Jane Campion’s first film in a dozen years has just mopped up some of the major awards at this week’s Golden Globes – and it’s not hard to see why.
This Benedict Cumberbatch-led 1925-set drama won Best Film in the Drama category, with Campion picking up the Best Director gong. But it was the film’s MVP Kodi Smit-McPhee who steals the show here, as he picked up the Best Supporting Actor award.
Cumberbatch – who was also nominated alongside co-star Kirsten Dunst – stars as charismatic rancher Phil Burbank, who inspires fear and awe in equal measures with his stoic no-nonsense mannerisms in this Montana-based western.
But when his brother George (Jungle Cruise’s Jesse Plemons) brings home recently widowed new wife Rose (Spider-Man’s Dunst) and her effeminate son Peter (X-Men’s Smit-McPhee) to the family ranch, Phil torments and bullies them – leading to an almost subtle horror-tinted undertone – until past secrets lead to him taking Peter under his wing.
The sudden ending definitely won’t be for some – and the slow methodical tone may not be for the casual fan – but Campion’s breathtaking direction to a luscious New Zealand (standing in The Treasure State) backdrop, a cast at the top of their craft, and a simply haunting musical score, gives this a very powerful bite – even if it’s potentially one for the more discerning movie-goer.
ESP Rating: 4/5
Gavin Miller
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Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kodi Smit-Mcphee, Jesse Plemons & Kirsten Dunst
Running Time: 2 Hrs 8 Mins
Director: Jane Campion