I'm not sure why the movie The Power of the Dog (2021) has this title. I ended up finding in the Web that the title is a reference to verse 20 of the biblical Psalm number 22: "Deliver my soul from the sword and my favorite from the strength of the dog". I have no idea if this information is true or not. Anyway, I inferred that the role of alpha dog (Phil) was very well played by Benedict Cumberbatch, in his constant and unpleasant harassment of his brother's wife and stepson. The film's setting is completely stripped down as the story takes place on a ranch in Montana, in 1925, in the middle of nowhere, owned by Phil and his brother George. The whole story is permeated with the recurring memory of the now dead cowboy-mentor "Bronco Henry", who impacted Phil in a remarkable way. The impact was such that the saddle used by the cowboy was treated and worshiped by Phil as a valuable object that deserved attention and prominence. The film evidences, in a discreet way, Phil's repressed passion for the dead cowboy, which is reinforced not only by the cult of the cowboy's saddle, but also by Phil's ritual involving visit to the place where the cowboy used to go for isolation followed by a bath in the nearby pond. I did not like this film. The actors, however, did a very good work.
Review of The Power of the Dog
