What Kind of Man Would I Be?

 

We have the midterm exam in two weeks. I will tell you what to study next week. I haven’t prepared it yet. We also have had two homework assignments; if you have not turned them in, you should soon.

*******************

Genres. Horror. Comedy. The third is western.

Western: Europe, America, etc.

western: cowboy movie

All three actor and the actress were nominated for

an Oscar. The director won the Oscar. This is significant because women don’t have the chance to be directors and seldom win. The musician from Radiohead composed the soundtrack. He also won the Oscar for best soundtrack.

Important concepts for The Power of the Dog:

1.  A rule that you must respect / protect your parents. Filial piety.

2.  Foreshadowing: hints of what will happen later

3.  Misanthrope: person who hates other people (because they are stupid)

4.  Misogyny: hatred of women (chauvinist); Phil seems to take joy in torturing Rose.

Homoerotic theme: subtle gay idea

Myth: before science, we used myths to explain the world (gods, magic, Thor, Zeus)

Narration or voice over: someone talking to explain the film; a voice you cannot see: “When my father passed, I wanted nothing more than my mother’s happiness. For what kind of man would I be if I didn’t help my mother?”

The movie is set in 1925 Montana.

 

What does the tracking shot with the windows, the stair railings and finally the car represent? Is it an unrolled reel of film?

The two brothers: Blond: George    Dark: Phil

George always nags Phil about bathing. Biblical: baptizing

Phil talks to George about their mentor (teacher) Bronco Henry three times in the movie. Each time, George doesn’t seem comfortable or ignores him. Why does Phil want to talk about Bronco Henry so much? Why doesn’t George want to talk about Bronco Henry at all?

The second time and George does not want to drink to Bronco Henry.

We have the idea of myth. Phil talks about Romulus and Remus. According to the myth, Mars (Roman god of War) had a baby with a mortal woman. The babies were raised by a wolf. They created Rome in 753 BC.

Phil uses myths to explain things to. Maybe Phil doesn’t live in reality. Phil graduated number one from Yale University. He studies Classics. Ancient.

That story about the horse is impossible. It is not true. It is a myth. It is not real. Is Bronco Henry real?