The Power of the Dog

It might seem unusual to watch feminist director Jane Campion tackle an entirely masculine genre like the Western, but the way in which she subtly subverts her material here is as spectacular as the landscape and mountain vistas she produces. Derived from a virtually unknown 1967 novel by Thomas Savage, the story appears familiar at first glance: two very different but symbiotic brothers Phil and George who co-own a farm in Montana find themselves entangled in a set of slowly escalating disputes when one of them brings home a wife, Rose, and her adolescent son Peter, whose shyness and queer mannerisms are brutally mocked by the macho farmhands. But the balance of power keeps shifting.
THE POWER OF THE DOG is a film full of wonders, surprises, and shocks, positively heightened by the acting (the four central characters rank among the most immaculate – and also strangest – performers in contemporary English-language cinema) and by Jonny Greenwood’s disturbingly futuristic score. It’s been 12 years after her last cinema offering, so Jane Campion’s return to the theatres is cause for enthusiasm: THE POWER OF THE DOG is nothing short of a masterpiece. (Stefan Grissemann)

On Sunday, 31.10. our main sponsor, Erste Bank, invites you to a matinee with free admission.
ISSUANCE OF THE TICKETS FOR THE ERSTE BANK ExtraVALUE-Matinee
The free tickets (max. 2 per person) are available at the Viennale advance booking offices, in the festival cinemas and via the Erste Bank ExtraVALUE lottery: sponsoring.erstebank.at

JANE CAMPION: SWEETIE (1989), AN ANGEL AT MY TABLE (1990), THE PIANO (1993), THE PORTRAIT OF A LADY (1996), HOLY SMOKE! (1996), IN THE CUT (2003), BRIGHT STAR (2009), TOP OF THE LAKE (2013), TOP OF THE LAKE: CHINA GIRL (2017)