The Power of the Dog
Whoopie Ti Yi Yo
Git along little dogies
Peter, a brilliant effeminate ephebe
studying medicine in 1925
Spending summer at a prosperous cattle ranch in Montana
that his widowed Mother married into
after his father committed suicide
Phil, a mean butch closet queer
who's had his chickenhawk eye on Peter
from the git-go,
inherited the ranch with his brother
Despite being a Yale graduate in Classics
he prefers to live his life as filthy Phil
obsessively polishing the saddle
of Bronco Henry a deceased cowpoke
who first broke him in
At the moment he wants Peter
to give him a hand
Shoving a pole in a hole
They make an odd couple
But are their beefy drives as raw as they seem?
Each may have his own ulterior motive
Peter's Mother Rose has endured relentless cruelty
from Phil who won't accept her marriage to his brother George;
He has already driven her to clandestine alcoholism
Perhaps his seduction of Peter is calculated
to further harm her
Yet perhaps Peter has is own reason
to allow himself to be seduced,
perhaps it is to protect his beloved Mom
The morning after he bonded with Peter
Phil wakes up feeling very ill indeed
He cleans himself up to be taken into town
for medical attention
But before he leaves he wants to give Peter
the rawhide lariat he arduously made for him
Phil stayed up completing it with some
hide that Peter had for him
neglecting to mention were he had gotten it--
a freshly-dead diseased cow
Love will get you like a case of anthrax
Withdrawing to his room
Peter ignores Phil's calls
with the suggestion of a smile on his face
Watching George drive Phil
away from the ranch
for the last time
George shops for a suitable casket
The lid closes over Phil
Reunited with Bronco Henry
in the Western Lands
at last
It all takes place in Montana
as portrayed by New Zealand
Beautiful, grim, haunting,
as subtly diabolical as a Patricia Highsmith tale
soundly recommended by RAY
Deliver my soul from the sword;
my darling from the power of the dog
Psalm 22
Book of Psalms
18-19 January 2022
