The Dog Stars (2026)

Ridley's newest pic, The Dog Stars, is as close to a western as he ever did get to. A post-apocalyptic story, it's a very intimist film, 1 character, a dog, two characters, three characters, that's it. Oh, and a Cessna 1956 plane. Major character. 

Greatness, no zombies or super powered mutants or carnivorous plants. 

Now if you already read the reviews which I can't understand...? Worst ever for a Scott film??

The film is very slow and it builds atmosphere gradually. The three acts are separated smoothly. The landscape, the nature is another silent character, the green, the mountains vs. The Wasteland.

Incredibly the whole film was shot in Italy, with the Grand Junction sets built at Cinecitta. DOP is Erik Mesermschmit, David Fincher's later collaborator, here in his 1st cinema fare with Scott (he worked before with RS on TV's Raised by Wolves and The Dope Thief).

Comparisons with The Last of Us or The Walking Dead are wrong, closer is The Road by Cormac McCarthy. 

The Dog Stars is based on the 2012 book by Peter Heller and the script is by Mark L  Smith who wrote The Revenant.

Harry Gregon-Williams composed the score, which is part elegiac, part menacing, it's his 7th for a Scott film.

The soundtrack has also value, from opening credits in Hosier, to Van Morrison (Tupelo Honey), to the end in The Chieftains and Mick Jagger.

There is a most poetic scene at the end with the "mormons"countryfair that transcends Ridley Scott's cinema, an optimic message in a post-apocalyptic world.

To be seen on the Big Screen.

The IMAX thing is a gimmick tho.

3 1/2 out of 5, 7 out of 10 !