‘Heart of the Beast’ Review: Brad Pitt and Uber Deliver an Emotional Survival Thriller
I went into Heart of the Beast thinking this may suck, especially after I was let down by The Dog Stars. Yes, I know they are two completely different films that just so happen to feature a man and his dog on the key art, but I couldn’t help making the comparison. Thankfully, I left Heart of the Beast feeling completely different.
The film stars Brad Pitt as James Belmont, a veteran and retired Army Special Forces officer who wants to spend time with his former combat dog, Odin, who has a prosthetic leg. While flying his plane, James crashes in the Alaskan wilderness with Odin by his side, sending the two on a dangerous journey to find help and make it out alive.
Over the next hour and 41 minutes, Pitt, Odin and director David Ayer pull on our heartstrings while sending our anxiety through the roof. You get everything you would expect from the Alaskan wilderness: cold nights, wild animals and unforgiving terrain. Luckily, James and Odin were built for survival, even if the wilderness seems determined to test just how much they can endure.
I’ve often wondered how difficult it must be for actors when their primary scene partner can’t communicate the way another actor can, but Pitt and Odin, played by a German Shepherd named Uber, pull it off. German Shepherds are no joke, and this dog is exactly the companion you would want beside you in a crisis. Pitt gives a restrained performance that allows the relationship between James and Odin to remain at the center of the film rather than turning this into a one-man survival showcase.
Both James and Odin are dealing with PTSD, and Heart of the Beast does an excellent job shining a light on that shared trauma. We often think about what human soldiers carry home from combat, but the film also asks us to consider what military working dogs experience and the trauma they can carry with them. That connection gives James and Odin’s relationship an emotional weight that goes beyond the usual man-and-his-dog survival story.
Ayer has called Heart of the Beast a “love story,” and I have to agree with that assessment. The film explores familiar themes of grief, love and the sheer willpower to survive, but the bond between James and Odin is what makes them work. There are multiple sequences where you are in awe of Odin’s loyalty, but two involving wild animals particularly stand out and that is all I’m saying because you need to experience them for yourself.
By the time Heart of the Beast ends, it has earned the emotion it is going for without losing the tension that makes the survival story work. Pitt may be the name above the title, but Odin is every bit his co-star, and their relationship gives the movie its heart.
Any dog lover who watches Heart of the Beast will probably leave the theater wanting to immediately hug their canine best friend. Coco got some extra treats when I got home.
Grade: A
Comments