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Hi. I’m Jane Campion. I am the screenwriter and director of ‘The Power of the Dog’. This is the scene I call the love scene. A scene that takes place in the barn at night with Phil, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, and Peter, played by Kodi Smit-McPhee. This is a scene that I really like because it’s the pinnacle of their relationship. And the wrapping of the film with all its loaded meanings, the relationship between Peter and Phil shifting towards intimacy, and then the coming together of so many different parts of the movie that were truly seeded from the start, like surprising strength. Switch from Phil to Peter as Peter boldly points the cigarette to Phil’s lips, then to his own lips and the order of the murder scene. The point of me directing the scene was to find a way to really build tension as Peter watched Phil finish the rope. And that’s something Phil asked him to do. Will you watch me finish the rope? It’s actually a kind of vulnerability that Phil showed against him. Here we see the moment when the actual murder scene is hinted at, when Phil’s wound turns the water pink. It’s also a scene where I added a lot of detail during and after filming. But the shot here is what really got me excited, it’s just Peter doing this focus pull between the rope, Phil’s hands playing in his crotch. And he goes back to Peter as he watches. And then, the Bronco goes to Henry’s saddle and starts playing with him, which is essentially Peter’s way of devastatingly flirting with Phil because anyone who touches the Bronco’s saddle, especially Peter, is probably becoming erotic for Phil. And you know, it’s interesting that there are so many of these saddles – actually all the spurs are kind of a little romantic in the little silver heart and inside the real spurs. You know? “How old were you when you met Bronco Henry?” “About your current age.” Phil and Peter really feel for each other here. Phil is really not sure, I’m not sure if Peter is aware of the atmosphere because Peter is really hard to read. And when Bronco Henry gets caught in a storm about himself and himself, he starts a story to show that their friendship was not only the most important friendship in his life, but the friendship that saved his life. And he talks about sleeping body to body on a body roll together. And by the way, you know fingering the string and all the other erotic objects in this scene. And Peter asks – “Is he naked?” This is the moment that really matters to me, and especially the work of these great actors about the lines and what happened. Here we only see the thread that Peter made being inserted into the main thread. Thus, it becomes a rope that the two make together. And initially, there was no dialogue on the stage. In fact, it wasn’t even in the book. But Benedict really resisted the idea of dialogue. And actually, in the beginning I thought there shouldn’t be any dialogue either. I just thought it would have to have the beautiful music of Jonny Greenwood and it would be a moment when he would be really strong. However, Benedict and I came to some sort of compromise, where we used the most innocent of the dialogue. You know, nothing really suggestive, just something simple, like innocent questions. And the scene reveals a lot of complicated stuff. But I think the most important thing is that it is erotic and tense. And in this moment, when they’re actually sharing the cigarette, Peter gives him a small smile that we know Phil knows it is. And while the horns are still ringing we head towards the horses. And these are raw animals. I think they’re very sexy in a way, because how natural they are, and their strength, beauty, and intimacy with each other are incredibly important in those details.
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