Very few actors can lead action films once they reach their 60s, and not because they physically can’t, but because it can be extremely dangerous. Not everyone is like Tom Cruise, but some still try to be comparable. Brad Pitt falls into this category, with the release of F1 showcasing that he can still lead an action movie at the ripe age of 61. With its success, he hopes to continue that tragectory of compelling action star with David Ayer’s Heart of the Beast, a melancholic action drama consisting mainly of Pitt and a dog. While Pitt is still able to hold his own in the action sequences, the rest of the film fail to be as compelling.

The film follows Brad Pitt as army veteran James Belmont. James and his dog, Odin, spend their days traveling the world in their plane and camping at various mountain sites. After a sudden heart attack leads James to crash his plane in the Alaskan forests, he and Odin must fight for survival and reach safety before the forest consumes them both. James also deals with mental trauma as he struggles to cope with his time in the military.

The film’s simple premise is both its strength and weakness. Because the film focuses mainly on James and Odin, it has few dialogue scenes, letting the visuals drive the story. Moments of James and Odin playing in the open fields add life and joy and beautifully emphasize the film’s themes of companionship. Scenes of dialogue between James and Odin aren’t nearly as compelling as ones where they are phsycially bonding with each other, showing the truth of “actions speak louder than words.” Sadly, these sequences don’t happen often, and most of the film feels lifeless and overly dramatic.

Characters getting stuck in the wilderness are far from a new concept for a movie, and Heart of the Beast fails to understand that. From the opening scene, the movie clearly telegraphs how the story will go and where the characters end up, leaving little intrigue for the 90 minutes in between. Oftentimes, movies can get away with being predictable if something interesting is happening elsewhere, but David Ayer’s safe approach to telling the story left much to be desired. While it’s far from the worst screenplay of the year, it could easily be argued as the most generic of 2026 so far.

Throughout their journey, James and Odin encounter numerous obstacles, ranging from wild animals to rough terrain. While you want the characters to get out of each situation safe and sound, the film never discusses exactly where they need to go to be safe. Before the crash, James and Odin are already living in the wilderness, so it never feels urgent for them to get anywhere in particular. Even when the story should feel tense, it never carries weight because the movie never gives the characters a true destination.

Brad Pitt once again delivers as a compelling action star, but his dramatic work falls far below what you expect from someone of his stature. Because the film lacks dialogue for most of the runtime, it relies on Pitt’s performance to build the character, and he doesn’t seem as committed to the emotional side as to the physical. In the silent moments when he reflects on his life in the military, it looks more like Pitt is staring off into space. What’s even more shocking about Pitt’s performance is that Odin, played by Uber, constantly outacts him. Dogs will always drive empathy, but Uber surprisingly delivers a layered performance that carries all the film’s emotional beats. From sadness to aggression, Uber is compelling in all aspects of performance.

Heart of the Beast thankfully uses a real dog to portray Odin, but that’s not the case for the other animals in the film. While it’s justifiable to use CGI to create animals like bears in certain sequences, using bad CGI isn’t acceptable. Because an actual dog shares the scene with the CGI animals, the visual effects stand out even more, which completely removes any tension that otherwise could’ve been present. Although they managed to blend the green-screen sequences well with the real environments, the computer-generated animals were not compelling in the slightest.

The straightforward premise and empathetic characters should’ve made for an emotional experience, but a lack of tension and generic structure make Heart of the Beast far less memorable than it should’ve been. As a survival thriller and trauma drama, this may not be the worst option out there, but there are definitely better ones. At least it showcased once again that dogs can be great actors.

Heart of the Beast is now playing in theaters nationwide.

Rating: 4/10

Oscar Prospects:

None.