The Dogs Stars Is A Moving Tale Of Love, Loss, and The Apocalypse

Hig (Jacob Elordi) is a man dealing with loss and the end of the world as he knew it. In the new movie “The Dog Stars”, the novel of the same name by Peter Heller has been adapted to a character-driven study of dealing with loss and finding the will to go on.

The world has been decimated by a virus, leaving only a few people left, and many of those that remain exist as scavengers, where killing to obtain goods and stay alive is the new norm.

Hig flies his Cessna with his dog Jasper to obtain supplies, which he shares with a remote community of survivors, and lives at a small airport content with his food supply, electricity, and secure perimeter thanks to his associate Bangley (Josh Brolin), who has a shoot-first mentality and dispatches anyone who approaches their area without warning from his observation post.

When Hig receives a faded signal from an area outside of his flight radius, he decides to set off to see what is there despite warnings from Bangley that there is likely nothing and very possible danger ahead.

His trip takes a turn, and he encounters a Father named Pops (Guy Pearce) and his daughter Cima (Margaret Qualley), who grow from being distrustful of Hig to accompanying him when fate steps in and forces their hand.

What follows is a journey that neither expected into a world of danger and oddness as the trio must contend with situations and individuals beyond their comprehension and find a new way forward in a world of loss and madness.

Director Ridley Scott has crafted a engaging character-driven story where the leads are given time to develop their characters and establish the world in which they live. It would have been easy to turn this into an action-laden film where hordes randomly attack the leads instead of keeping the focus on the cast.

While there are moments of action, they support the story and characters versus being the focal point and maintain your interest through the slowly paces aspects of the film.

While the story has some elements that differ from the book, it stays fairly close to the main source material and provides a compelling story that resonates.

4 stars out of 5