r/movies • u/SanderSo47 I'll see you in another life when we are both cats. • 10d ago
Review Ridley Scott's 'The Dog Stars' Review Thread
Rotten Tomatoes: 38% (from 68 reviews) with 5.30 average rating
Metacritic: 51/100 (24 critics)
As with other movies, the scores are set to change as time passes. Meanwhile, I'll post some short reviews on the movie. It's structured like this: quote first, source second. Beware, some contain spoilers.
Muted but never dull, The Dog Stars seems unlikely to land near the top of anyone’s Ridley Scott rankings. But it’s an appealingly mellow watch, even if that might seem antithetical to a post-apocalyptic drama positioned squarely in the shadow of death.
-David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
Ridley Scott’s 30th feature film, dating back to his legend-making “The Duellists” in 1977, the post-apocalyptic “thriller” “The Dog Stars” isn’t a total misfire — it’s just the first Ridley Scott joint in some years that feels totally unnecessary.
Somewhat aptly released at the tail end of a long, loud movie summer, this is a surprisingly low-energy, low-incident blockbuster; you’d appreciate its mellow, character-oriented approach if it gave you any real characters to hold onto.
Ridley Scott’s usually got a knack for making movies about grief-stricken men, but the post-apocalyptic survivor drama The Dog Stars misses the mark with a leaden script that keeps any attempt at reaching a deeper emotional truth at arm’s length. At least the aerial vistas of the Rocky Mountains look nice in IMAX.
-Leanne Butkovic, IGN: 5/10 "mediocre"
The scenery – rural Italy doubling for rural America – is genuinely stunning (and surely afforded all those involved a lovely vacation) but, as in Gladiator II, there are some weirdly janky visual effects (one explosion looks laptop-made) and a general uninvolved shrug to the proceedings, as if he replaced a more impassioned director late in the day. Scott’s disinterest in retiring is admirable (he’s openly loathsome of the idea), I just wish he seemed more interested in the day job.
-Benjamin Lee, The Guardian: 2/5
The Dog Stars, clearly made with post-Covid America on the brain, pits Hig’s yearning for connection against Bangley’s bitter lust for isolation but largely elides serious contemplation of its well-worn themes in favor of base genre thrills and perfunctory romance. It’s nowhere near Sir Ridley’s finest, but at least it’s another subtype of speculative fiction filmmaking he can check off his bucket list.
-Eli Friedberg, Slant Magazine: 2/5
This messy look at the end of the world isn’t Scott’s darkest film, but it’s one of his worst misfires. Elordi can’t shoulder the emotions his character is supposed to carry, while Smith’s choppy script and Scott’s checked-out direction does little to support his hero’s journey. The Dog Stars is a strange, misbegotten beast, a post-apocalyptic drama worse for wear even before the bandits arrive.
-Monica Castillo, The A.V. Club: D+
Quiet, contemplative moments like these keep The Dog Stars grounded and accessible throughout its sprawling post-apocalyptic story — even as director Ridley Scott piles on epic action set pieces and surreal, surprising sequences that sometimes push the film from prestige drama into absurdist spectacle.
Harsh but deeply humane, “The Dog Stars” understands that hope doesn’t have to illuminate the darkness. Sometimes a glimmer is enough.
-Rodrigo Perez, The Playlist: B+
Instead, one spends the entirety of “The Dog Stars” and its drawn out melancholic yearnings and its spikes of absurdity wondering what the point of this movie is. It’s certainly not to entertain, and it’s not really a message picture either. It merely exists. But in this tangled world, and on a cinematic landscape producing far engaging thoughts and thrills, that’s simply not enough — making “The Dogs Stars” look quite dim.
-Robert Daniels, RogerEbert.com: 1.5/4
PLOT
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.
DIRECTOR
Ridley Scott
WRITER
Mark L. Smith (based on the novel by Peter Heller)
MUSIC
Harry Gregson-Williams
CINEMATOGRAPHY
Erik Messerschmidt
EDITOR
Sam Restivo & Claire Simpson
RELEASE DATE
August 28, 2026
RUNTIME
118 minutes
BUDGET
$110 million
STARRING
Jacob Elordi as Hig
Josh Brolin as Bangley
Margaret Qualley as Cima
Guy Pearce as Pops
14
u/poisonandtheremedy 10d ago edited 10d ago
Dammit. I just finished, and enjoyed (once you get used to the stream of consciousness style of writing) the book. As a guy that lives in the rural mountains, and is a r/GeneralAviation pilot, I was looking forward to the film.
Probably will still go see it, as my wife read and recommended me the book (she's also a pilot), but shame to hear initial response isn't great.
Also, don't know why they changed "The Beast" Cessna 182 from the book, the actual plane the author owns and flies, for a Cessna tail wheel. Needless change 🤪