Heart of the Beast is mostly a two-hander, where, around this time of night, retired Special Forces Green Beret, James Belmont (Brad Pitt – F1: The Movie) and his canine companion, Odin, are out and about.
He’s taking a trip – currently by a lake in Alaska, and both suffer from PTSD, since Odin is a war service dog, and the pooch is played by multiple mutts.
James flies a light Cessna plane, but crashes it following a heart attack, with Odin going for a solo flight, around 200 metres ago…
However, as they go up against the elements, plus vertigo, falling, bears and wolves, it’s a long walk to reconnect with civilisation, but is a pleasant and engaging 101 minutes in their company, including a brief meet-up with former gold miner, Watkins (JK Simmons – The Accountant 2), and as it just plays out from A to B – and to avoid spoilers – I didn’t exactly take a lot of notes.
That said, it hasn’t exactly set the box office alight, as Heart Of The Beast has a budget of $82m, and so far has only taken $57.5m.
NOTE: There are no mid- nor post-credits scenes.
Heart of the Beast is in cinemas now, and is available to pre-order on 4K Blu-ray, Blu-ray and DVD.
Detailed specs:
Cert: 
Running time: 101 minutes
Release date: September 23rd 2026
Studio: Paramount Pictures
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 (ARRIRAW (4.5K), Super 35)
Cinema: Odeon Trafford Centre
Rating: 7.5/10
Director: David Ayer
Producers: David Ayer, Olivia Hamilton, Brad Pitt, Marty Bowen
Writer: Cameron Alexander
Music: Jared Michael Fry
Cast:
James Belmont: Brad Pitt
Watkins: JK Simmons
Amber: Anna Lambe
Military Soldier: Justin Melnick
Military Soldier: Shaun DeZern
Odin: Uber, Seeka, Ryker, Hondo
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.