The Dog Stars – Movie Review
There are few directors alive with a visual eye as refined as Ridley Scott. Whether he’s depicting ancient Rome, deep space, dystopian futures, or Martian landscapes, Scott consistently demonstrates a mastery of cinematic spectacle that most filmmakers can only dream of. Yet for much of the latter half of his career, the quality of his films has often hinged on a single variable: the screenplay. When paired with strong material, the results can be exceptional like The Martian. But when the script falters, even Scott’s considerable talents can only do so much to redeem the House of Gucci. Unfortunately, The Dog Stars falls somewhere in between. It’s a visually compelling survival drama that never quite escapes the limitations of its shallow and underdeveloped screenplay.
Adapted from Peter Heller’s novel of the same name, The Dog Stars is set in the aftermath of a devastating pandemic that has wiped out much of humanity. Hig (Jacob Elordi) survives at an abandoned airfield alongside the hardened and deeply pessimistic Bangley (Josh Brolin), spending his days flying reconnaissance missions across a largely empty midwest America. But when a mysterious radio signal suggests other survivors may exist, Hig embarks on a journey that forces him to confront both the dangers of the worst of humanity and the possibility of security in the best of humanity in a world where hope has become increasingly scarce.
From its earliest moments, Scott immediately establishes a strong visual identity for the film. The aerial sequences are easily its most distinctive element, providing a fresh perspective on a genre crowded with ruined cities, abandoned highways, and collapsed societies. Watching Hig soar above vast stretches of wilderness gives the film an almost meditative quality at times, while also allowing Scott to showcase the grandeur and loneliness of this broken world. Even when the story stalls, the visuals remain entrancing.
The problem is that the screenplay rarely gives the film enough substance to match its style. Much of The Dog Stars is bleakly underbaked, content to gesture toward larger themes of grief, survival, community, and human nature without ever fully exploring them. Factions arrive but their motivations are never clearly explored and narrative threads emerge only to fizzle out. It’s one thing to show, not tell, but it’s another to never tell anything at all. The result is several emotional beats land with less impact than they should because the script has not done the work to earn them. The result is a film that often feels pensive rather than contemplative. Constipation and anticipation may both involve waiting for movement but they certainly aren’t the same thing.
This is particularly frustrating because the cast is clearly doing everything possible to propel the material. Across the board, the performances are solid, but there is a lingering sense that these actors are being asked to create depth that simply isn’t present on the page. Jacob Elordi continues to embody the strong silent type, carrying much of the film through quiet restraint rather than dramatic outbursts. Josh Brolin is reliably prickly as the gruff survivalist whose worldview has been shaped by years of loss and violence. Margaret Qualley and Guy Pearce bring credibility and emotional weight to their roles despite limited material, but it’s Allison Janney who nearly steals the entire film during a brief but memorable sequence that feels as though it belongs to a far more fascinating movie.
Scott’s direction helps compensate whenever the screenplay begins to idle. The action sequences are sharp, tense, and expertly staged, injecting much-needed momentum into a story that frequently threatens to lose its way. He remains one of cinema’s great craftsmen, capable of making even familiar material look extraordinary, especially in night vision! But The Dog Stars also serves as another reminder that visual storytelling alone cannot carry a film past the runway it indefinitely taxis down. For all its impressive imagery and atmospheric world-building, the film never develops enough narrative complexity to become truly memorable or soar to great heights.
The post-apocalyptic landscape itself feels rich with possibilities and there are glimpses of competing survivor communities, hints of different philosophies about rebuilding society, and suggestions of darker realities beyond the horizon but the most intriguing aspects of the film often exist at its edges and one can’t help but feel that this story may have been better suited to a limited series where its world and characters could have been explored with greater depth and patience.
In the end, The Dog Stars isn’t bad, it’s just bland. Scott’s visual instincts remain as sharp as ever, the cast is consistently engaging, and the film occasionally captures moments of genuine beauty and melancholy. But it’s bogged down by material that never fully realises its potential. And so whilst the visuals may fly high, the story definitely stalls and audience mileages will certainly vary.
The Dog Stars is in Australian cinemas August 27
