Based on the 2012 novel of the same name, written by Peter Heller, The Dog Stars hopes to capture this dystopian sci-fi action-adventure story and bring it to the big screen. Set after a devastating flu pandemic that has almost eradicated humanity, the film centers on Hig, a former civilian pilot, and Bangley, a hardened former Marine, as they confront outside threats and hold onto the possibility of a better life beyond where they currently live.
From initial vibes, I thought The Dog Stars was a lot more emotionally touching than I anticipated. Say what you will about another post-apocalyptic story, but this one had plenty of heart. The story structure strangely hit on similar beats as The Last of Us, truly building up characters slowly but impactfully. There were a few moments that felt so human, in terms of sticking to rules of survival in a post-apocalyptic setting.
Every time Hig went up in his plane, there were tons of stunning shots of the landscapes and vistas. The mountain shots were as beautiful as what Peter Jackson was able to accomplish in The Lord of the Rings. If you told me these b-roll shots were concepts for the upcoming Death Stranding film, I would believe you. For Ridley Scott to shoot in Italy to mimic Colorado’s Rocky Mountains shockingly worked.
Even the shots and stunts in and around the plane throughout The Dog Stars were fairly good. Some of the exterior flying shots reminded me of the ones in Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation and The Final Reckoning. The stunt work and pyrotechnics of this film drove the tension higher than I was expecting. To be overly observant, some of the explosions could have used some extra CGI/VFX touch-ups but were not the worst. One scene in particular was bonkers, and I do not know if that scenario would have played out like that in real life. The night vision scene was something else entirely though, almost artistic enough to be unique.
“Truly, the psychological drama in The Dog Stars was built up well.”
Another factor that looked inspired by The Last of Us was the score of this film. I was not familiar with Harry Gregson-Williams’ resume, but The Dog Stars made me interested. He is a frequent music collaborator with Scott, most recently working on House of Gucci and The Last Duel. But even knowing which films Gregson-Williams worked on, it sounded like the acoustic guitar use was heavily inspired by The Last of Us somehow. It sort of makes sense regionally, as The Last of Us eventually heads to Colorado.
While I found the antagonists of the film the least in-depth enemies, I argue the real enemy is the main cast’s battle against their survival instincts. On top of prioritizing survival, all four of them carry some kind of trauma, grief, and depression of varying levels. Truly, the psychological drama in The Dog Stars was built up well. I appreciated how each person had similar traumas and issues, and others had different ones.
Off the rip, I enjoyed the riffing between Jacob Elordi’s Hig and Josh Brolin’s Bangley. It was a classic case of young gun and veteran older man comedy and drama dialogue. The chemistry between Elordi and Margaret Qualley’s Cima had tiny flame flickers, but slowly warmed my heart. Guy Pearce as Pops was solid; I liked his character progression too. Ultimately, I liked the characters because we see who they are by their actions and decisions rather than someone saying who they are.
Even though there are so many big movies out right now, from Spider-Man: Brand New Day, The End of Oak Street, to The Odyssey, I would recommend seeing The Dog Stars in theatres. Yes, it is a 20th Century Studios production that will come to streaming on Disney+ eventually, but I attest the IMAX experience was worth it. Strangely enough, I think gamers will enjoy this adventure. If you are looking for something with a good balance of action and psychological drama, you should be booking a ticket for this one.
