And this is something Phil has actually asked him to do. The aim for me in directing the scene was to find a way to really build tension as Peter watches Phil finishing the rope. And so many different parts of the film that really have been seeded right from the very beginning coming together, like the completion of the rope with all its freighted meanings, the change of the relationship between Peter and Phil towards intimacy, and then the surprising power shift from Phil to Peter as Peter boldly holds out the cigarette to Phil’s lips, then to his own, and the laying out of the murder scene.
It’s really a scene I love very much, because it’s a culmination of their relationship. It’s a scene that happens in the barn at night with Phil, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, and Peter, played by Kodi Smit-McPhee.
I’m the screenwriter and director of ‘The Power of the Dog.’ This is the scene I call the love scene. But also, I think there's some nice psychological horror in the disconnect between Dracula being a ravening monster and also having these quirky "human" behaviors.Transcript ‘The Power of the Dog’ | Anatomy of a Scene The screenwriter and director Jane Campion narrates an intimate sequence between Benedict Cumberbatch and Kodi Smit-McPhee. One, I like the concept of Dracula being aware of his Creative Sterility and trying to compensate. One other thought related to your post - Although the xenophobic undertones (overtones) are troubling, I think it really is a cool idea how Dracula wants to make himself "modern", down to trying to lose his accent. An adaptation would do well to put more focus on his advancing himself from a humble background and being comparably feminist. Speaking of, I think another problem in adaptation has to do with Jonathan being a Ron the Death Eater. And someone in that position really can't afford to slight a client, even if that client raises a lot of alarm bells. I saw this one "meme" recently which commented on how (middle class period-appropriate xenophobia aside), Jonathan's seeming obliviousness early on is very relatable, since he's this low ranked employee whose trying to make a sale that will jumpstart his career.
the whole sequence is way more frightening and unnerving than any shot of Dracula baring his fangs and hissing ever was. The scene from a few days ago where Johnathan tries to smuggle a message for help out of the castle only for Dracula to immediately to return with them in hand and then burns it in front of Johnathan while still acting like a pleasant host. They just want to see Dracula rip peoples' throats out and transform into wolves or whatever. Seeing Dracula being first introduced as a friendly if eccentric old man then having the facade slowly fade away until it becomes clear that he's a monster holding Johnathan Harker prisoner is amazing and something a lot of adaptations don't want to do. Related to that, by following Dracula Daily, I'm learning that the problem with most adaptations of Dracula is that they're way too eager to get to the supernatural parts of the story and so they skip all the psychological horror elements that actually make Dracula terrifying and intimidating.