an advertisement describing the movie as a take down of the "American Myth", which he took personal offense to given that he of course has had a hand in perpetuating said myth. He was also miffed by the "homosexual" nature of the cowboys throughout the entire movie. Maron said, "yeah, I think that was the point". Nothing to get worked up about, just not a very thoughtful take by him. 

Fair enough.  FWIW, I did not listen to the podcast -- just read the excerpt that was in your earlier post and the linked article. 

 

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wild_turkey

wild_turkey 3150

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And why in the fuck does she shoot this movie in New Zealand and call it Montana and say, ‘This is the way it was.’ That fucking rubbed me the wrong way, pal,” Elliott said.


Preach.

I’ve spent lots of time in the Rockies, everywhere from Taos to the San Juans to RMNP to the Tetons to Yellowstone to Montana to Banff.

The scenery in the movie didn’t look remotely close to any of it.

It would be like filming the movie Rookie of the Year in Fenway Park and saying that’s where the Cubs play.
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Carl Spackler

Carl Spackler 3461

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I thought the psychological mindfuckery in which Cumberbatch's character engaged toward Dunst's character was pretty well done.  Made me develop a healthy dislike for Phil Burbank and smile when he met his demise.

The attempt to pass off New Zealand for Montana was both noticeable and mildly annoying, but I didn't fixate on it.   

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Scooter Monzingo

Scooter Monzingo 820

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On 3/1/2022 at 1:03 PM, Mrs Whiggins said:

I'm just a dumb woman, but I thought that was one of the points of the movie: that the American west was so much more complex and varied than what comprised the myth and what perspective was extracted for over a century for palatable consumption. (not talking about the scenery so much). That the emotions and motivations were common and similar enough, but that in this movie they run obliquely to archetypes often found in the west. Sorry if that sounded preachy, I found the movie compelling in a sad way, but I am sympathetic to the criticisms because they are not without merit.

Maybe I missed the mark with understanding the movie, like the rest of life, I'm one who doesn't mind a slow start if it leads somewhere....

 

*as far as location shooting--used to bug the hell out of me as a child to watch Little House reruns and be like, 'um, yeah, that looks a lot more like California hills...' although I think they also filmed elsewhere in the southwest.

I know some of the Little House filming was in South Dakota. The movie set is about two hours off of the interstate in the middle of fucking nowhere.

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Mrs Whiggins

Mrs Whiggins 13049

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On 3/3/2022 at 3:40 PM, Scooter Monzingo said:

I know some of the Little House filming was in South Dakota. The movie set is about two hours off of the interstate in the middle of fucking nowhere.

Weren't those the repeat shots (the ones used more than once) though? I could be mistaken, as I haven't watched since it first went to syndication.

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Scooter Monzingo

Scooter Monzingo 820

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1 hour ago, Mrs Whiggins said:

Weren't those the repeat shots (the ones used more than once) though? I could be mistaken, as I haven't watched since it first went to syndication.

I have no idea, the wife was a fan. I know the house is there, and if I had to guess they shot the opening sequence at that location. 

It reminded me of the set for Bonanza near Lake Tahoe. Other than the house not much remains.

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wild_turkey

wild_turkey 3150

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See now this was a great movie.  Unlike the unadulterated filth this thread is actually about.

Yeah, Imitation Game was great and BC was great in it. He’s a good actor but his acting in Power of the Dog was decidedly average. Probably not his fault because his character didn’t have much depth.

I think people see a movie like this, and even if they didn’t love the movie, they feel some need to praise BC for a job well done. Why? Because he’s a good actor and surely he must’ve been good in this too. Right?

No. His character was one dimensional and an easy role to play. Nicolas Cage could play a brooding cowboy without many lines. I could play that role. It’s dull and doesn’t require much talent. Jonah Hill had a more challenging role in Superbad. People get blinded to these things because they think and say what they think they’re supposed to say.
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tokamak

tokamak 6350

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Watched it last night. Didn’t love it, didn’t hate it. Agree that it was pretty slow. About halfway through my wife said “what is the plot of this movie?”. That said, not everything needs to be a Marvel movie. I appreciate Netflix taking a swing at a prestige talky adult drama. It was a character study of these 4 people. Thought they did a good job giving us some insight into Phil, Peter, and Rose. Should have done more with Jesse Plemmons’s character. Can’t even remember his name right now. 

On 12/25/2021 at 12:58 AM, pyrohornIII said:
  Reveal hidden contents

But if the mom wouldn't have given all the hides away to the Indians, then Phil would never have used Peter's hide, right?   Or did I miss somewhere Peter instigating that charity?

 

I guess I’m dumber than everyone on this thread because this confused me. I wasn’t even 100% sure that Peter did it on purpose because the deus ex machine to get there was so convoluted. 

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Sawbonz

Sawbonz 27375

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On 3/1/2022 at 1:23 PM, Reynolds Woodcock said:

I think you understand the movie quite well. Campion was clearly trying to present characters filled with complexities that weren't depicted in the Western stereotype (e.g., gay men, alcoholics struggling with depression, etc.)


image.gif.ddc925f0e09fe268bdd6c972a2c9990e.gif
 

image.gif.68a8f612c0886a0914008be1f5c66e20.gif

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