Ridley Scott's Post-Apocalyptic Drama 'The Dog Stars' Receives Mixed Review
The film, based on Peter Heller's novel, follows a grieving survivor and his companion in a pandemic-ravaged Colorado, but critics say it lacks the visual and emotional depth of Scott's earlier work.
Ridley Scott's latest film, "The Dog Stars," adapts Peter Heller's 2012 novel and is set in a near-future Colorado after a devastating plague has wiped out most of humanity. Jacob Elordi plays Hig, a former mechanic mourning his wife and unborn child, who lives at an abandoned airport with a grizzled survivor, Bangley (Josh Brolin), and a loyal dog named Jasper. The pair scavenge supplies from the ruins of Denver and encounter a small Mennonite community still struggling with the disease.
The story contrasts Hig's lingering hope and curiosity with Bangley's distrustful, survivalist outlook. When Hig discovers another pair of survivors—former medical student Cema (Margaret Qualley) and her father (Guy Pearce)—the film explores the tension between youthful openness and weary suspicion, a dynamic the reviewer likens to the broader human conflict.
While the film offers striking landscape shots and functional set pieces, critics argue it falls short of the atmospheric richness characteristic of Scott's earlier works such as "Blade Runner" and "Alien." The adaptation reportedly simplifies the novel's fragmented, stream-of-consciousness narrative, resulting in characters that feel underdeveloped. Action sequences appear to compensate for the lack of psychological depth, and the climax, which deals with nostalgia-driven desperation, has been described as less effective than similar themes explored in films like "Snowpiercer."
Despite the perceived shortcomings, the review notes that Scott, now 88, continues to produce new movies, and the critic expresses interest in his future projects.