As anticipated, writer-director Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog will make its world premiere in competition at the Venice Film Festival.
The festival unveiled its full line-up yesterday, with Campion’s drama – a Netflix Original – to compete against 20 other titles such as Pablo Larrain’s Princess Diana biopic Spencer; Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut The Lost Daughter and Pedro Almodovar’s Parallel Mothers.
An Australian-New Zealand co-production based on the 1967 novel by Thomas Savage, The Power of the Dog stars Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Thomasin McKenzie, Frances Conroy, Keith Carradine, Peter Carroll and Adam Beach.
Set in the 1920s, Cumberbatch and Plemons play brothers Phil and George Burbank, who own the biggest ranch in the Montana valley.
When George secretly marries local widow Rose (Dunst), a shocked and angry Phil wages a relentless war to destroy her, using her effeminate son Peter (Smit-McPhee) as a pawn.
Shot in NZ and produced by See-Saw Films, Brightstar, BBC Films, Big Shell Films and Max Films, The Power of The Dog is Campion’s first feature since 2009’s Bright Star.
Emile Sherman and Iain Canning produce with Roger Frappier, Campion and Tanya Seghatchian.
Ari Wegner is the DOP, editor Peter Sciberras, production designer Grant Major, costume designer Kirsty Cameron and casting directors Nikki Barrett, Tina Cleary, Carmen Cuba, and Nina Gold.
Campion won the Venice Grand Jury Prize in 1990 with An Angel at My Table. However, she is typically a Cannes regular; prior to Julia Ducournau’s winning the Palme d’Or for Titane last week, the auteur had been the only woman to win the prize, for 1993’s The Piano.
Netflix has the worldwide rights to The Power of the Dog excluding the UK. Transmission Films will distribute theatrically in Australia and New Zealand.
Venice International Film Festival will run in-person September 1-11. View the full line-up here.
Venezia 78 Competition films:
Parallel Mothers, Pedro Almodovar (Spain)
Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon, Ana Lily Amirpour (US)
Un Autre Monde, Stephane Brizé (France)
The Power of the Dog, Jane Campion (New Zealand, Australia)
America Latina, Damiano D’Innocenzo, Fabio D’Innocenzo (Italy, France)
L’Evenement, Audrey Diwan (France)
Official Competition, Gaston Depart, Mariano Cohn (Spain, Argentina)
Il Buco, Michelangelo Frammartino (Italy, France, Germany)
Sundown, Michel Franco (Mexico, France, Sweden)
Lost Illusions, Xavier Giannoli (France)
The Lost Daughter, Maggie Gyllenhaal (Greece, US, UK, Israel)
Spencer, Pablo Larrain (Germany, UK)
Freaks Out, Gabriele Mainetti (Italy, Belgium)
Qui Rido Io, Mario Martone (Italy, Spain)
On The Job: The Missing 8, Eric Matti (Philippines)
Leave No Traces, Jan P. Matuszyski (Poland, France, Czech Republic)
Captain Volkonogov Escaped, Yuriy Borisov (Russia, Estonia, France)
The Card Counter, Paul Schrader (US, UK, China)
The Hand of God, Paolo Sorrentino (Italy)
Reflection, Valentin Vasyanovych (Ukraine)
La Caja, Lorenzo Vigas (Mexico, US)