MovieChat Forums > The Power of the Dog (2021) Discussion > You realise the kid probably also… (spoi...

You realise the kid probably also… (spoilers)


…killed his father, as well. You know, to keep his mother ‘happy and safe’. Seeing how he went about killing Phil without anyone suspecting anything, and how he mentioned that he was the one who found his late father hanging (and after drinking up until the very end).

The facts start lining up if you think about it. Him bringing paper flowers to his father’s grave simbolizing his artificial regret. He did prove to be a capable psychopath, so he probably did it.

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Don’t be so judgmental. He didn’t eat his father, did he? Did he serve up his father to dinner patrons at their family eatery? No and No. He allowed his father a dignified burial, as a dutiful son should.
So it could have been worse.
This seems like the sort of future serial killer we could abide by and live with. (Unless of course, we ever happen to run into him and upset him or his mom in any way whatsoever).


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I meant that he made it look like the father hanged himself because he was a drunk that made his family miserable (as drunks tend to do).

Think back at the type of person the kid is: remember the eccentric show he put on when they arrived by carriage and he strutted to the bird’s nest with all the men ironically catcalling him? He put on that entire show was for Phil’s eyes, because he realised his proclivities after finding Phil’s magazine stash. That’s the type of person the kid was. Patient, methodical, rational, and willing to do anything to reach his goals. This character definitely killed his inconvenient father.

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Yeah, my reply was in jest. I actually tend to agree with you.


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I read it again, the clues were there lol.

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The father hanged himself, didn't he? How did he set that up? Very little was said about the father and there weren't any clues that pointed to the father being abusive. I will watch again to see.

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Well, he was a drunk that drank ‘all the way to the very end’. The how is inconsequential, you can imagine that him being drunk made it easier practically. And as far as any abuse goes, the fact that different characters mention his drinking problem shows how bad it was. Did they say he did anything specific like hitting his wife? I don’t remember right now. But I don’t even think such details would be necessary. The movie is definitely subtle in everything it does and it keeps some information to itself.

See my other reply above for a deeper look into the main character’s mind.

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I am going to watch it again to see if I get any more information on the father.

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The film neglected to mention the dad's story based on the book. I don't think he had anything to do with his dad's demise. I haven't read the book but I reckon the dad was an alcoholic and the mother took to drinking as well to cope with Phil's bad behavior.

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was Dunst offering herself to Kodi when he said 'you dont have to do this'

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Hey, maybe, why not. That would also mean she wasn't simply worried that she was losing him to the enemy (either as real friendship or as a victim to a potential trap), she actually also knew what he was secretly plotting?

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The book goes into a lot more detail on the father's fate. Peter certainly did not kill him.

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Damn I was hoping I was onto something.

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Interesting theory, but I am going to say no.

Peter’s father died four years before, when he was much younger. He also visited his father at the cementery. This shows he really missed him.

Plus, it seems that while he was an Alcoholic, he didn’t abuse his family.

I think Peter was afraid he would lose his mother to Alcoholism like he lost his father. And eliminating Phil was his only way of saving her.

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