Jacob Elordi lives a realistic post-apocalyptic life in The Dog Stars

There has never been a shortage of post-apocalyptic films in movie history, with the genre proving popular since it allows viewers to confront fears about the real world without actually having to experience the extreme conditions depicted on screen. The Dog Stars deals with its version of the end of the world in ways that are alternately genteel, brutal, and downright wacky.

Hig (Jacob Elordi), a mechanic and pilot, lives on a rural airfield in Colorado alongside his prepper friend Bangley (Josh Brolin). An unspecified virus has wiped out most of humanity and the two of them have banded together to survive. As the film begins, Hig is making one of his occasional plane trips to Denver, gathering medical supplies, gas, and treats for both the two of them and a group of Mennonites who live close by.

While Bangley is happy being a loner and taking out anyone who dares step foot on their property, Hig wants to try to find other survivors, especially when he picks up a scratchy radio signal from Grand Junction. A perhaps ill-advised solo journey puts him in contact with Pops (Guy Pearce) and Cima (Margaret Qualley), a father-and-daughter living on their own, along with other groups who are much less welcoming.

Directed by Ridley Scott and written by Mark L. Smith, the film is a relatively slow-paced affair that is occasionally punctuated by moments of violence. On the plus side, that allows for plenty of character development for Hig — who’s still mourning the wife he lost and has a deep bond with his dog, Jasper — and Bangley, whose go-it-alone mentality makes it a little difficult to fathom how he ever came to trust Hig in the first place.

This is no zombie movie, and so while characters still fear exposure to the mysterious virus, it’s more about the finality of death than hordes of undead coming after them. There are however, desperate individuals and marauding groups that become occasional threats, and the manner in which they are dealt with in the film can be shocking. It’s easy to feel the menace from the more organized groups, but when small duos or trios are dispatched without even a word, it tests the audience’s moral compass.

The film has a mostly meandering quality instead of a specific plot as Hig explores the area in his plane. This works for the majority of the film, but a few sequences in the final 45 minutes of the film give the story an abruptly bizarre turn, making them feel like they belong in a totally different movie. Scott and Smith manage to right the ship before the film ends, but to say those elements come out of nowhere is an understatement.

Elordi, whose recent roles (Wuthering Heights, Frankenstein) have been showier, has a solid presence here, becoming someone whose expertise and continuing grief are completely believable. Brolin makes for a nice foil as a man who gets by on machismo. Qualley, who tends to be over-the-top in her parts, keeps things low-key, which makes Cima interesting and sympathetic. Pearce goes a bit manic as the over-protective father, but it works in the context of the film.

Like a lot of post-apocalyptic films, The Dog Stars leaves you with more questions than answers, but the time spent with the characters makes up for any nagging plot discrepancies. Save for a couple of weird sections, the film stays grounded in reality, making it feel like an entertaining meditation on how life could be should disaster strike.

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The Dog Stars opens in theaters on August 28.