Review: ‘The Cow’
The concept of getting older is one that has been explored in countless ways and will certainly result in other artistic interpretations in the future. There are many different directions that one can go with when exploring the fear of aging, although one that isn’t explored nearly as often as it should be is that of the misogynistic double standards surrounding the natural process. After all, why are aging women always the targets of backhanded compliments and predatory beauty products?
This is a question that echoes throughout The Cow, Eli Horowitz’s directorial debut after the runaway success of his podcast Homecoming. Kath (Winona Ryder) and her slightly younger boyfriend Max (John Gallagher Jr.) have decided to spend the weekend at a secluded cabin in the woods for some much-needed relaxation. However, it quickly turns south when they find that another couple, Greta (Brianne Tju) and Al (Owen Teague), are also staying in the cabin. When Max and Greta supposedly run off together the next day, Kath teams up with the cabin’s owner, former biotech founder Nicholas (Dermot Mulroney) in order to figure out what actually happened.
Teetering between drama and dark comedy, the script showcases the major differences between writing for film and writing for a podcast. Much of the dialogue, particularly the not-so-subtle jabs at how old Kath supposedly is, sounds like the viewer is supposed to be listening to it rather than seeing it play out on screen. This is strange, as Horowitz had previously written some of the episodes of Amazon’s adaptation of Homecoming. One would think that Kath was close to decrepit with what she’s had to hear throughout the movie, which makes it funnier when you remember that she’s played by a quietly intense Ryder.
When introducing the film at its SXSW premiere, he did say that he still has a lot to learn about filmmaking after finishing up his first one. That brutal honesty and discomfort permeate throughout The Cow in ways both good and bad. Horowitz and editor Arndt-Wulf Peemöller construct an intriguing mystery using flashbacks and flash-forwards, showing how Max hasn’t been exactly the best boyfriend to Kath in the lead-up to their getaway. The teetering structure of the film, as well as the reveals of the hidden agendas behind each character, keeps viewers on their toes until the very end.
That being said, these ulterior motives are talked about a lot more than they are shown. In fact, the majority of the movie breaks the “show don’t tell” rule of filmmaking by having most of its tension explained between the characters. This rule break is one of the cardinal signs of an inexperienced filmmaker, one that can’t quite seem to put their genuinely interesting ideas on screen in an effective manner. And that is a shame, as the ideas that Horowitz posits throughout The Cow could be intriguing if they were represented visually rather than just spoken.
However, there is tons of promise lying beneath the surface of the film. It is appropriately bleak on a visual level, even if the coloring can get more dark and blue than necessary at times. The cinematography by David Bolen is also appropriately intimate and sometimes even produces some shots that could be destined to be shared on Pinterest or Film Twitter accounts. Furthermore, nobody in the cast seemed to sleepwalk their way through the script, with Teague, in particular, honing in on his signature creepiness while also displaying an unexpected vulnerability towards the film’s conclusion.
At the end of it all, The Cow is clearly the film debut of someone transitioning from one artistic medium to another. While the overly obvious dialogue and plot explanations could work for a podcast, it doesn’t translate nearly as well on film. That being said, Horowitz clearly as potential as both a screenwriter and director if this film is anything to go by. Given his brutal honesty at the premiere, here’s to hoping he learns from the mistakes made by The Cow in order for his artistic vision to fully be realized. – Erin M. Brady
The Cow premiered at the 2022 SXSW Festival.