A devastating pandemic, environmental destruction and a depleted society reduced to anarchy are the themes at play in Sir Ridley Scott's latest film The Dog Stars. Based on Peter Heller's 2012 novel of the same name, the stars of the sci-fi film say they hope its themes will makes viewers question the parts of their lives they take for granted. Jacob Elordi stars as the lead character, Hig, a former mechanic turned pilot, who spends his days flying over Colorado with his dog Jasper, searching for a better life.
He tells the BBC the film portrays "the human condition", with the characters living in "the apocalypse" but "still looking for something else and hoping for something else". The film, which features a star-studded cast of Guy Pearce, Margaret Qualley and Josh Brolin, is set in the 2030s, where only those immune from a deadly flu remain alive. It immediately draw parallels with the Covid pandemic with its aerial shots of abandoned cities and Hig's constant search for resources like food and medicine.
Elordi, who received his first Oscar nomination earlier this year for Frankenstein, says "there were a few moments I remember looking around [on set] and thinking it's strange to be doing this make-believe, when the reality is just behind us and just in front of us". He says a dystopian future like the one portrayed in the film is "frightening to think about" but "it's something we have to examine and remember, because we are on the cusp of these realities". The 29-year-old also says he resonates with his character's struggle to be content with life.
"Everything is sweet for us - we're able to walk around on the street, go to the shops, go to the park, have dinner with each other and we still go to bed and think 'What else is there?', 'What am I missing?', 'What's wrong?' and nothing is". This is also true for his co-star, Mare of Easttown and Memento star Pearce, who plays Pops, the survivor who meets Hig after emergency-landing his plane near his home. Pearce says the way the film highlights "this world we take for granted" is "pertinent" adding: "You can go to the supermarket and get food and wake up with your family - a lot of people even to this day don't live like that, so I am absolutely aware of [my] privilege".
The film's anarchical vibe is also portrayed through its environment, with scenes of scorched earth that resemble the images many of us have seen in places affected by wildfires. This is personal to both Pearce, who previously worked with Sir Ridley on Prometheus in 2012, and Elordi. Both were raised in areas of Australia that have been recently damaged by natural disasters.
"I've been in Australia when there's been serious bushfires," says Pearce, whose home state of Victoria was damaged earlier this year. "All round the world now there's just more and more effects of climate change so it's pretty terrifying that a lot of those things are not far away," he says. Elordi, who hails from Brisbane, is a little more hopeful about the future of the climate in the context of the film - pointing to other parts where you can see lush expanses of greenery.
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