The Power of the Dog (2021)

Two brothers own a ranch together. One's a rough asshole who holds sway over the ranch hands and one's softer and works the business side of things. When the business brother marries and brings his wife and her teenage son to the ranch, rough bro does what he can to assert his dominance.

Gary and I originally bailed on this movie about an hour in. Cumberbatch, as the ass, seemed completely miscast. Somehow his portrayal lacked the necessary humor and charisma to make his dominance believable; he came off as a petty jerk rather than a source of terror. The whole vibe -- and I know it was deliberate -- was oppressive. But that was due more to the soundtrack and the refusal to bring any light to the proceedings than it was to Cumberbatch's character. 

Once the Oscar noms were announced, I picked it back up (though Gary declined to). I have to say, the ending does help. It's an effective twist -- but it also left me a little annoyed that the last 10 minutes of a 2-hour story should have to do such heavy lifting. I understand that the suffocation I felt is testament to the ability of the director, but that doesn't mitigate my irritation at being forced to feel it.

C+