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[1] American writer-director David Ayer has built a career on tough-guy films featuring unlikely team-ups – from mismatched policemen Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke in Training Day (2001) to Jason Statham and some bees in The Beekeeper (2024). However, Heart of the Beast, a soulful survival drama scripted by Cameron Alexander, represents Ayer’s best combination yet.
[2] Brad Pitt stars as retired special forces officer James Belmont, who flies into the Alaskan wilderness in his seaplane to hunt and fish, taking along his best pal, Odin – played by an equally rugged German shepherd called Uber and several stunt pups.
[3] A former combat dog, Odin has a metal leg and titanium teeth from missions that went wrong. Belmont’s scars take a little longer to spot. It is easy to see what draws them to the wilds. The scenery is absolutely stunning – from the bright, spreading glaciers to muddy, Mordor-like swamps, all handsomely shot by Mauro Fiore – and there is nobody around for miles. Well, almost nobody. “There’s nothing like the quiet of nature, a whole world all to yourself,” notes a weathered old-timer played by J.K. Simmons, who briefly interrupts their idyll.
[4] When the pair fly back to civilisation, however, Belmont suffers a heart attack at the controls. A terrifyingly realistic crash – mostly shot from inside the plane – sees Odin flung free, while Belmont is trapped in the wreckage at the bottom of a lake. Touchingly, as the plane goes down, Odin tries to protect his master, though much worse is to come for both of them.
[5] What follows is a tale as old as Jack London’s The Call of the Wild – though Belmont prefers Cormac McCarthy’s The Road. Our injured heroes are forced to trek cross-country, facing inhospitable terrain, angry predators and PTSD flashbacks as they try to reach safety.
[6] Crucially, Ayer has the confidence to build the sense of danger slowly, giving the audience plenty of time to witness the depths of their bond – and the beauty of the landscape – as the noose tightens inexorably around them.
[7] While not as dramatic as The Grey or as ambitious as The Revenant, the film still features tense moments, such as a hair-raising canyon crossing and a fearsome nighttime encounter. Along the way, Belmont requires help from his fiercely loyal four-legged friend – there is even a scene in which Odin helps him reset a bone. However, there are also some surprisingly bad CGI interlopers and a conclusion so syrupy sweet it might deter more cynical viewers.
[8] A film as stark and simple as this stands or falls on the chemistry of its leads, and both deliver. Pitt is good, but Uber is the real star of the show. To remain unmoved by their obvious love would take a heart of stone.
Source: South China Morning Post, September 22
