Jonathan Shu’s Top 10 Films of 2021

I’m still trying to get past the bad habit of writing off a film before I even watch it, so I don’t know if I can say if 2021 was a good or bad year for film. But what I do know is that it was a year filled with anticipation, many of which paid off for me and some of which made me realize I’d liked the wait better. Thank you delayed releases! I also escaped the bubble of streaming from my bed this year, and watched more movies in more different theatres than I have before, which was a fantastic experience. I can’t say if it 2021 was a good year or a bad year for film, but I can say that I enjoyed my time there. So, out of all the ones I got around to, here are my top ten of 2021. Continue reading “Jonathan Shu’s Top 10 Films of 2021” →

Review: ‘The Power of the Dog’ Finds Another Worthy Vessel

Her first film in 12 years, Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog is a venomous, suppressed exploration of masculinity on a disappearing Western front. Based on Thomas Savage’s book of the same name, the film follows two ranchers: Phil Burbank (Benedict Cumberbatch), and his brother, George (Jesse Plemons). George is stocky and plodding, wears suits and is always polite. Phil is lean and whip-smart, but with a cruel tongue and a savage instinct at the scent of any perceived weakness – including his own. He dominates the ranch, castrating bulls with his bare hands and commanding the property with the steely swagger of a true “cowboy”. So, when George disrupts the ranch hierarchy and unexpectedly brings home a wife, Rose (Kirsten Dunst), Phil utterly rejects her, beginning a campaign of psychological torture. But he faces an unlikely foe in Rose’s son, Peter (Kodi Smit-McPhee), as Phil and Peter’s growing relationship brings up deep secrets and a long-hidden yearning.

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