Directed by: David Ayer
Starring: Brad Pitt, JK Simmons
Heart of the Beast is a beautifully photographed adventure in which its heroes, retired soldier James Belmont (Pitt) and his canine pal Odin who served with him in combat, battle through the unforgiving Alaskan wilderness trying to survive long enough to make it to a desolate road where they could be rescued. The opening of Heart of the Beast has James landing his Cessna on a peaceful lake and later he and Odin are lakeside with James drinking beer and flyfishing.
However, at night, both James and Odin deal with PTSD from the horrors of war. This is the first movie I've seen in which we witness a dog endure the same PTSD effects as their human counterparts. James has to talk him down from his nightmares in a moving scene. A lonesome stranger (Simmons) happens upon James and Odin and spends time by the campfire, which is pretty much the most dialogue you'll find in the movie. The rest is James talking to Odin (and by extension us). While flying the Cessna in an attempt to flee before a bad storm, James suffers a heart attack and crashes the plane into a lake. The plane sinks, and James and Odin manage to survive but not without wounds. James nurses Odin back to health and the two work from a map to determine they must hike 58 miles over one week to reach the road to rescue.
James and Odin encounter ravenous wolves, rampaging rivers, and other obstacles which test their mettle and their physical well-being past the threshold most others couldn't tolerate. The Alaskan wilderness is seen as both beautiful and treacherous sometimes in the same scene. Pitt is completely convincing as the former soldier who relies on his survival skills to make it as far as he does. But Odin is not simply a dog, but one we view with love and compassion just as he does for James. He's the co-star of Heart of the Beast and in many ways its soul.
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