Benedict Cumberbatch takes on another distinctly different character as a gruff, but respected ranch owner in 1920s Montana. He becomes more sullen when his brother (Jesse Plemons) brings home a new wife and her son (Kirsten Dunst and Kodi Smit-McPhee), so he subtlety sets out to harass them. Director Jane Campion has created a dark story full of slow burn tension (sometimes too slow). Cumberbatch relishes his character’s obscure secrets with intensity and the rest of the cast rises to his challenge. In Campion’s style, the quietly-observed environment (from mountains to bugs) adds to the menacing mood, but her penchant for unusual understated characters and interactions makes the film an interesting psychological drama. 
(3.5 / 5)
